FAQs
- What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
I usually allow for one free consultation to make sure the student and I are a good fit before having them commit to anything. While no experience is necessary at the beginning, I usually like to see if the student has any experience first, and they are encouraged to bring an instrument to the consultation and play something and I get an idea of where they are technically. I also get to interview them about what they want to get out of the lessons, for it is all about the student! Some do it just simply for the joys of playing music as a hobby, for example, and there is nothing wrong with that. And any questions for me are happily encouraged.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I hold a bachelor's degree in music performance with a concentration in violin from Shenandoah University, and I went back to Shenandoah for a master's degree in music pedagogy, also in violin. Pedagogy is the art of teaching one-on-one lessons: the analysis of a player's physical approach to an instrument, the study of methods used by instructors, and studying the management the business of teaching in a studio environment.
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
I first worked in a small music school as a private instructor in 1998, and eventually left to pursue a job in public school music programs. After teaching in Fairfax County for a year as a music specialty substitute teacher and Prince William County Schools as a contracted orchestra teacher for 2 years, I decided to work more one-on-one with my students and started teaching out of music stores for 8 years in the northern Virginia area while touring on the weekends with my band. Shortly after attaining the master's degree, I opened up my own studio in 2011, and here I still am!