Teaching Philosophy
I often smile as I think of a ‘teacher.’ The word is defined differently in each our personal dictionaries. Learning is an endless sea of experiences, shared connections, opening, absorption, receptivity, and discovery. The exchanges with students that I have had over the course of my teaching life have shaped me, humbled me, and nurtured my own pursuits of learning. Our ears, our minds, the stage, nature, music itself - these are our truest teachers. But mentorship and the process of illuminating the score, sharing philosophies of sound, translating feelings into physical gestures, contextualizing harmonic language, unpacking the cello and life - that is a role I cherish and hold close to my heart. I bring students into the world of opera, writing, art, sculpture, sports, botany, evolution, anthropology, and we collectively turn into a team of archaeologists searching for meaning, depth, language and understanding. We live in imagination. Then we only have one or two more tasks - to be our most vulnerable and to share this understanding through our instruments. This process is one that brings me tremendous joy and I constantly remember its value as I see eyes open, feel time stop and experience growth. It seems to be a path that always returns to simplicity. The removal of obstacles and the clarity of vision. This path is far from linear, but it is remarkable.
Current Accreditations
Suzuki Certifications : Every Child Can, Book 1 and Book 2
Current Teaching
MacPhail Center for Music (Minneapolis, MN)
Art of Music Foundation (Nairobi, Kenya)
Former Positions
Performance and Educational Outreach, Guest Cellist Cavani Quartet
Artaria Quartet Chamber Music School
String Department Chair and Chamber Music Faculty, Pasadena Conservatory
Artist in Residence, Azmari Quartet, Northern Kentucky University
Curriculum for Educators and Institutions of Learning
Listening as an Approach to Learning
Listening as a sensory experience offers an amazing tool for growth, understanding and community connection. Examples of classes that might evolve out of this concept, include :
1. Listening to History
As we open ourselves to understanding the past, it brings us into the present with a renewed sense of curiosity and eagerness to question the status quo. Tradition is simply that. We owe it to our students and audiences to be informed and connected and to always remember that shifting truth is part of the process involved in growth.
Knowing the history of our instruments as we might know our own families. Connecting the paths of each.
(Other examples : Traveling with the histories of food and language, sports and masks/myths to connect the past to the current tastes or trends of today....)
Unpacking the history of composers and eras of selected repertoire being studied. While consciously bringing in a much wider range of composition, etc.
The Juilliard Qtet introduced the concept of strength/meaning over beauty over 50 years ago. To translate this idea....perhaps it is now inclusion over tradition.
The Wings of Listening to be Explored (And to be continually connected to subjects being learned and discussed in a school setting)
1. Listening to Our Bodies
Rhythmic Explorations, Dance Gestures, Breath origins of Sound, Alexander Technique, Scope in Performance, Tension, Stretching, Efficiency
2. Listening to Art
Color and texture as they relate to sound. Foreground. Background. Palette.
3. Listening to Science
Understanding the Laws of Nature as they connect to harmonic idioms. Hearing the ecosystem in any given piece. Listening to the composite.
4. Listening to Literature
Understanding language and its deep connection to sound. Grammar. Intonation. Hierarchy. Flavor. Rhythm.
5. Listening to Architecture and Form
Finding light sources and structural points in any given piece. Looking at dance forms vs sonata forms vs chance music