The Method: Designed to Imitate Learning to Speak

Designed to work with the youngest children: Every Child learns to speak and every child can learn to play the violin - if given a nurturing environment.
Parent involvement: Parents get a roadmap in six introductory lessons before their children begin, and then attend weekly lessons and group classes and always practice with their children.
The child sets the pace: "Never rush, never rest." Those were Suzuki's words and I believe he was right.
Love and support: Suzuki parents and teachers celebrate every achievement with the student with love, support, and a sense that this is a priority.
Competent Learners: Through learning violin, children develop creative problem solving, strengthen executive functioning and emotional regulation, traits which are necessary to be a successful and fulfilled member of today’s society, find and keep friends and maintain supportive relationships.
Speak first, then read: We don’t learn to speak after learning to read. It's the same way with music: first we play by ear, then we add the element of reading music when the student is very comfortable with the instrument.
Curriculum (or repertoire): The Suzuki method uses 10 books that begin with Twinkle and end with a Mozart violin concerto. Each piece builds skills logically and sequentially and is also delightful to the learner. Because the repertoire is the same everywhere Suzuki students around the world can gather to play together
Group Class: Group class is an essential component of learning to play an instrument, offering fun, motivation, and ensemble skills (learning to play together).
Review: When we learn a new word, we don’t lose the old words. We add to our vocabulary. In the same way, we continuously repeat and practice pieces we've learned to make them even easier as we gain new skills.
Learn by ear: Babies take in the sounds of their native tongue, and over time they learn to pronounce it perfectly. It is the same with violin. The child spends time listening to the pieces he/she is going to play, performed by a great artist, and internalizes the music and the beautiful tone all at the same time.
It works: Developed after World War II, the Suzuki method has produced many of the world's finest musicians, including Joshua Bell, Hilary Hahn and Brian Lewis.
A better world: Despite its effectiveness, the purpose of the method is not to create professional musicians. Suzuki believed that the process of learning to play an instrument helped children become sensitive, mindful, and creative individuals who cared about beauty and art and were excellent problem-solvers. He felt that no one with these traits could create ugliness.

A Suzuki Education with Nora Consists of:

First-Year Parent Course (year-one ONLY): Six hours of parent training prior to the child starting lessons in my studio, or sometimes overlapping with start of lessons. This applies to beginners and transfer students.
39 Private Lessons (34 during school year + 5 during summer) and 20 Group Classes (During 2020-2021 school year, due to coronavirus, numbers may be slightly altered)
Two Solo/Group Recitals
Special events such as outreach events, field trips to concerts, potlucks and picnics