Fall is officially here, and with it, a season of exciting audition and concert success! Today’s congratulations go to Sharon, who not only made region this year but was also chosen for one of the two highly coveted violin spots in the award-winning Sartartia Symphony. Sharon, currently in seventh grade, began LHS violin studies in the summer of 2013.
Congratulations to Danae V., who designed the 2015 Dulles Middle School orchestra t-shirt!
A musical seventh-grader at DMS, Danae’s many talents include both violin and piano!
Congratulations to Sophie V. and Chris J. for making region this past Saturday! Both violists are sophomores at Clements High School. Well done, Sophie and Chris!
Happy Fall, Everyone!
Back by popular request, our fifth and final middle school region workshop will be this Saturday, October 17th at 2pm. With just one week left before auditions, it’s exciting to see how much everyone has accomplished! Remember to RSVP at 832-600-5338 to reserve your spot.
Ms. Haley
We loved seeing everyone at our concert on Saturday! Many thanks to our lovely audience, to our photographer Albertine Wang, and to Virtuosi of Houston for hosting.
All photos copyright 2015 Albertine Wang
For more photos, see https://albertine.squarespace.com/the-menagerie/2015/8/24/the-winston-trio-82215
Lauren Haley Studios Presents:
The Winston Trio in Concert
Featuring works of Brahms, Franck, and Beethoven
Saturday, August 22nd, 2015
6:30PM
Virtuosi of Houston Studio
Memorial City Mall
303 Memorial City Way #235
Houston, Texas, 77024
Free and Open to the Public
About the Musicians
Thomas Fortner, cello
An active soloist, collaborator, and conductor, Thomas Fortner is the Founder and Director of the Iowa Great Lakes Music Festival. With a Master’s in Cello Performance from McGill University, Thomas has performed in and led concerts internationally. Thomas plays a cello by American luthier Raymond Joseph Melanson and will begin conducting studies at Peabody Conservatory this fall. http://www.iowagreatlakesmusic.org
David Sedgwick, piano
With a Master’s Degree in Performance from Rice University and a B.A from UCLA, David performs on both trumpet and piano. His other passions include composition, philosophy, kinesiology/reflexology, and visual art. Hailing from California, he draws inspiration from the natural world and intends to share his art throughout as many countries as possible.
Lauren Haley, violin
Lauren Alexandra Haley earned a degree in Violin Performance from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with Oleh Krysa. Accepted into both the violin and viola performance programs at Eastman, Lauren also studied violin with the late Zvi Zeitlin and viola with Phillip Ying (of the Ying Quartet). Lauren performs on a 1750’s Thomas Smith violin and 1930’s François Lotte bow. Her studio enrolls over 50 dedicated musicians on violin and viola.
Hello, all!
As summer winds down, I’ve been reflecting on my favorite topics from Juilliard’s Starling-Delay Symposium on Violin Studies. Kurt Sassmannshaus presented two dynamite pedagogy classes on technique, but his advice on practicing is what I’d like to discuss today.
The most frequent question I’m asked by parents is how they can help their children grow to be independent thinkers who practice effectively on their own. Parents worry that if they guide their children’s practice, their children will become dependent. However, the largest advantage Suzuki offers his followers is the positive and constant relationship between the student, parent, and violin.
Thinking of the families in my studio, I asked pedagogy expert Kurt Sassmannshaus (Dorothy Richard Starling Chair for Classical Violin at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music) how long he prefers parents to continue practicing with their children. “Until age 25!” he joked.
“The involvement of the parent is synonymous with talent.” Sassmannshaus confirmed. He mandates that parents be present and engaged for 100% of all practicing and lessons, insisting that one parent or caregiver must work with the student for 30 minutes each day or there will be no admittance to his studio. Affirming this incredible dedication of parents to their children, he reminded everyone that “there’s never a question of unconditional love.”
Kurt Sassmannshaus’s website, violinmasterclass.com, is an excellent resource for those seeking advice on technique, videos, lessons, musicality, and pedagogy.
All opinions are by Lauren Haley and all original content is copyright 2015 Lauren Haley Studios.
Hello, all!
As a reminder, there will be no classes July 2nd – 11th. As always, students and parents are encouraged to email laurenhaleystudios@gmail.com with any questions.
Happy 4th of July!
Ms. Haley
Hello, all!
I’m so happy to be back in town after an absolutely brilliant week at Juilliard’s Starling-Delay Symposium on Violin Studies. It’ll certainly take more than one post to pass along the wisdom shared by so many great violinists and colleagues, so let’s start off with one of my favorite events — Sarah Chang’s master class.
To begin the week, world-renowned soloist Sarah Chang offered not just her expert violinistic advice on major repertoire, but a prime example of positive teaching at the highest possible level. She frequently used questions to help students identify their individual musical intentions for each phrase, thereby giving students the confidence to present their own artistic interpretations with conviction. Meanwhile, her upbeat encouragement, quick humor, intelligent teaching process, and warm smile made her master class both a tutorial on technique and musicality as well as one on how to inspire your audience!
In talking about her own legendary teacher, the incomparable Dorothy Delay, Sarah Chang mentioned the importance of making disciplined learning fun. As one of the most skilled child prodigies in musical history, Sarah Chang still confessed to having watched an hour of TV after school every day — “Saved By the Bell!”
Happy (almost!) summer, everyone!
As this semester draws to a close, I’d like to recognize Paige, who recently received the Outstanding Member Award for the Dulles Middle School Philharmonic.
Paige is concertmaster of her school orchestra, has recently acquired a beautiful new violin, and has successfully auditioned to enter the Dulles High School orchestras in Fall 2015. Congratulations, Paige!
LAUREN HALEY STUDIOS 
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