Suzuki Violin - Discussion

[quixation]

chamonix:

Hi Quiaxtion,


You are welcome.

Yup, a lot hinges on practices, practices and more practices in learning an instrument, so I realized. Besides parental support, a good teacher is also crucial. Sometimes the first teacher a child has will determine the level of interest. So, take time to look for a good teacher who can work well with your kid’s temperament.



Hi Ocean,

Ah, so our kids shared the same teacher. :celebrate: I must admit it’s not easy to be his students (or the parents sitting in). He takes music seriously and expects his students to adopt the same attitude too.

Maybe you can seek the teacher’s advice on what can be done to help your son to sustain his interest? Btw, even for 1-1 lessons, the kids will have 1 group session for every 3 lessons. But it's a lot more work on the parents.

In any case, it’s a good thing you exposed him to music since young. Even if he decides to stop, it’s likely he might pick up the instrument later on. Such is the case with my friend’s sons. So, all the past training do not necessary come to naught.



Hi MommyNg,

I also noticed the earlier pieces are much shorter and repetitive. Probably, the earlier songs are just training and preparing them for the more difficult pieces later on. Thanks for sharing your girl’s experience. Looks like I need to start learning the pieces myself soon. Ever since the graduation concert, my son has been asking when he can start learning Gavotte :roll: . Were you there at the graduation concert? A 4 year old girl performed Gavotte on solo. She's really cute, especially when she did the pizzicato!

Thanks for the MIDI files. Ever since he got over the previous bump, he now practices playing along with the CD music. So far he has no problem keeping up with it. It will be great if he can also practice along with a slower accompaniment, something we lacked of. It certainly makes practices more fun. Thanks!

Hi,

Can you recommend any good teachers?

[metz]

quixation:

Hi,

Can you recommend any good teachers?

Hi Quixation,

My kids' teacher is famous for his strictness but he's in the West. Maybe MommyNg can help? Otherwise, you might want to try Mac's school at Forum. Heard they have one teacher who is pretty good with young kids.

[mommyNg]

ha ha chamonix, I know this question will pop up sooner or later!


Actually I am also looking for a good Suzuki violin teacher in Singapore for my 6-year-old daughter, and so I can't really recommend one for you, quixation. Reason being my daughter's current violin teacher is not in Singapore - we are returning Singaporeans from overseas - not yet, but soon to be, and I'm a super KS mom (don't I feel a sense of belongingness in this forum?), so I already want to start looking for information...

I also heard Mac's school has pretty good reputation too! Keep the recommendations coming!

[quixation]

Anyone has any comments about Mandaville ?


And particularly any teachers besides Sylvia Khoo for suzuki violin?

[metz]

Oh, when will you be returning? At the pace your girl is progressing, she might be in time to perform the Book 2 song in the Graduation Concert next March!

[ChiefKiasu]

quixation:

Anyone has any comments about Mandaville ?


And particularly any teachers besides Sylvia Khoo for suzuki violin?

Do a search in the search box on our http://www.kiasuparents.com. There are some comments on Mandeville spread across our site.

[megbryan]

quixation:

And particularly any teachers besides Sylvia Khoo for suzuki violin?

Ms Yap Shu Mei

[karmeleon]

chamonix:

Hi phankao,
<snip>
For a tone-deaf person like me, violin is definitely beyond me. In the beginning, I don’t dare even make my son practice b’cos the violin was frequently out of tune. I had no idea how to tune it. It was only later when I bought an electronic tuner that he started practicing more regularly. Hopefully, the tuner will turn out to be a wise investment for us.

Even with the tuner, you still need to tune it!!! I get frustrated myself with the tuning esp on the days that my ears seem to just have gone crazy.

[OCEAN]

Hi mommyNg/ Hi Chamonix


how old is your son (and his group)?
Most of them will be reaching seven in a few months time, including my son.

I still don't understand why he would suddenly teach the group by reading notes.
The parents of this group could have been relying on him too much. Guess this is the only way to help those parents to coach the child.

Maybe you can seek the teacher’s advice on what can be done to help your son to sustain his interest?
To sustain interest is one thing, but he has been rubbing and blowing his nose every now and then that it becomes a phobia for me to even ask him to touch the violin.

In any case, it’s a good thing you exposed him to music since young. Even if he decides to stop, it’s likely he might pick up the instrument later on.
In fact I have no regret even if he has to stop the lesson now . The lessons have provided him with a strong musical foundation. I'm glad that he was being taught with a start of Alphabet Notes, rather than Do Re Me. I tested him last night if he still can remember the Alphabet notes for Minuet 2. He sang the whole song for me. Then I just remind him the key signature of this song, F# and highlight the D sharp and D natural notes for this song. That's the only thing I can do for him so that he can still survive in his violin class.

Now, I am looking forward to his keyboard class starting soon which is in the curriculum of music lesson of his school this year for all P1 and P2 pupils. I am so excited! Hope that I can learn something from him.

[metz]

Hi Karmeleon,


Are you using the traditional tuner? We are using an electronic tuner which uses colors as an indication - red => too high, green => right, orange => too low.


Hi Ocean,

Your son's allergy to rosin sounds bad. But if he's gonna continue with violin, do keep a lookout for the rosin I mentioned earlier on. It costs about $12.50.

From your description, your son seems to be doing well in his class. Just that his allergy to rosin is affecting his learning. Anyway, you have done a great job! Give yourself a pat!

Keyboard class as part of school's curriculum? That certainly sounds interesting and fun. And yes, we get to learn too as the kids pick up new things. That's one exciting part of parenting. I'm quite tempted to get a full sized violin and learn along with them too. Just that i don't know if my fingers are still nimble enough... :?