Cello Lessons

Suzuki Cello Lessons

Weekly Individual Lessons 

Individual lessons provide all the tools the parent and child need to work together at home on their musical repertoire, technique and note-reading. Many aspects of a child’s development are nurtured during their lessons, including their sense of wonder, curiosity, discipline, memory, focus, creativity, co-ordination, fine motor skills, self-esteem, confidence and the deep satisfaction that comes with the ability to do something very well. 

Encouraging an Early Start

It’s never too late to learn an instrument! However, it’s much easier, more natural and more effective when a child gets an early start. Just like learning a language, playing an instrument becomes second-nature when a child starts early on in their lives. I am just as passionate about teaching a beginning 4-year-old as I am teaching an advanced teenager preparing for college auditions, and every possible learning stage in between. 

Step-by-Step Mastery 

Success breeds success! By breaking down each skill and piece of music into the most basic units, students are able to carefully master each step along the way, building confidence, ease of playing and ultimate success in performance. Beyond just the physical and mental skills required to play an instrument, mastery gives a musician the freedom to play music from their heart.

The “Mother Tongue” Approach

The “Mother Tongue” approach is based on Dr. Suzuki’s belief that all children can learn when given the opportunity. Children are lovingly and patiently taught their native language by listening to, absorbing and imitating what they hear around them. They are encouraged to repeat the sounds they hear, and they begin to comprehend the meaning these sounds represent as they slowly and constantly build their own vocabularies.  

Just as in language acquisition, listening and developing a library of sound are key building blocks in learning to play an instrument. Students listen to their current pieces daily just as they do when learning a language.  They listen to and internalize what they will be learning so that they have a clear sense in their “mind’s ear” of what they are striving to create with their cello. If a child can vividly imagine how something is supposed to sound, the learning process unfolds more quickly and with less frustration than it would if they started with decoding ideas from a page.  We learn to speak long before we learn to decode written symbols or apply grammatical rules. 

Just as learning to read words is crucial in language literacy, so is learning to read notes in music literacy. We work on and achieve note-reading fluency in parallel to developing the ability to immediately play what we hear or can imagine.

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Parent-Teacher-Child Triangle

The parents and the teacher work together to nurture the ability of the child. The teacher and parent are the foundation that supports the child at the top of this triangle, not only to instill a music education, but to develop the whole child.  

The parent attends the lessons, takes notes and practices the assignments daily with their child. As the “practice partner”, the parent creates an encouraging learning environment at home and directs home practice with the teacher’s guidance for consistent progress. The parents do not need any prior knowledge of music as they will be guided step-by-step how to help their child at home.

The parent-teacher-child team works together in such a way that the student learns how to successfully manage their own time, develop excellent problem-solving skills and establish good practice habits in order to achieve their goals. These are important life skills that give students the ability to strive for excellence and succeed in any area of life they put their minds to. 

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Ensemble Lessons

Cello Choir provides a social environment for students to practice their skills with others. They learn the art of leading and following their peers and gain confidence and inspiration from playing with their fellow cellists. They refine their listening skills, match tone, pitch, tempo and style, and their individual parts come together to create and shape beautiful music.  

In Cello Choir, we are part of a greater whole and build a sense of community. Everyone strives towards a common goal and students feel free to play with spirit and fearless enthusiasm. The synergism of playing in an ensemble like this is fun, empowering and rewarding. Children and parents alike forge friendships and together we bring the gift of music to the greater community through performance. 

Engaging and outside-the-box activities makes learning fun! We explore a wide variety of musical styles, from Bach to Beatles to ragtime, tangos, rock, blues and film scores. Music is arranged for all levels of ability to play in harmony together.

Our Learning Environment

“What is man's ultimate direction in life? It is to look for love, truth, virtue, and beauty”

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“It is in our power to educate all the children of the world to become a little better as people, a little happier.”

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“Perhaps it is music that will save the world.”
― Shinichi Suzuki

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Enjoyment is essential to success in learning.  When teachers, parents and peers collaboratively praise beautiful playing and effort, children respond naturally with a feeling of enjoyment. 

Great instruction creates habits of appreciation. Noticing and acknowledging beauty is an acquired skill. These skills are introduced and practiced consistently throughout the family and Studio community.

Genuine delight in music-making is natural because it reflects the environment. When a community is designed for the purpose of assigning value to beauty, this focus naturally becomes the product. 

Studio families develop highly effective Educational Toolkits. An education process that clearly syncs the home-teachers’ objectives with Instructor goals, results in a unique ease for families—-a relaxed security in learning.

The Studio attracts and requires a community of willing and energized participants. It is precisely this environment that provides confident progress, which results in freedom of expression for the student.