Hacienda Heights, CA Music Theory Lessons

and plays reggae music, top hits, movie music, and rock for professional violin events.

Jill also is classically trained and plays in professional orchestras like Dana Point Symphony and Symphony Irvine.

Jill is patient and has a variety of students and able to adjust to each student's personality and needs.

Jill has performed as a solo violinist at the Orange County Fair in 2007 and 2008 with a Bluegrass band and was a concerto competition winner in 2004 performing Haydn's Violin Concerto No. 2 with the South Orange County Chamber Orchestra as a soloist.

Method books used:

Piano students learn from the Faber & Faber books, classical piano books, Bastien method books, Snell, Hanon exercises, and scale books.

Violin and viola students use Suzuki method books along with reading music and playing all standard violin and viola literature outside of the Suzuki method. Students learn vibrato and shifting to other positions and learn from etude exercise books, scale studies using Carl Flesch books or Essentials for Strings books, and Sassmanshaus Early Start on violin, a fun method book for young violin students.

Etude books used: Wolfahrt, Kreutzer, Rode, Dont, Fiorillo, Gavines, and exercises from Schradiek and Sevcik. Composers and literature taught: concertos by Vivaldi, Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Hoffmeister, Stamitz, Mendelssohn, Wieniawski, and Kabalevsky to name a few. Bach Sonatas and Partitas and Bach cello suites for viola. Sonatas by Beethoven, LeClair, Vivaldi, Frank, Brahms, and more! Jill can also teach pop, fiddle, and has studied jazz improv and jazz theory.

Private violin students can participate in the Certificate of Merit program testing in Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach.

Students also learn to read music (Sight reading) and learn rhythm.

Jill has 2 optional recitals per year for students.

Jill can help students with orchestra auditions for local youth orchestras.

She has helped students get into All State and All Southern Youth Orchestras, join a youth orchestra that toured Europe, helped students with Certificate of Merit, and auditions and acceptance into the Orange County High School of the Arts.

She has taught at various music studios and coached music at high schools and middle schools in orange county.

*** Studio Equipment ***
Large, open living room space with an 88 key weighted upright keyboard. Seating for parents in couches and chairs. Foot stool for shorter piano students. Music stand light. Music Stand for Violin & Viola Students.

ty world premiers and re-imagined classics. Most notably she played the lead role of Keely Smith in the big band jazz musical “Louis and Keely: Live At The Sahara” during its eight-month run at Westwood’s Geffen Playhouse. She also formed her own rock band, The Honeysuckle Jones Revival, with whom she performed her own songs all over Los Angeles. And she began working as a studio session vocalist, providing demo vocals for other songwriters, as well as arranging and performing back-up vocals for original artists, including Laura Roppe (currently in the Top Ten on Billboard’s Uncharted list of emerging artists.) Crystal played the lead role of Brooke in the new operatic rock musical “The Burning Opera LA” during its Los Angeles run in 2011 as well as providing ensemble vocals and playing piano and bass. She also performs holiday tunes from the Golden Age of American songwriting with musical quartet The Sleigh Belles.

Crystal believes that music is serious business but that it should be fun. She encourages her students to play music they love, as well as expanding their musical knowledge. She is a firm believer in basics first and emphasizes theory and technique as the tools to support creativity and provide freedom, power and control. She believes effort beats talent every time and the student who practices consistently will see results, whatever their level of ability. Most of all, she believes we were all born to make music.

*** Lesson Details ***
Lesson structure varies depending on the student's instrument, age, level of experience and musical style. However, all lessons focus on:

Technique
Music theory
Performance style

After 3 or 6 months of consistent lesson attendance and practice, students will have a clear understanding of how their instrument works and how to care for it. They will be able to read basic music notation. They will be working toward clearly defined musical goals and they will have at least three performance pieces learned.

*** Studio Equipment ***
Loft Space: full size electric piano with weighted keys, small digital recorder, microphone, Garage Band, parents can sit in on lessons

*** Travel Equipment ***
I bring a small keyboard for vocal students with no piano, karaoke tracks and a digital recorder. I also bring a selection of games. Students are expected to purchase all necessary books and sheet music.

*** Specialties ***
Young beginners (piano)

desired.

*** Lesson Details ***
My approach to teaching lessons emphasizes making a friendly connection with my student. In my experience the student will learn the most when he or she feels comfortable asking questions and communicating with the instructor. I want my student to have fun and feel like progress is being made!

For beginners, the very first thing we go over is proper posture and bow hold. From there, we will move on to musical examples and basic violin techniques. I also incorporate basic music theory concepts into my lessons as needed. I have a strong grasp of that topic, and can teach my students more about it as necessary.

The materials I use include Suzuki(my favorite), String Builder, Laoureux, among others. I learned from a variety of materials in my lessons, and I find that great results come from using the best parts of multiple sources of materials.

*** Studio Equipment ***
The studio: lessons are taught in the living room. The student is expected to provide his or her own violin. Music stands are available. Parking is on the street.

Local Park: the lessons are in the community recreation center in a separate rehearsal room.

Seating is available at both locations.

*** Travel Equipment ***
I provide all printed materials, but I ask that my students to have their own violin.

*** Specialties ***
Classical, Blues, Folk, Bluegrass, Gypsy Jazz

teaching when she realized how impactful music education could be. She found it easy to explain something she was so passionate about and found her own ways of teaching by relating through her lifelong experiences of private instruction. Miss Keira aims for her students to be able to express themselves freely, so she focuses on blending classical technique with improvisational skills, while building confidence.

Miss Keira works with select artist development students, who have a serious passion and drive to work in the industry. She aims to connect these students with resources such as GRAMMY U, MusiCares, Steinway and Sons, etc.

Miss Keira has worked at some of the largest entertainment companies in the world, such as Universal Music Group, Interscope Records, The Recording Academy, The GRAMMY Foundation and Roland, which help her provide a unique perspective to her clientele of young, aspiring artists and musicians.

love or reading through a classical concerto, I’ll help prepare you or your child to tackle a wide variety of styles, without missing out on any of the basics that turn good players into phenomenal musicians. We all know it’s not about being the best. It’s about having fun, and playing music well is definitely fun.

Practice makes perfect! Learning an instrument helps build self-confidence and discipline. If your child’s bored, distracted, or just needs a constructive hobby, music is a great place to get them interested in something that will help them feel better about themselves, and the effects will be felt across everything else they do, through better studying habits to a more patient, diligent work ethic.

It’s also relaxing! Stressed about work? Need an escape? Maybe you want to sound like [insert piano player here]. Everybody has the power to learn an instrument. Seriously, there’s no such thing as “talent.” Just start lessons and get practicing! It really is that simple, and I’ll guide you through every step of the way.

I have a diverse background teaching students of all ages, from 3-year-olds to retirees alike, customizing what we learn to the individual student. We’ll learn how to read music just as easily as you read words; improvise and compose music of our own; and feel good playing any style: classical, jazz, rock, and all. My experience as a working musician in films, musical theater, and pop music, as well as classical concert music, allows me to appreciate and teach styles that many other instructors overlook, and I know full well that learning an instrument is not about becoming a professional; it’s about being able to connect to others or oneself through music… and also to just have fun! There’s no need to learn music we don’t like! It’s not about stuffing Beethoven into your kids’ ears… we just want to make music, be that Beethoven or Billy Joel.

Music lasts a lifetime. I know that’s a terrible cliché, but it’s true, and few other skills can claim that. I don’t want to sugarcoat it: it takes time to learn an instrument. It takes practice, and sometimes it’s frustrating. But the results are well worth it, and like a snowball rolling down a hill, the longer you do it, the faster you get… or something like that. There’s a legitimate analogy in there somewhere.

Now get out there and make some music! But start by signing up for lessons. I can’t wait to get started!

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“What’s that chord?” “Why does all my music sound the same?” “How do I fix this voicing?” “I just can’t get it out of my head!” …sound familiar? You’ve probably hit a rut. Or maybe you’re just starting out. Either way, you want your music to sound new, exciting, and to come out exactly how you hear it in your head. Yes… you CAN learn to compose music, you CAN learn to be more creative, and you CAN learn to share your sound with the world.

Film music, classical, jazz… whatever your interest, all music comes from the same place, and by learning a handful of basic concepts, you can apply these to whatever style you’re trying to write. Learning to emulate another musician involves knowing what they’re doing. Learning to create a groundbreaking sound requires that you know what’s already been done, and how to achieve it. Step by step, we’ll work our way there.

We’ll learn how to write cool, interesting chord progressions, how to write beautiful melodies, and how to voice chords. We’ll learn how to control the mood of our music, from making it sound relaxed to adding tension wherever we want. Maybe you’re trying to write for an orchestra, or just a small band. By learning the basics, you can then easily break away from what’s been done and come up with something truly new… the goal of any aspiring composer!