Viola Lessons Midwest

Instruments: Piano, Guitar, Violin, Viola, Bass Guitar, Synthesizer, Banjo, Ukulele, Mandolin, Lute, Electric Violin, Fiddle, Electric Guitar, Classical Guitar, Acoustic Guitar

I create play-along videos, so that kids have something specific to practice at home. I use "Read this First" as a note reading book. Students play along with me and also by themselves at lessons. Eventually kids can gather together and play as a group if they wish to do so. I start with memorization, and easy ways of writing down the songs... and eventually kids will learn to read music, after they've secured a basic technique. Read More

Instruments: Violin, Viola, Flute, Piccolo

I have been teaching private lessons for over ten years to students aged 8 to 80 and with all levels of experience and expertise. Lessons will always include work on fundamentals and technique in addition to the piece or pieces. I try to make sure my student always feels like he or she has accomplished something in the lesson. Although I am regimented in the technique, I like to give my students options when deciding on a piece to work on. Read More

Instruments: Piano, Voice, Viola

For high school-aged students interested in the classical method or those wishing to enter into solo/ensemble festival, I typically start with folk songs and the essential Italian Art Songs. For high school-aged students interested in musical theater and/or pop music, we try to find common ground on their musical interests and find pieces based on that. For adults, I try to find out what the student is interested in, and guide my instruction accordingly to keep the lessons engaging and fun, no matter their ability level. Read More

Instruments: Violin, Viola, Mandolin, Electric Violin, Fiddle

For beginners, I recommend the first two Suzuki books as they are a useful way of learning basic technique with a simple, song-by-song approach. For intermediate to advanced students, I utilize scales and etudes from Schradiek and Jacob Dont, and strongly recommend that they look into the six sonatas and partitas for solo violin by J.S. Bach. It is absolutely important for a professional musician to have good technique, including intonation, extreme agility with the right hand, and good tone production overall, and these are the three things which my methods focus on primarily. Read More

Instruments: Violin, Viola, Electric Violin

I have been a music teacher for as long as I could remember. Since I was young, I loved teaching my friends and even got a couple of them to start learning the violin so that we could all play together. Formally, I started giving private lessons during my college days, teaching 4-5 year old students to play the violin and piano. In the last 10 years, I have explored further by teaching a wider range of age groups (3-70), different skill levels (beginner through advanced), and a variety of genres (classical, pop, K-pop, rock, blues). Read More