Music has always been an integral part of my life - from dance as a 6 year old, to learning the piano and violin, to joining the school band and choir and then deciding to study violin at university. It is the way to nurture the soul, calm the mind, bring focus and purpose to our thoughts, and exercise the body. While we all experience music differently, we find common ground in it’s therapeutic nature, and our ability to immerse ourselves in it completely.
As a musician, I love being involved in the life-long learning of an instrument, in the drive to improve, and in the satisfaction we feel when we create something we are happy with. As a teacher, I know sometimes this internal motivation can be tricky to find! For all of my students I hope to find the “thing” that makes music special to them - be that style, goals, playing with friends, or that amazing feeling of being immersed in sound and learning. Our greatest successes do not always come from technical mastery, but from a combination of technique and musical soul. As we strive to improve our skills we must also strive to grow our understanding of music, what it means to us, and its part in our lives.
Enjoyment from musical playing or listening, and our ability to share this with our community, is truly the most amazing thing. As music is integral to my daily life, I hope it also becomes a creative outlet and a place of contentment and purpose to my students. To use a very cliché phrase - it is the gift that keeps giving. So get out there! Start practicing and performing and spreading the music “feels”!!!