My Studio Policy

Tuition and Payment Policies

Monthly tuition is based on 43 lessons a year, plus an annual administration fee of $60 which is included.  In addition, we will have a monthly group class.  Tuition is due on the first of the month and there will be a $20.00 late fee charged after the 10th of the month.  Please note that I will not be teaching any makeup lessons SO PLEASE DON’T ASK ME!  Due to my schedule,  I am unable to accommodate those requests, but if you come to the group classes, this can count as any time missed.  I accept payments by Zelle or personal checks made out to Cathlin Reese at the following rates:   

Book Level                          Length of Lesson             Monthly totals

Book 1 - 2                             30 minutes                          $136

Book 3 - 4                             45 minutes                          $181

Books 5 and above         60 minutes                          $226

                                                    Calendar for 2023/24

                           Here are the weeks that I will be taking off during the school year. 

                                Thanksgiving, 1 week, November 20th - 26th 

                                Christmas, 2 weeks, December 18th - January 1st

                                Spring Break, 1 week, March 11th - 17th

                                 The Summer Session = June, July, and August

I will take 2 weeks off in the summer session and those weeks are to be determined.     

During the school year, September to May, there are a total of 35 weeks of lessons.  During the summer session, there are 13 weeks.  During this 13 week period, you must pay for 8 lessons to hold your spot for the fall.  35 + 8 = 43 lessons a year.  If you want more than 8 lessons in the summer, you can pay an additional prorated amount for those lessons.  

I agree to pay for my child’s violin lessons on time and commit to practicing with my child and making sure that he or she listens to the Suzuki reference recordings everyday at home.  I realize that the progress may be slow in the beginning and that the results of my child’s practice will be seen over time, therefore I am willing to give this process six months to a year before stopping lessons.  

I agree to give one month’s notice if I decide to quit lessons for any reason.

I HAVE READ, I UNDERSTAND, AND I AGREE TO ABIDE BY ALL OF THE POLICIES SET FORTH IN THE PAGES OF THIS DOCUMENT. 

Name:_______________________________________________________

Signature:________________________________________

Date:________________________ 

                                                      Group Classes

I am planning a monthly group class in preparation for a Suzuki Group Concert in May.

                                    Group classes are important for:  

1.  Refining and reinforcing skills taught in the lesson.

                   Posture, tone, intonation and the skills required for musicality. 

            2.   Ensemble skills: Learning to play as one and following the leader.

            3.   Concert/recital preparation. 

            4.   Motivation to practice.

           5.   Listening live to all the pieces you will play. 

           6.  Developing new friendships.

The group classes will meet the 1st Saturday of the month. 

All pieces must be memorized when you play in the group class.  

Please come and play beautiful music and have fun with your new friends!

Recital Information 

There will be two recitals a year.  A solo recital in the fall, and a group recital in the spring.  Date, time and location is TBD.  There will be additional fees for the accompanist and fees for the venue, depending on where we end up.

Tentative spring group concert date:  Sunday, May 23, 2024

Please note:  If your lesson happens to fall on a recital day, that counts as your lesson. 

Violin Supplies:

What You Need to Purchase:

Rent the correct size violin and bow with the case and rosin and a cleaning cloth.  Use either a flannel  or microfiber towel to clean the violin with and buy a shoulder pad or sponge to help your child hold the violin.  Also, always have an extra set of strings in the case for emergencies.  Please see the enclosed information on the care of the violin.  As your child grows, so will the size of the violin.  I recommend renting a violin until the student is ready for a full size, at which time I can go with you to help select a high quality violin for purchase. 

Accessories:

Foot chart for beginners, (We can make this together, but please purchase a white poster board so we can draw the outline of your child’s feet in the correct rest position and playing position.)

Notebook for the parents to take notes in

Tote bag for the violin books and the shoulder pad if it doesn’t fit in the case

Cell phone to take practice videos with 

Metronome and Tuner:  You can download the TE Tuner = Tonal Energy Tuner app on your phone which has a metronome and tuner all in one. There is a one-time fee of $4.00

Or, purchase the Intelli IMT-301:  a hand-held metronome and tuner all in one 

Wire music stand or the more sturdy Manhasset music stand; the stand-out music extenders are optional

Violin Cleaner, rosin remover, and violin polish (optional)

For other accessories and supplies like music, strings, stands, metronomes, mutes etc. please check out:  

www. sharmusic.com

www. young-musicians.com

Music Books that we will use:

Suzuki Violin Books 1-10 the International Edition, $10.00 per book

I Can Read Music, Volume 1 by Joanne Martin

(When you get to Suzuki book 3)

Highly Suggested Books to Purchase and Read:

Nurtured by Love by Shinichi Suzuki

Teaching from the Balance Point and Teaching with an Open Heart, both books are written by my wonderful teacher trainer Mr. Edward Kreitman

Reference Recordings:

You may download all of the reference recordings at:  www.alfred.com

Then download the Anytune app on your phone.  This app allows you to change the playback speed of the recordings.  After you download the app, push the file share button and that will load the recordings into the app and allow you to change the speed of the recordings.  You will be playing along with these recordings every day.  I also use this app in the lessons and in group classes to play along with the piano accompaniment part.  Your goal is to be able to play along with the recorded CD speed, which is 100%.  However, there are a few pieces that I prefer faster, up to about 120%, and I will challenge you to play those pieces at that speed.  But in the learning process it is better to start slowly and then speed up the pieces over time.  Also, please notice that once we learn new pieces in the repertoire, we never forget them, and we will keep playing them in order to refine our skills and ultimately play better and better over time.  We also never skip any pieces and we learn them in the order that they appear in the book since they are arranged in order of difficulty. 

Many of these supplies are available locally at

Lisle Violin Shop

11550 Louetta Rd #1400, Houston, TX 77070

OPEN 9:00AM - 6:00PM Monday - Saturday

Toll Free: 800.545.4753

lisleviolinshop@gmail.com

Additional resources

For more information about the Suzuki method and all things Suzuki look at: 

www.suzukiassociation.org

Also on this website, you can sign up for parents as partners, for helpful tips for practicing with your child etc. 

For other great articles and interviews with great violinists, check out:

www.violinist.com 

Dr. Suzuki’s Philosophy

1. Parent involvement
2. Starting at a young age
3. Daily Listening 
4. Group Classes

The most important message is simply this:  Any child can develop talent, through talent education, which encompasses the following ideas. 

“Man is a son of his environment,” is a well known quote of Dr.  Suzuki’s, thus, one’s environment, rather than their genetic background, determines the success of the student.

Dr. Suzuki observed that every child learns his or her native tongue in the first few years of life by listening to and imitating the mother's voice; Dr. Suzuki called this the "mother tongue" approach.  We now know that the same process can be used to teach music.  Since the method is based on the “mother tongue” approach to learning, the use of reference recordings is essential to the progress of all students.  Daily listening to recordings of the pieces to be studied helps the child to learn the melodies and to hear what a good violin tone sounds like.  Listening also aids in developing accurate pitch and rhythmic pulse.  We use this process of listening to “pick out” the notes of each new piece of music.  Rapid progress depends on this daily listening.

1. We are most successful when we break each new skill into the smallest possible steps, affirming and supporting each attempt with positive reinforcement.
2. The purpose of music instruction is not to create professional musicians, but to develop the whole child through the study of music.  Dr. Suzuki’s goal was to develop musical sensitivity and a beautiful heart in his students.  He also wanted children to pick up a violin instead of a gun, since he lived during WWII and saw how horrible war was.
3. Reading music is delayed so that focus can be given exclusively toward laying a foundation of sound technical ability.

The Suzuki Triangle is the term Dr. Suzuki used to define the relationship between parent, child, and teacher in the process of learning how to play the violin beautifully.  Each of the three contributes to the success of the child in the following ways. 

Teacher Role

1. Teaching the parent to train the child.
2. Supporting the parent
3. Motivating the child.
4. Teaching the five points listed in order of priority below.  

These following five  priorities come directly from Mr. Edward Kreitman’s book, Teaching from the Balance Point.

1. Teaching balanced posture of the body, including violin and bow hold. 
2. Teaching balanced tone production or “tonalization.”
3. Teaching perfect intonation.
4. Teaching skills for developing artistic musicianship in performance. 
5. Teaching notes and bowing to new pieces. 

Parent Role

1. Playing the reference recording/entire CD for your child a minimum of one hour each day; this equals twice through the CD of their current book.  This has the greatest impact upon creating a motivating rate of progress through the Suzuki repertoire.  Listening is how the children learn the pieces they will play.  
2. Practicing DAILY at home with the child so he or she can attain mastery of the skills that were taught in the lesson.  You are the home teacher.  Practicing is a parent responsibility, and so it is up to the parent to schedule it and honor it DAILY.  Take this precious opportunity to spend time with your child, where you are both learning together about something incredibly unique.  Practice time is a time to work on your relationship with your child at an intimate level.  Even though I really wish every student will practice everyday, I know that it doesn’t always happen.  So whether your child has practiced or not, it is still important that they come to every lesson.  Practice is something that happens at home, not in the lesson.  
3. Creating a safe, stress-free environment where both success and mistakes are acceptable.  The easiest way is to have the right attitude.  ENJOY the process of watching the child learn, SHOW EXCITEMENT for each individual skill that is mastered. 

Student Role

1. Being happy and excited about what you are learning to do, at my studio and at home when you are practicing.  
2. Being ready to learn when you arrive at the lessons and allowing me to help you become a better player.  
3. Practicing and playing along with and listening to your CD/reference recordings everyday.  
4. Cooperating with your parent(s) in the practice sessions. 
5. Playing all your review pieces in the current book you are in, before you start work on the new pieces. 

Studio Rules

• Parents and students, please attend all lessons.  Please do not knock or wait outside, but come in quietly.  Plan to arrive 5-10 minutes early so that your child may use the restroom and wash their hands, get settled, and get their violin ready. 
• Bring all of your materials to every lesson, especially the lesson notebook and your cell phone to record practice videos.  You may video the entire lesson for review during the week, but please do NOT post any practice videos of my teaching ANYWHERE.  Please check the supplies list for all supplies needed for the lessons. 
• Please set all electronic devices to silent and put them away during your lesson, with the exception of using cell phones to create practice videos.  Usually at the end of the lesson, I will play the next piece for you to record, for the child to play along with during the week, to learn the bowings and bow distribution.  Texting, using social media, or receiving phone calls during lessons distract your child and minimize the lesson’s impact.  Please refrain from this activity.
• Put LISTENING and playing the REVIEW pieces on the top of your priority list. Daily listening is meant to develop musical sensitivity.  Rapid progress depends on listening.  These are the cornerstones of the Suzuki approach and will make the biggest difference in your child’s progress.  Regular review of all the pieces leads to mastery of the skills that have been learned. Mastery of skills is the goal, rather than simply learning notes and bowings to new pieces.  As the student completes each book, he will perform every piece from memory in the order that they come, to officially graduate from the book.  The student will need to know these pieces for the group classes as well.  This is another reason to maintain all of your review pieces. 
• LISTENING TO THE RECORDING AND REVIEWING THE SKILLS, GETS OLD FOR THE PARENT BEFORE IT GETS OLD FOR THE CHILD.  The attitude of the parent is crucial in keeping the spirit of learning alive. Please don’t poison the experience by projecting boredom or impatience into your practice and listening space.  One of the best places to listen to the recordings is in the car.   But also, the recordings should be played at home as well and preferably on a speaker for the whole family to hear, softly, in the background while the student is playing, eating, going to sleep, etc. 
• Please work hard.  The assignments I give you are not mere suggestions; they need to be carried out fully in order for me to help your child do their best.  Practice happens at home. The lessons are for reviewing old skills and learning new skills. Please don’t come to the lesson expecting me to practice with your child. 

                                                                   To end

My wish for each student is to stay with me and the Suzuki method long enough to reach Book 10 and be able to play all 70 pieces from memory, someday, like I did as a child, and can still do to this day.  The timeline for learning each book is roughly one book per year, and yes, it is possible to learn all 10 books in 10 years.  But it does depend on the age that the child starts, and how much they listen and practice at home, and how much time and effort they put into it, and that will ultimately determine how quickly they move through the repertoire.  I am so glad you are here with me, and I look forward to watching your child grow with the Suzuki method into someone that ultimately attains a “beautiful heart” through this musical journey.