Latin with Emily F.

I have been playing the violin for more than twenty years (my parents believed in starting young!). My music degree is a minor in Violin Performance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel, where I played with the award-winning UNC Symphony Orchestra, a string quartet, an indie/folk band, and various other ensembles. For the past two years, I have been teaching foreign language full time at the middle school level, which has been an excellent way to develop my teaching abilities. I've always preferred tutoring and small group teaching to a full classroom, however, and I am excited about teaching private music lessons. I am primarily a classical player, but my interest and experience in traditional music (especially Celtic trad) have grown over the past few years. I learned primarily through the Suzuki method for my first ten years of lessons, and this is my preferred method of teaching. If you want to learn classical or fiddle music, I'll help you learn! If there are other styles you're interested in (pop, Broadway, etc.), we can certainly explore those genres together--in my experience, students who play music they like do much better than those who play what they're forced to. On the other hand, the value of good technique only increases the further you get into any genre, and classical repertoire is an excellent way to learn technique. Core aspects of my teaching philosophy: 1. Learning by ear. This is an incredibly valuable skill to have, and it's easier the sooner you start. If you play music, you should listen to music, a lot. 2. Being part of a community. If at all possible, I will help you find or set up group lessons, performance opportunities, or jam sessions on at least a monthly basis (though this may be trickier for online students). Having fun making music with other people often encourages students in their motivation to practice, desire to learn new technique, and knowledge of repertoire. 3. Practice. There are no shortcuts around this one. Like learning by ear, good practice habits are much better started soon than late!