THE SUZUKI PROGRAM 2011-2012 Information & Observation Packet for Prospective Families
Wednesday, February 1, 2012 Dear Prospective Suzuki Parent: Thank you for inquiring about the Hartt Suzuki Program. Enclosed in this packet is important information that will serve as a guide through the steps leading up to your family joining our Hartt Suzuki family. The rewards of studying in our Suzuki Program are great, both educationally and musically. This is a result of the excellent training of our faculty, the strength of the Suzuki philosophy and the commitment and dedication of each of our families. The secret of the worldwide success of the Suzuki method is teamwork: parent, teacher and child working together. The parent attends and takes notes at all lessons and group classes, supervises home practice, keeps track of assignments and provides a positive environment for learning. The Hartt Suzuki Program currently has more than 300 students studying Suzuki violin, viola, cello, bass, piano and guitar. The program includes lessons, group classes, recitals, five string orchestras and a guitar orchestra, workshops and the Hartt Suzuki Institute, which is held each year in August. Strings and guitar students attend group classes every week and piano students attend group classes once per month. Private lessons are arranged with the instructor at a mutually agreeable time, while group lessons times are pre-set. It is a requirement of the Hartt Suzuki Program for all interested families to observe five private lessons and one group class, both parent(s) and child together, before enrolling in our program. This will show you how lessons work, which will enable you to decide whether our program is a good fit for your family. Three of the five lessons observed must be on the instrument your child will study. For example, if you are interested in Suzuki Piano lessons, we ask that you observe three piano lessons and a piano group class; the other two lessons can be piano or any other instrument. Please consult the enclosed observation schedule for days and times of lessons and group classes available for observation. Be sure to read the page with the large triangle before beginning observations so your attention will be focused on the heart of the philosophy. Record your observations on the enclosed observation log, and have it signed by the teacher. When you have completed your observations, mail your completed form to the address indicated. Since the Hartt Suzuki Program is one of the most respected of its kind in the country, spaces for new students are limited. Your name will be placed on the wait list after your completed observation form is received in our office. Once your child is accepted into our program and ready to begin lessons, you, the new parents, will attend Suzuki Parent Education classes. The 45 minute classes meet once a week for four weeks. The parents of violinists, violists, & guitarists have two additional, instrument specific classes. Our next class of entering Suzuki students will begin in Fall 2012. You can begin this exciting journey immediately by purchasing and listening to the CD of Suzuki Volume 1 of the instrument of your choice. We recommend reading Nurtured by Love by Shinichi Suzuki, Ability Development form Age Zero by Shinichi Suzuki, and To Learn With Love by Constance and William Starr to better acquaint yourself with the Suzuki philosophy. These materials are available at the University of Hartford Bookstore, which can be reached at (860) 768-4801. Do not hesitate to contact us with any questions. You can find the names, phone numbers and e-mails of our instrument coordinators on the observation schedules. Since the Hartt School offers a Master s Degree in Performance with an emphasis on Suzuki Pedagogy, it is part of the college student s training to be able to work with beginning students. Similar to a teaching hospital, our graduate students serve as interns and assistants to our regular faculty. Depending upon compatibility of schedules, it is possible that your child will be assigned to two teachers: a Hartt Suzuki faculty member and a second year graduate student who has already completed comprehensive teacher training in Suzuki Books 1-4. Lessons will be shared and carefully monitored by the faculty to ensure that your child will receive the best instruction available. The Hartt Suzuki Program, which is recognized as one of the finest in the country, has a long history of this co-teaching practice. Our graduates have gone on to establish successful studios in various locations throughout the country as well as in Canada and Hong Kong. We are pleased that you are considering having your child study in our program and we look forward to meeting you and your child. Sincerely, The Suzuki Team
The Suzuki Triangle Teacher In the Suzuki approach, success depends upon the triangular relationship of parent, teacher and child, all rooted in a positive learning environment While observing lessons, we encourage you to notice the following Suzuki points: Development of Concentration Use of Repetition and Review Modeling by Teacher Building of Skill upon Skill Emphasis on Posture Parent-Teacher Communication Note taking Parent Child The purpose of observing lessons is to see the Suzuki Method and its philosophy in action. When observing another student s lesson, please arrive 5 minutes early. Please help your child listen quietly while in the lesson. If your child becomes restless, please leave the studio (it is okay to do so). In order to avoid distracting the student taking the lesson, please wait until the lesson is completed before asking any questions you may have. Thank you for your interest in beginning your Suzuki journey.
Hartt Suzuki Program Observation Form Due June 1, 2012 for entrance in Fall of 2012 Please return to the office with the log of your completed observations. HCD ID#: Child s Full Name: Date of Birth: Gender: Female Male Mother s Name: Street Address: City, State and Zip Code: Father s Name: Home Phone: ( ) E-mail address: Mother s Work Phone: ( ) Mother s Cell Phone: ( ) Father s Work Phone: ( ) Father s Cell Phone: ( ) Would you like to be contacted by email? YES NO What instrument is your child interested in? VIOLIN VIOLA CELLO BASS PIANO GUITAR What aspects of the Suzuki method appeal to you most? How did you hear about this program? What hours are you available to attend the individual lesson? The greater your schedule flexibility, the more likely we will be able to find a teacher with an opening in their schedule to match your available times. *** Note that group class lessons times are pre-set. Monday Morning (8am-12noon) Early Afternoon (12pm-4pm) Late Afternoon (4pm-6pm) Evening (6pm-9pm) Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday ***Please, note that we can accept new students only when there are openings in teachers schedules, usually at the beginning of each semester. Those openings may or may not correlate with your preferred choices. See reverse side for observation record.
Record of Suzuki Observations Observation # Date Instrument Teacher s name Teacher s Signature 1 Private lesson 2 Private lesson 3 Private lesson 4 Private lesson 5 Private lesson 6 Group class ** ** Three of the five lessons and the group class should be observed on the instrument your child will study. For example, if you are interested in piano lessons, we ask you to observe 3 piano PRIVATE lessons and a piano group class. The other 2 private lessons can be either piano or any other instrument. As soon as observations are complete, please return this form to: Sheri Brown, Placement Coordinator The Hartt School Community Division University of Hartford 200 Bloomfield Avenue West Hartford, CT 06117 A few things to keep in mind about observations: The lessons take place in TWO locations. The piano lessons are held at The Hartt School (Main Campus). All string classes meeting on WEEKEND also take place on Main Campus. Most string and guitar classes meeting during the WEEK do so at the Universalist Church in West Hartford (UUC). The location is indicated next to the lesson. Make sure you are heading to the right location. Choose your preferred lesson to observe and contact the teacher. If you send e-mail, please do so at least 48 hours before the lesson. You will receive a short confirmation that the lesson will be taking place as scheduled. If you contact the teacher by phone you will receive a phone call back ONLY if the teacher knows that the lesson is cancelled. If you arrive for your observation and the lesson is not taking place because of student absence such as sudden illness, the teacher will spend a few minutes with you and your child getting to know you a little and answering any question you might have. Please arrive to your observation five minutes before the lesson start time. This way you will not be interrupting and important instruction time. Please reserve all questions for e-mail or phone conversation. The teachers will rarely be able to discuss this during the observation class as they have to make sure to start their next lesson on schedule. We strongly suggest that you do not plan your observations in the make up weeks, vacation weeks or on black-out days Please note the black-out dates and vacation/make up weeks on the enclosed schedules.
Suzuki Book 1 Observations 2011-12 Questions about our program? Please contact: Jessica Meyer, Suzuki String Administrator, HarttSuzu@hartford.edu, for general questions about our Suzuki string program & violin specific questions. Teri Einfeldt, Chair of Suzuki Strings, einfeldt@hartford.edu Carmen Irons, Cello Coordinator, 860-768-7768, ext. 8647, cello specific question David Madsen, Guitar Coordinator, madsen@hartford.edu, guitar specific questions. Malgosia Lis, Piano Coordinator, SuzPiano@hartford.edu, piano questions. For teacher voicemail, dial (860) 768-7768 then listen to instructions. Please note: most of our teachers prefer to be contacted by e-mail STRINGS AND GUITAR TEACHERS Teacher Email Address Extension Melinda Daetsch, viola/violin Mbd716@aol.com Ruth Bergman, violin bergmanr@gmail.com Teri Einfeldt, violin einfeldt@hartford.edu Liz Fay, violin sooperliz@hotmail.com Lee Hadden, violin Totallee55@aol.com Carmen Irons, cello Prefers phone contact X 8647 Erica Isom, violin isomje@gmail.com Calida Jones, violin calidajones@yahoo.com Lee Hadden, viola/violin totallee55@aol.com Dave Madsen, guitar madsen@hartford.edu Jessica Meyer, violin Jessicameyer7@hotmail.com Donna Ngai, violin ngai@hartford.edu Carlynn Savot, cello carlynnsavot@yahoo.com Diane Slone, violin slone@hartford.edu Harmon Steiner, cello steiner@hartford.edu PIANO TEACHERS Teacher Email Address Extension Tamila Humphreys, piano Tamila_a@yahoo.com Barbara Johnson, piano christodo@hartford.edu X 7984 Malgosia Lis, piano suzpiano@hartford.edu Windsor Johnson, piano windsor_j@hotmail.com
Suzuki Book 1 Private Lesson Observations: Spring 2012 Schedule Day Time Location Level Instrument Teacher Monday 4:30-5:00 UUC 19 Book 1 Cello Savot Monday 4:30-5:15 UUC Book 2 Guitar Rickevicius Monday 6:30-7:00 Hartt 143 Book 1 Piano Lis Monday 5:30-6:00 Hartt 140 Book 1 Piano W. Johnson Monday 3:30-4:00 Hartt 138 Pre-Twinkle Violin Einfeldt Monday 4:00-4:30 Hartt 138 Book 1 Violin Einfeldt Tuesday 2:00-2:30 UUC Pre-Twinkle Cello Irons Tuesday 2:30-3:00 UUC Book 1 Cello Irons Tuesday 4:00-4:30 UUC Pre-Twinkle Cello Irons Tuesday 5:00-5:45 Hartt 146 Book 2 Guitar Rickevicius Tuesday 3:45-4:15 Hartt 5 Book 1 Piano W. Johnson Tuesday 4:15-4:45 UUC Choir Book 1 Viola Daetsch Tuesday 4:45-5:15 UUC Choir Book 1 Viola Daetsch Tuesday 9:30-10:00am Hartt 422 Twinkle Violin Einfeldt Wednesday 2:30-3:00 UUC 19 Book 1 Cello Savot Wednesday 3:00-3:30 UUC 19 Pre-Twinkle Cello Savot Wednesday 4:15-4:45 UUC 19 Book 1 Cello Savot Wednesday 1:45-2:30 UUC Book 3 Cello Irons Wednesday 2:30-3:00 UUC Book 1 Cello Irons Wednesday 3:30-4:15 UUC Book 1 Cello Irons Wednesday 4:15-5:00 UUC Book 3 Cello Irons Wednesday 6:00-6:30 UUC Book 1 Cello Irons Wednesday 5:00-5:30 UUC 126 Book 1 Guitar Madsen Wednesday 6:45-7:15 UUC 126 Pre-Twinkle Guitar Madsen Wednesday 2:00-2:30 UUC Book 1 Guitar Rickevicius Wednesday 3:15-3:45 UUC Book 1 Guitar Rickevicius Wednesday 5:30-6:00 Hartt 116 Book 1 Piano W. Johnson Wednesday 2:15-2:45 Hartt 138 Twinkle Violin Einfeldt Wednesday 3:45-4:15 UUC 29 Book 1 Violin Meyer Wednesday 5:45-6:15 UUC 16 Pre-Twinkle Violin Slone Wednesday 6:45-7:15 UUC 29 Book 1 Violin Meyer Thursday 1:00-1:45 UUC Book 2 Cello Irons Thursday 3:30-4:15 UUC Book 3 Cello Irons Thursday 6:15-6:45 UUC Book 2 Cello Irons Thursday 5:00-5:30 Hartt 102 Book 1 Piano B. Johnson Thursday 4:15-5:00 Hartt 143 Book 2 Piano Lis Thursday 3:45-4:15 Hartt 429 Book 1 Piano W. Johnson Thursday 4:15-4:45 UUC 29 Book 1 Viola Lee Thursday 4:45-5:15 Hartt 6 Book 1 Viola Daetsch Thursday 4:15-4:45 UUC 16 Book 1 Violin Slone Thursday 4:30-5:00 UUC Lib. Book 1 Violin Jones
Thursday 5:15-5:45 UUC 29 Book 1 Violin Lee Thursday 6:30-7:00 UUC Lib. Book 1 Violin Jones Thursday 6:45-7:15 UUC 19 Book 1 Violin Bergman Friday 4:30-5:00 UUC 19 Pre-Twinkle Cello Savot Friday 4:00-4:45 UUC Book 2 Cello Irons Friday 4:45-5:15 UUC Book 1 Cello Irons Friday 1:45-2:15 UUC 126 Book 1 Guitar Madsen Friday 4:00-4:30 Hartt 146 Book 1 Guitar Rickevicius Friday 5:00-5:30 Hartt 18 Book 2 Piano Humphreys Friday 3:00-3:30 Hartt 11 Book 1 Piano W. Johnson Friday 5:15-5:45 Hartt 11 Book 1 Piano W. Johnson Friday 4:30-5:00 UUC 29 Pre-Twinkle Violin Lee Friday 5:00-5:30 UUC 29 Book 1 Violin Lee Friday 6:30-7:00 UUC 29 Book 1 Violin Lee Saturday 11:00-11:30 UUC Book 2 Cello Irons Saturday 10:45-11:15 Hartt 146 Pre-Twinkle Guitar Madsen Saturday 8:00-8:30 Hartt 143 Book 2 Piano Lis Saturday 10:00-10:30 Hartt 429 Pre-Twinkle Violin Bergman Saturday 12:15-12:45 Hartt 429 Book 1 Violin Bergman
Suzuki String Group Classes These classes meet every week (except black out weeks). To verify if there are group classes on the date you want to observe, check the Hartt Calendar and the UUC Calendar attached in this packet. Cello Group Classes Level Day Time Teacher Location PreTwinkle Bk 1 Thursday 5:15 6:00 pm Carmen Irons UUC 218 Book 1 Thursday 5:00 5:45 pm Harmon Steiner UUC Fiske Hall Guitar Group Classes Level Day Time Teacher Location PreTwinkle Saturday 8:45 9:45 am David Madsen Hillyer Ch Reading Rm Book 1 Saturday 9:45 10:30 am David Madsen Hillyer Ch Reading Rm Violin Group C;asses Level Day Time Teacher Location PreTwinkle Saturday 8:30-9:15 am Donna Ngai Hartt 410 PreTwinkle Thursday 5:00 5:45 pm Donna Ngai UUC Choir Rm Andante Thursday 5:45 6:30 pm Lee Hadden UUC Choir Rm Suzuki Piano Group Classes Please note that the piano groups meeting only ONCE per month on the dates listed below Group Name Teacher Time Location Dates Class A Barbara Johnson 12:30 pm Room 103, Hartt 11/19; 1/14; 2/11; 3/17; 4/28; 5/19 Class B Tamila Humphreys 1:30 pm Room 103, Hartt 11/12; 1/7; 2/4; 3/3; 3/31; 4/21 Class C Barbara Johnson 11:00 am Room 103, Hartt 11/19; 1/14; 2/11; 3/17; 4/28; 5/19 Class D Windsor Johnson 3:30 pm Room 103, Hartt 11/19; 1/14; 2/11; 3/17; 4/28; 5/19
Directions to the University of Hartford (Hartt) www.hartford.edu From Exit 35B, I-91 and Exit 1, I-291: travel Route 218 West approximately four miles, passing a major shopping center on the left, to the junction of Routes 218 and 189. Take a left onto Bloomfield Avenue (Route 189) and proceed to the University of Hartford entrance two miles on the left. From Exit 44, I-84: follow Prospect Avenue 2.5 miles to its downhill end at the junction of Route 44. Take a right onto Albany Avenue (Route 44), followed by a quick, sharp left onto Bloomfield Avenue (Route 189). The campus is a half-mile on the right. From the campus entrance to The Hartt School, Fuller Music Building: Enter the campus and follow the one-way road to the right. At the stop sign, proceed straight. Parking lot D will be on the immediate right. The Hartt School building (also called Fuller building) is directly across from the parking lot D. To get to the Children s Reading Room: Enter the campus and follow the one-way road to the right. Hillyer College will be on the left side, across from parking lot C. The Children s Reading Room is the glass-walled, green roof building attached to the Hillyer College building. Park in Lot Hartt 146 corresponds to room number in Fuller Music building. Directions to the Universalist Unitarian Church of West Hartford (UUC) I-84 to Exit 43 (Park Road West Hartford Center) 433 Fern Street, West Hartford Turn Right at the end of exit ramp. Immediately get into left lane and turn left at net light onto Trout Brook Drive. Stay on Trout Brook to the third traffic light and turn Left onto Fern Street. Go about ½ block on Fern Street; Church is on your left. Parking is in the lot behind he church. Use side entrance marked Office which you will see as you drive in. Church is approximately 5 min. from I-84.