Dr. Mosher: The Road to Reading

Mina Willander ('23)

He began to intern with a music director for a very large Church in Texas where he did things related to  music leading. He distributed music, set up stages and microphones for performances, planned those productions and performances, as well as directed small vocal ensembles and bands, such as jazz bands. 

This internship showed Dr. Mosher that his passion did not have to be just a hobby.  “This experience was a defining one for me in many ways,” he said. “I not only saw what you could do with music, but what it could be to bring others together into various groups in order to make music together. It allowed me to be a part of something larger than myself and use my love of music as a conduit for that. This pointed me in the direction of pursuing it in college and beyond.”

Before RMHS

Dr. Mosher has been in the field of music since middle school. Before finding his first non-volunteer opportunity in college, he was interning and learning all the tips and tricks to teaching and spreading the joy that is music. 

Throughout his life, Dr. Mosher has done a multitude of things relating to his career now.  All of these experiences prepared him for the job he has here at RMHS. “I enjoy the vast world that the arts can be and the multitude of ways it can express itself as well as the powerful impact it can have on people at a very deep level,” Dr. Mosher expressed. 

Dr. Mosher was a piano major and studied music education at Howard Payne University, where he received his undergraduate degree. From there, he attended the University of Houston where he got his Masters in music theory, and finally UMass Amherst where he got his PhD in Music Theory. 

The Reading Experience 

Both the choir director and arts department head aspects of his job allow Dr. Mosher to have a hands-on role in the lives of many young musicians and actors. 

Dr. Mosher has done an outstanding job bringing the Reading arts community together. As the arts department head he makes sure all schools have what they need to bring art and music into the lives of young children, like he was introduced to when he was young. Dr. Mosher explains that his goal was to ensure all children had the opportunity,  “to experience, to create, to perform, to share with others the power of artistic practice within a community” and that those values can be shared and expressed in ways that are “both individual and communal.”

Dr. Mosher has described his time here at RMHS as an “amazing experience.” Some things he highlighted was the welcoming environment and colleagues he interacts with every day.  “It’s a fantastic culture to be a part of and to continue to hone. My colleagues within the arts are a very supportive and tight-knit community of educators who are passionate about the students and the artistic craft that they develop in their students each and every day.”  

Along with his colleagues, Dr. Mosher is grateful to have the help of parents of arts students. “The parents of our students have been tremendously encouraging and fabulous volunteering and support structures,” he said. All this support, he explains, helps “enable the programs and students that make them up to flourish.” Dr. Mosher is also very appreciative towards the district as a whole. “They have also shown support for the arts in Reading in so many ways since I’ve been here, recognizing the value it offers our students and our community; I couldn’t be happier about that.” Dr. Mosher also mentioned how thankful he was to his dedicated students, who in turn are also very appreciative of him. 

Leaving an Impact

If you talk to any of Dr. Mosher’s students, it’s easy to tell he is making a great impact on RMHS. Will O’Connor (‘24), Liam Synott (‘23), and Laurie Wise (‘23) all work closely with Dr. Mosher to help plan choir events and make sure everything runs smoothly. 

Liam Synott has been a choir officer for 2 years. Last year he worked as the secretary and this year he is the director of the choral group, The Crescendudes. Synott explains, “He stepped into the role graciously. He listens to a lot of student feedback when we have decisions to make for the choir as a whole.” He also said how Dr. Mosher watched how things usually ran last year, while making good changes. “He spent the first year getting used to our traditions that we have here, while also trying to introduce his own. And I feel like this year he’s really come into his own as the director. He’s making a lot of good changes!”

Will O’Connor, the current choir President, and Laurie Wise, the current choir Vice President, work with Dr. Mosher both in choir and in the drama club. O’Connor has been in musicals both as a part of the cast and crew. He was the assistant director in the drama club’s production of Scrooge! this past December.  “He has been pretty amazing,” O’Connor recalled. “He is very accommodating and he goes with the flow a lot. He helps rehearsals run smoothly and makes sure everyone knows their parts which is very helpful especially outside of rehearsals.”

Wise played the Ghost of Christmas Past in Scrooge! With this role came many music rehearsals with Dr. Mosher to learn her songs. She describes him as “very approachable” when learning new music. “For example if you are trying to learn a group song or a solo song you can easily go to him and set up a time to practice.” She said very similar things about his directing in a choir setting, “He always makes sure we know our parts in time for whatever concert or performance we have coming up. He is really detail oriented and I really appreciate that.”

Dr. Mosher has made connections with people, students and staff all across the district. “Going into last year I recognized that I was going to experience a lot of novel pieces to the job. I look at it as an adventure. On any adventure there will be risks you take, elements of the unknown, mountaintop experiences—all of the above. This keeps it from being anything but boring, and I love that.”