7 Ways to Maximize Your Experience in My Studio

7 Ways to Maximize Your Experience in My Studio

Below you'll find a list of my 7 favorite ways to make your cello lessons really "stick." If you're not a student of mine, that's okay, these still apply to any teacher, regardless of the instrument or subject matter they teach.

1. Make practicing and private lessons sacred.

Schedule vacations and business meetings accordingly. Turn off your cell phone & email dings. Make a designated spot in your house for practicing. Take a deep breathe before beginning. Light some candles even!

2. Be sure you’re on the email list and subscribe to my blog.

I try to post twice a week on my blog, sometimes more and send out a Studio Newsletter once a month. So if you're only receiving one, you're missing out on some really great stuff! Sign up for the newsletter here & subscribe to the blog here. Each of these will have practice tips and tricks, games to play with your child in practice, general writings on holistic teaching, fun inspiration, videos to watch, and that was just over the past couple weeks! (Also if you tweet, follow me! - @emilyapeterson)

3. Get familiar with the Studio Policy.

This will help you further understand my expectations and help the administrative side of my life go way smoother, then I can focus on you guys! View the Studio Policy here.

4. Gather your own practice toolkit & USE IT.

Rosin, blank flashcards, WASP cards, dice, numbered cards, metronome, electric chromatic tuner, pencil, paper, highlighters/markers/crayons, extra copies of your music, water, timer, and anything else that helps you practice.

5. Attend concerts, especially Emily’s.

I make a point of accepting performance opportunities that my students would enjoy. Going to concerts and getting yourself out of the practice room is really great for cello inspiration. Take note of your observations and share them in your lesson. Talking about those observations make for some great lessons, regardless of the genre of music you heard! There are countless community orchestras in the Seattle area, get their calendars and get a move on!

6. Get Creative

You or your child will greatly benefit if you keep your eyes and ears open, pay attention to details, and take small steps, all while thinking outside the box. There is no right way to practice, but there is such a thing as inefficient practicing. This is especially true if you’re not making practice a fun, unique, diverse, and effective.

7. Communicate

If you’re experiencing a roadblock or speed bump in your road of progress, let me know. I have enough experience to help you find the right solution. Same goes for my teaching methods, if something is not working, I can’t change it unless I know about it.

A Practice Helper: 100 Flowers

A Practice Helper: 100 Flowers

Click on the image below to download the .pdf! Enjoy!

Get the Best Out of Your Teacher

Get the Best Out of Your Teacher

A Lesson with Stephen Balderston

A Lesson with Stephen Balderston

I've been at Marrowstone this past week. I'm sharing the role of Student Life Coordinator with my good friend and bassist, Scott Teske. Aside from getting to chew out a few rebellious curfew-breakers, one of my favorite highlights has been taking a cello lesson with Stephen Balderston.

The hour with him was mine to use how I wanted (which is always great.) We talked "teacher-talk" for awhile. I wanted to bring up a few issues I've noticed with my students, things like bow holds, pronation, supenation, left hand fluidity, vibrato, tone, etc.

He suggested reading a few books, which I've already ordered from the interwebs. The first, which he mentioned in a masterclass that I missed (due to a camper's trip to the ER), The Talent Code. This one seems to align perfectly with my own philosophy of talent: "Talent is not born, it's grown." I can't wait to read how the author brings other disciplines like soccer, academics, writing, social skills, etc. together to prove this point.

Mr. Balderston also suggested using ideas from the book Playing the String Game, which has tons of games with secret motives for teachers to use in classes and private lessons. I'm always looking for more ways to convey teaching points and cello technique.

Aside from talking teacher-stuff, we got to work on my own personal technique. I'm so glad that he was as picky as he was - the things he brought up are the very things I've secretly wanted to improve for awhile now.

I tend to speed up my bow ever so slightly on the down-bow changes, causing the tiniest of separation between bows. This is a problem that no audience would be able to pick up on, but once fixed makes for a much easier listen. Remedy? Move my wrist less. It's not as simple of a fix as you'd think. Just takes slow, long bows and a very attentive ear.

I've got to get back to playing games with the brilliant students who are here. Marrowstone hosts some of the most talented children and young adults! I'm honored to witness each of them grow in talent through these two weeks. I can't believe it's almost over!