Suzuki Violin - Discussion

[empressplace]

Oh it’s not Mandeville. We went to Mac’s Music School at Forum. My child was about 3.5 years old when the term started.

[empressplace]

I think the violin box she was referring to is the case for storing and transporting the violin.


There was so much hype on these early violin classes but my personal experience is that it is not worth the time and money. A teacher for preschool age children must know how to engage children of this age. After paying the high fees, the room is not even comfortable. Parents are expected to sit on the floor with the kids. There is hardly enough room to put your bags and the violin cases.

Comparing with other preschool enrichment classes like Julia Gabriel, the environment is really inferior.

Even if my kid is not learning that much, I don't mind attending if it is at least fun. However it was quite painful and boring.

The kids are sometimes given some stickers at the end of the class. To me, this is not an effective means to engage or interest children. What is more important is the technique used to teach. Children are very brutal. If it is not fun or engaging, they are just going to make things difficult.

And if your child happens to be a prodigy in the making, attending these classes is just going to slow his progress. I have seen no particular advantage in having a group class with other young children because the way the lessons are structured prevents any meaningful interaction between the kids. The room is so small that the kids could not move around much anyway.

[phankao]

empressplace:

I think the violin box she was referring to is the case for storing and transporting the violin.


There was so much hype on these early violin classes but my personal experience is that it is not worth the time and money. A teacher for preschool age children must know how to engage children of this age. After paying the high fees, the room is not even comfortable. Parents are expected to sit on the floor with the kids. There is hardly enough room to put your bags and the violin cases.

Comparing with other preschool enrichment classes like Julia Gabriel, the environment is really inferior.

Even if my kid is not learning that much, I don't mind attending if it is at least fun. However it was quite painful and boring.

The kids are sometimes given some stickers at the end of the class. To me, this is not an effective means to engage or interest children. What is more important is the technique used to teach. Children are very brutal. If it is not fun or engaging, they are just going to make things difficult.

And if your child happens to be a prodigy in the making, attending these classes is just going to slow his progress. I have seen no particular advantage in having a group class with other young children because the way the lessons are structured prevents any meaningful interaction between the kids. The room is so small that the kids could not move around much anyway.

LOL - funny that you should compare with Julia Gabriel, since I heard that the owner of Mac's himself goes with his daughter to JG and is a very involved father.

I've not seen nor tried Mac's, but one of my friends who has 2 of her kids there has great reviews of it.

Anyone has any reviews of Mandeville?

[empressplace]

Yeah I read all the good online reviews and chose Mac’s Music School over Mandeville due to proximity and timing. Both schools seem equally reputable online.


Mac told us that he was previously a partner of Mandeville together with Yap Shu Mei and subsequently he came out to set up Mac’s Music School. I thought Sylvia Khoo was the owner of Mandeville but actually according to Mac, she is an employee and Ms Yap Shu Mei may be the main person running Mandeville. I wouldn’t be surprised if both schools are not significantly different in terms of the suzuki violin class.

If you compare the published maximum class size of Mac and Mandeville, Mac would have a lower student teacher ratio. However in practice, this ratio is not strictly adhered to. Mac’s maximum is 6 but our class was 7. Imagine a full class of 7 plus 7 parents in that ensemble room.

My review is restricted to the Suzuki violin class for preschoolers. I cannot comment on the rest of the school. I am sure people have good experience with their individual teachers.

For a more informed choice, it is sometimes better to observe a class from the window rather than just rely on online reviews.

[phankao]

haha - those that i hear from are people that I really know who went to the classes at Mac’s. Yes, I am very clear the relations between the 3 parties. LOL. Yes, Yap Shu Mei is the Principal of Mandeville. Actually I also have friends who have children currently attending there, but I want to hear more. haha. greedy for more perspectives.

[Blissedsher]

Anyone here have kids who attended baby graduate after baby music in mandeville ? How to get into baby graduate ? Is it selected kids ?

[znzyzyzx]

7 only ? That is so much better than mandeville.

But the way you described how the class is conducted sounds similar to Mandeville :roll:

I think would be better to just start straight with one to one with a good teacher if the kids is above 4.

empressplace:

Yeah I read all the good online reviews and chose Mac's Music School over Mandeville due to proximity and timing. Both schools seem equally reputable online.

Mac told us that he was previously a partner of Mandeville together with Yap Shu Mei and subsequently he came out to set up Mac's Music School. I thought Sylvia Khoo was the owner of Mandeville but actually according to Mac, she is an employee and Ms Yap Shu Mei may be the main person running Mandeville. I wouldn't be surprised if both schools are not significantly different in terms of the suzuki violin class.

If you compare the published maximum class size of Mac and Mandeville, Mac would have a lower student teacher ratio. However in practice, this ratio is not strictly adhered to. Mac's maximum is 6 but our class was 7. Imagine a full class of 7 plus 7 parents in that ensemble room.

My review is restricted to the Suzuki violin class for preschoolers. I cannot comment on the rest of the school. I am sure people have good experience with their individual teachers.

For a more informed choice, it is sometimes better to observe a class from the window rather than just rely on online reviews.

[Blissedsher]

Is ms yap Shu mei good ?

[empressplace]

Mandeville is 12 maximum but when I enquired, there were only 6 in a class. For Mac Cheng's class, the room is so tiny that if he tried to increase any further, the kids would have to sit on parents' shoulders. Anyway you are effectively paying $40++ for maximum 6 minutes of personal attention. It's more effective to get individual lessons and you save time. Being cooped up in that small room for 45 minutes with an uncooperative kid is really torture. Watching the teacher go through the technique with other kids in the class is just not how I want to spend my precious weekend. Sometimes, the teacher runs out of time or spends too much time on the first few kids and would rush through when it comes to your kid's turn! I would rather pay more and get it over and done with in say 20 - 30 minutes.


It's not easy to find teachers willing to teach kids under 4 so these Suzuki classes are popular with parents sold on the idea of early music education. But now, I see the reason why there are few classes catering to this age group. It's probably slow progress and difficult and many teachers do not want to go through it or face a situation where parents' expectations are unmet.

znzyzyzx:

7 only ? That is so much better than mandeville.
But the way you described how the class is conducted sounds similar to Mandeville :roll:

I think would be better to just start straight with one to one with a good teacher if the kids is above 4.

[Blissedsher]

So empressplace do u recommand a 1-1 lesson for 3year old? Or don even bother learning at this age?