You see, I’m a trained musician and music teacher with a degree in Bachelor of Music Majoring in Pedagogy and Performance from the Yerevan Conservatory Pedagogical Institute.
As such, I’ve been teaching music and playing instruments for over 40 years.
Music is my passion and teaching this artform brings me great joy.
Many people think that you need to have a pre-given talent to learn music.
I believe that anyone can learn music, technique and expression with the right guidance and coaching. As with everything, talent only gets you so far, the rest depends on knowledge, learning, effort and practice.
As such, my goal as a teacher is to ensure that students understand the magic of sound and are able to express themselves – thoughts, emotions and opinions – through instruments. I ensure that students learn to play their instruments with the correct posture and practice both their left-hand and right-hand techniques in equal measure. During and after their lesson, I want all of my students to believe in themselves and adopt a “can do “ attitude which will lead them to create their own music so that they can play and enjoy the beautiful sounds that are dearest to them.
As you can see, there is a lot involved in learning to play a musical instrument, which is why finding the right tutor, teacher or coach is so important.
These challenges can be technical or expressive (as in performative) and they can be resolved once they are identified.
For example, having the correct posture when playing instruments is extremely important.
Why?
Because this can affect the sound.
Let me explain.
Let’s say that a student is experiencing back pain or maybe an itchy shoulder. The back pain would cause discomfort while sitting at the piano and so affect their concentration while playing. Meanwhile, the itchy shoulder would be a distraction that the student will attend to. If you’re learning to play the violin and scratching your shoulder, this will affect the sound coming from the instrument. Not only will this affect the tuning, but it can also impact a student’s motivation and morale. You see, if poor posture is a chronic issue, it will impact on all their efforts and lead them to feel deflated and in many cases, give up.
Music should bring joy and be fun, and not deflating.
This is why identifying the foundational challenges and issues is so important. Something like poor posture can be fixed and this can lead to a myriad of benefits.
As a music and instrument teacher, this is my number one priority. I want my students to enjoy music and also to learn to play in a way that is safe, correct and sustainable.
In order to do this, I always stay abreast of the most current research.
Over the decades I have read many books to understand the core fundamentals needed to learn how to play instruments, including books on the ‘instrumental art of technique’ and others written by famous instrumentalists.
I also believe that attending and participating in open classes with other teachers and well-known instrumentalists, is a vital contribution to my student’s growth. This is why I do this often.
This knowledge – as well as my own education and experience as a teacher and musician – has helped me create my own teaching style that has brought many of my students positive results.
As a teacher I put incredible emphasis on teaching the right posture and technique as these give a student the solid foundation from where they can further develop their musicality. Mastering these also helps to bring the elements of fun and joy into learning.
Violin tutoring is a valuable resource for students of all ages and skill levels who want to improve their violin playing. Whether you're a beginner just starting out or an advanced player looking to refine your technique, a qualified violin tutor can help you reach your musical goals.
Piano tutoring is a valuable resource for students of all ages and skill levels who want to improve their piano playing. Whether you're a beginner just starting out or an advanced player looking to refine your technique, a qualified piano tutor can help you reach your musical goals.