Musical Background

I started playing the violin at school in 4th grade and never stopped. I sang in church choirs and played my violin in a youth orchestra, for family gatherings, and at church events. For my undergraduate degree, I attended West Virginia University and earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education.

​

What year did you start teaching?

I started teaching elementary school String Orchestra in 1997 for Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia. I started teaching private lessons during the summers when I was in college.

​

What motivated you to begin teaching?

Teaching was something I was always doing since I have 4 younger siblings. My high school orchestra director asked me to work individually with some of the middle school students at one point, and it was so rewarding to work with them and see their improvement. Before that experience, I didn’t realize what teaching was really about and that it was something that I could do for a career.

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I want my students to develop a love of playing their instrument or an appreciation for what goes into learning to play an instrument.

​

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I enjoy being able to help students work through challenges and discover the joy in playing music. I also enjoy working with very excited beginners. Their enthusiasm is contagious!

​

A meaningful memory

There are so many! I recently had a memorable interaction with a young lady I taught for 2 years. When she came to my class she did not speak any English. We mostly worked hard at communicating that first year, and she didn’t make much progress on her instrument. To my surprise, she signed up the following year. Our communication was much improved the second year, and we had many conversations about how to go about practicing the skills she wanted to improve on. We also had conversations about how to improve her behavior in class since she was often off task. When it was time to sign up for middle school orchestra, she didn’t sign up. I didn’t make a big deal about it, and honestly, I expected this decision. A few weeks later she came to me and said she had changed her mind and would like to sign up for middle school orchestra. She said that I had put so much work into her and her violin that she couldn’t let that go to waste. I look forward to seeing what she does in the future. We don’t always get to know the impact we are making on students’ lives. Sticking with the challenging students is worth it!

Music background

I studied piano, classical violin, and cello. I married a banjo player after college. My husband wanted me to learn guitar to accompany his banjo playing. I took guitar, fiddle, and mandolin lessons, and my husband has been accompanying me ever since! I was taught by a man who did not read a lick of music. Learning phrase by phrase has affected the whole trajectory of my life. I went back to college to become a teacher and have been teaching private fiddle, guitar, and mandolin lessons and Elementary school music for 27 years.

​

Started teaching

In 1992

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I want them to gain the self-confidence that they are able to teach themselves by ear and successfully play a melody, harmony, or chordal accompaniment in a group setting.
 

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I enjoy figuring out individual learning styles and adapting my approach to teach to that style. I also love to group adults and kids together in different ensembles to enjoy Bluegrass and Old-Time music. Best of all, I love to teach how to play for Contra dances.

​

A meaningful memory

My very first private student is now a dad with six children of his own. He is teaching his own children how to play traditional fiddle music. My favorite memory is jamming with his family this past year.

​

Music background

I studied classical violin, but I always have been interested in traditional music.

​

Start of teaching

I started to teach violin in 1995 using different classical methods. I discovered FiddleQuest at the Barcelona Fiddle Congress in 2018 and began to use it immediately. I found it to be a very motivating method and easy to get going.

​

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I like music and I like kids. And I like to find the best way to help pupils learn and grow on a personal and musical level. Since I have been using FiddleQuest, I see how much more motivated my students are now that music has become more of a family activity.

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

Musical knowledge and enjoyment of the violin

Music Background

We were always singing in my home, my dad led music at our church and my mom sang lots of specials there. I was able to join the school orchestra at 8 thanks to a donated viola. I was able to participate in the local youth orchestras, all-region orchestras, and thanks to my high school orchestra director, I was in a string quartet in high school. I went to college and got a degree in music, but after graduation I decided to go into music and arts administration rather than performing or teaching.

​

How did you get started in teaching?

When my oldest child was born in 2016, I scaled my job down to part time, and eventually I decided to try my hand at teaching. I could do it from my home and make a little extra money. I had never taught before because - I had never taught before. Silly circular logic! Once I started, though, I fell in love with it.

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I want my students to feel confident in learning new things. I want to give them the know-how to learn things on their own. My students will know how to practice efficiently and they'll know their scales and circle of fifths so that they can understand the structure of the music they play- whatever kind of music that is!

​

What do you enjoy about teaching?

My students. I love getting to know each one and seeing the light bulbs go off! I also like that no day is the same.

A meaningful memory

In a recent fiddle jam with my students, I had one student who had just started with me, although she had been taking lessons elsewhere before. I'll never forget how she was able to jump in on the songs she didn't know by just comping along with her open strings looking at the chord chart. I loved seeing my students play with others for the first time!

Music background

I grew up in a musical home. My mom was a singer and piano teacher and my siblings and I participated in all of the local musical opportunities in Raleigh, NC.  In my 30's, I discovered Irish music, which led me to Scottish, Scandanavian and Galician music. Eventually, my musical journey took me back to America and the wonderful world of Blues & Jazz. 

Start of teaching

I have been teaching since 2002. I got into teaching because I wanted to help out in my children's classrooms and discovered that I had a real interest in teaching.

​

What I want students to take away from their time with me

First, I want them to have fond memories of learning and laughing together in lessons. Second, I want them to leave lessons with the knowledge, confidence, and experience to engage in music recreationally anywhere that captures their interest.

​

What I enjoy about teaching

It is work that combines creativity, community-building, and problem-solving and has the potential to make a real difference in a person's life.

​

A meaningful memory

A few years ago, I got an email from a former student traveling in Asia. She wanted me to know that she took her violin on her trip and wound up meeting many people through her music, and she was grateful to me for teaching her how to do that.

Music Background

I started violin in 2nd grade, when Mrs. Walker and her daughter recruited students with the tune “Turkey in the Straw.” Little did I know that moment would influence my entire lifetime! 

I began attending the public magnet Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts in 8th grade, which was an amazing experience both as it immersed me daily in the arts, and in an environment that celebrated and lifted up the diverse population of students of my city. 

I fell in love with fiddling during my senior year of high school, especially after a week studying with Irish fiddler James Kelly. I joined the second class of the MA in Traditional Irish Music Performance in 2000-2001, which in turn led to an opportunity to spend four years touring 250 days a year around the US with Billboard-charting band Gaelic Storm. In more recent years, I’ve been in Irish bands Long Time Courting, and currently, the Irish trio Fódhla and The Bow Tides. 

​

The Start of Teaching

In high school, my orchestra conductor asked me to help out by privately teaching some advanced students in his elementary string ensemble. I remember the joy I felt watching my first students grow and learn under my teaching- something that hasn’t faded over the years. 

I began focusing on teaching more intently after leaving Gaelic Storm to start a family in 2007, and now have fiddle and violin studios in Medford and Belmont, MA. 
I attended Alice Kanack’s Creative Ability Development training in 2019, and since then I’ve been working on developing students’ creativity, in addition to learning skills and repertoire - I’m loving the responses and the results! 

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you? 
I want students to learn to love listening to and making music, as well as feeling confident in setting their own goals, being comfortable making mistakes and taking risks. Ideally, they’ll leave me with a skill that will enrich their entire lives with friendships, community and music. 

​

What do you enjoy about teaching?
I love watching students grow over the years. The best moments are when a student finally gets something that was difficult, or finds a tune they really love to play, or responds to a creative prompt- with total excitement and joy. 

​

A meaningful memory 
In 2021, I can say that every evening spent with friends playing tunes, laughing, and being together has been a wonderful gift to treasure. With my fiddle in my hand, there’s endless opportunity for joyful moments - and always something new to learn. 
 

Music background

I started playing the violin in 3rd grade as part of a school music program. When I was fourteen, I discovered Scottish music thanks to a family trip to Scotland, and I began studying bagpipes. In 2013, I graduated with a B.A. in music from Middlebury College. Since then I’ve toured festivals and music halls all over the US, Canada, and Scotland playing traditional music with a wide variety of different bands including Soulsha, Seven Nations, The ByWater Band, MAC, and Fàrsan. I’ve also taught at camps and workshops around the US and Canada, including Alasdair Fraser’s Sierra Fiddle Camp,  Lark Camp, and Pure Dead Brilliant Fiddle weekend, and given lectures on Celtic music at MIT and Harvard.

​

Started teaching

I’ve been teaching private lessons online since March of 2020 when lockdowns began. I’ve found it to be a surprisingly good venue, and it’s been very satisfying to work with students of all ages and levels. 

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I want my students to feel empowered to play music that they love with expression and creativity. I want them to come away with a foundation that will allow them to confidently play music with others for fun or in performance, and practice techniques that will allow them to learn any music that they set their hearts on!

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I love the look of joy that comes across a student’s face when they nail a tune that only a short time before seemed out of reach. I love watching my students develop into confident musicians with their own voices, and I love watching them fall more and more in love with music. 

​

A meaningful memory

In 2009 I went to Alasdair Fraser’s fiddle week at Sabhal Mor Ostaig, the Gaelic college on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. I’ll never forget walking into the great hall on the first night to the sound of a dozen fiddlers absolutely raging tunes while people young and old threw themselves around the dance floor. I stood gazing at a whole scene of people who loved Scottish traditional music as much as I did, and with whom I could celebrate it! There’s nothing quite as good as the feeling of community that comes from sharing music with old friends and new. 

​

-

Music Background

I grew up listening to a lot of Irish folk music, then started playing violin in 5th grade in my school’s orchestra program and never stopped! I majored in music in college and I’ll admit, I was not the most devoted classical violin student at the university level. One summer, after getting my first car, I set off for Irish Week at Augusta Heritage Center to practice fiddling with James Kelly. I earned my B.M. in Music Education from George Mason University in 2001 and I’ve been teaching and performing ever since. I’ve had the good fortune to play in a variety of bands, from traditional acoustic to Celtic rock. While Irish music is my first love (both fiddling and singing), I’m a life-long learner and enjoy exploring and playing in multiple styles including old-time, bluegrass, jazz and rock.

​

How did you get started in teaching?

I started teaching private lessons in college and have since taught beginning-intermediate violin and fiddle lessons for ages 6 – 60+ (I’ve had several grandparents start as beginners!). I have also taught orchestra and music programs in public and private schools, as well as early childhood music. I love working with all ages!

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I want my students to feel a sense of achievement in their progress and enjoyment in their personal expression, and know they are full-fledged musicians at every stage of their journey.

​

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I love observing the discovery and excitement that unfolds as each student “gets it," whatever "it" is that week!

A meaningful memory

During the pandemic I had a virtual kindergarten student just stop out of the blue and start telling me how nervous and worried she was about moving on to first grade and going to an actual school the following year. I was stunned for a moment because this turn of conversation was completely unexpected. I felt completely humbled that she would share those feelings with me, and it still brings tears to my eyes to think about it! It really drove home the value of music in our lives as a means of connection, emotional expression, and sometimes just a safe place to be when the world seems overwhelming. (PS – she did just fine transitioning to in-person school!)

Music background

I started playing the violin at age 9, and unlike most of my friends who tried the school
orchestra with me, I just forgot to quit. I feel so lucky to have music in my life. I earned a
BM and an MM as a classical violinist (and violist as needed). Along the way I started
exploring different genres of music through rock bands, pick-up sessions, and eventually
Baroque ensembles. However, I didn’t get much exposure to traditional fiddle sessions, so
what I’ve been able to pick up is mostly from listening to recordings and finding published
music. Learning and teaching by ear through FiddleQuest has been a game changer.

Start of teaching

I started teaching in 2000. I was interviewing at a non-profit music program that provided
group lessons to kids from kindergarten through 12th grade. One of the violin teachers
called in sick at the last minute, so, rather than do an interview, I was asked to substitute. It
worked out! I’ve been teaching music (primarily in group settings) ever since. I also have
an official “clear” teaching credential from the State of California.
​

What I want students to take away from their time with me

I’d like my students to feel confident enough in their musical and technical skills to take on
whatever kind of music they want to pursue, in whatever capacity they want to pursue it.
​

What I enjoy about teaching

Interacting with students is probably my favorite thing about teaching. It’s a great pleasure
to be a meaningful part of someone else’s development. Teachers help students negotiate
the immediate challenges of pieces and exercises, but they also help students find their way forward as artists.
​

A meaningful memory

At my first private violin lesson, my teacher showed me some simple sheet music and said
we would begin with an open string exercise. I was nine, and for some reason I was
convinced that I had to perform perfectly right out of the gate, or everything would fall apart.

Obviously, that didn’t make any sense, but no one ever said anxiety was rational. I couldn’t
figure out the music in front of me, and I was such a mess that when my teacher said, “Let’s get going,” I blurted out, “But I can’t do that!” and started to cry. My teacher, rather than yelling at me to pull myself together or telling me to pack up, was just quiet and calm and let me be. She waited until I was done and then very kindly said, “That’s why I’m here. I’m going to teach you.” And she did! Thanks to her, the ideas of compassion, respect, and patience are what I always bear in mind in my own teaching.

-

Music Background

I have two professional musician parents, and started playing the violin at a very young age. As a kid, I most enjoyed playing in a Celtic music program, and as I earned my degrees in performance and violin pedagogy I always dabbled in fiddle music. In addition to a short stint as a full-time performer, I have taught in many different settings and have always maintained a private studio.

​

What year did you start teaching?

In 2004 I got my first teaching job doing outreach violin programs in public schools. Shortly after, I began teaching privately.

What do you enjoy about teaching?

Working with kids is fun, engaging, and no two lessons are exactly the same! I love the imagination and creativity that each of my students brings, no matter what their level of playing, and I enjoy the challenge of tailoring lessons to each new person I work with.

A meaningful memory

Once I was hired as the director of a violin outreach program that promptly had all the funding cut. Local teachers came together and we managed to run the program with instrument donations and volunteer teachers for the entire year. It was very moving to see so many professionals in the field come together to provide that musical learning experience to so many students who could not afford private lessons. It proved to me that the music teaching community was where I wanted to focus my career.

Music Background

There is a photo of me as a toddler holding a little violin with a big smile on my face, wearing only a diaper. I grew up playing both fiddle and classical music with my older siblings, but my love of music really grew when I joined a youth orchestra in 7th grade. I went on to study classical violin in college and received a BM in violin performance, but my interest in improvisation led me back to fiddle music.

​

Start of Teaching

I was 9 when I had my first “paying student,” a friend who gave me $5 a lesson to teach her violin. More formally, I began teaching piano in 2004, and violin and viola in 2011. 

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

There was a lesson where a student said “Ms. Shanon, I have a secret to tell you. I wasn’t sure before, but now I know that I want to keep playing violin for the rest of my life!” My primary aim is to help students develop a lifelong love of music and playing violin. 

What do you enjoy about teaching?

Music teachers have the unique opportunity to be a consistent part of their students’ lives for years and even decades. For example, my piano teacher baked a cake for my sister's wedding! It is an honor to witness my students growing up, and be there for them through life's ups and downs.

​

A meaningful memory

When I was a senior in high school, I went through a rough patch and quit violin. After I didn’t show up for youth orchestra auditions, the conductor called me on the phone and said “we missed you at the auditions, and I hope you can come to the makeup one. You’re a valuable member of the orchestra, and it would be a loss if you didn’t come back.” It touched me that the conductor cared enough to do that, so I did return to the orchestra, which became a touchstone for me throughout an otherwise difficult year. 

-

Music Background

I grew up in a large, musical family. I began piano lessons at age 7 and violin lessons at age 8. I was a Suzuki violinist – my dad learned how to play the violin right along with my younger brother and me. My mother was our accompanist. By the time I was a Senior in high school (and enrolled in four music classes) I knew I wanted to major in music.  

​

What year did you start teaching?

I graduated from Brigham Young University in 1985 with a Bachelor of Music degree in violin pedagogy. I began teaching violin lessons while I was in college and have continued teaching for most of the past 35 years. As a mother of 8 and a homemaker, teaching violin has been an ideal profession.  

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I hope they will leave with the skill, understanding, confidence, and desire to continue playing, exploring new music, and participating with others in making music. 
 

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I enjoy working with children, especially younger children, whether teaching private violin lessons, volunteering in the local schools, or working with young musicians at church. I like building confidence and skill. Teaching requires creativity. It is both challenging and rewarding, and I continue learning too.

A meaningful memory

I have many memories from teaching a little girl who had Down’s syndrome.  She was the middle child of three and I also taught both of her brothers.  One time when I was working on getting her to feel the beat, I set her violin down, took both of her hands, and started dancing with her to the beat. She caught on. If she wanted to do something she could, but if she made up her mind that she didn’t want to – that was that. One day I was teaching her and her 5-year-old little brother. The little girl had just begun her lesson and then she said, “I’m done.”  So, I said to her little brother, “Okay, it is time for your lesson.” Eventually I had both of them playing with me at the same time. The joy of teaching comes when I figure out what works at a specific time with a specific student. It is very individualized and very rewarding. 

Music Background

I grew up in a large musical family where every sibling had to play one band and one orchestra instrument. Of course I wasn't going to play any instrument that had already been chosen but as the youngest child, this presented a problem. Thank goodness the viola had never been chosen or I may have ended up on the cello!

​

How did you get started in teaching?

I have completed several Suzuki teacher training courses and I planned to always use this curriculum and method. It was only when I started getting more students did I realize that one size does not fit all. I quickly learned that I needed to expand my repertoire in order to keep my student's interest and joy of playing alive. 

​

What do you want students to take away from their time with you?

I value a strong technical foundation above all else. I know that if I give my students a comfortable set up and achievable practice techniques, they will be able to continue to learn whatever music they love to play for the rest of their life.

​

What do you enjoy about teaching?

Every student has improved me as a teacher and person in some way. My student's are the reason that I am constantly stretching, growing, and increasing my involvement (and theirs) in the music community. <3

A meaningful memory

For my very first student recital of my college career I performed a movement from a Bach cello suite. I was incredibly nervous and holding it together - just barely. I was the first performer on the program and walked out to a completely empty stage, not even a piano to keep me company! Performances got easier after that but what I remember most about those recitals was the camaraderie, friendship, and support for each other our studio had.

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-