This Fall I have been enjoying  teaching fiddle lessons more than ever - I currently have 18 students and they are all wonderful and unique! My students range in age from 8 years old to 65+, so there is never a dull moment. 

Since I have been teaching for over two years now, I finally feel like I am developing my own style and theories that go with learning the violin. My favorite idea so far is called "Brain Overload Theory" - the violin is really complicated and there are many moving parts (bow, fingers, sheet music, etc) and at some point most beginning fiddlers' brains just kind of short-circuit. That's why, to prevent Brain Overload, I break the fiddle into several components. We focus on bowing separately from fingering, etc. This helps the student be successful in one area at a time and later they can combine all their new skills with more confidence. At least that's my method - I am sure there are many ways to approach teaching an instrument!

You  truly never stop learning, and teaching the violin has been a great education for me as well. Most importantly, I've learned that people have many different reasons for pursuing music, and they are all valid. Some students want to perform on stage, some just want to scratch out tunes around a campfire, some do it to keep the brain young, some simply love the sound of the violin, and some do it to earn stickers and candy! :) My aim is to facilitate learning at whatever pace is necessary, so that my students can keep music as a part of their lives forever.  

Regardless of their reasons for playing, it has been a joy to work with my students;  I am so proud of each of them. We will be having a Holiday Recital in December, and you're invited to see the fruits of all their labor... I'll be sure to keep you posted on the details in the next Newsletter!  

The last couple months have been a period of huge growth for me, especially in the realm of public speaking. I have able to present at two wonderful events for Residential Services Incorporated, and just last week I led an Institute at the St. Louis County Public Health & Human Services Conference. Most often I talk about disability awareness, although I also love to discuss other topics such as  overcoming obstacles, entrepreneurship and how enrichment may be a more compassionate life goal than progress.  This November I have three public speaking engagements lined up already - check out the calendar at the bottom of this newsletter for more information; perhaps I'll see you at one!

Initial Disability Survey Results Have Been Analyzed

Another development in the realm of speaking and advocacy is that I was finally able to analyze the preliminary results of my Comprehensive Wellness Survey for People with Disabilities. It was really informative, to say the least! The slideshow with the initial data is up on my website in case you are interested. So far 123 people have taken the complete survey, but it is still open and I would love to have your voice included in the final report! I would eventually like to publish a book or academic article on the survey results. If you haven't taken the survey yet you can do so here, and please forward it to anyone with a connection to the disability community! 

I am excited to be doing a number of performances and speaking engagements this month... I have  3 CD Release shows planned! Hoping to see you out this November!

FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS AVAILABLE AT MY WEBSITE!