Jenny Visick's Viola & Violin Studio

I invite you to check out my teaching style before committing to lessons: Observe me teach one of my current students and take a short trial lesson for yourself.

After talking through your goals with you, I'll outline a basic plan for your lessons, and for how much time you'll need to reach your goals.

If you like what you see, you can sign up and schedule lessons immediately, or you go home and think about it before deciding whether or not I'm the right teacher for your family!

Observing a lesson or taking a short interview/trial lesson is free, and there is no obligation to sign up.

I have over 20 years of experience teaching hundreds of students through private music lessons, Suzuki group classes, chamber music groups, heterogeneous string classes, and youth orchestras. I have taught and enjoyed working with people at all stages of life: baby classes for parents & infants; weekly lessons & classes for school-age children, youth & young adults; or lessons that fit around the schedule of working adults & retired seniors. 

I love my work and am always looking for ideas to improve the quality of my teaching. To this end, I have completed extensive Suzuki Method teacher training courses covering Suzuki teaching philosophy, the entire Suzuki viola curriculum (books 1-9), the curriculum for Suzuki violin books 1-4, and the Suzuki Early Childhood Education curriculum.

I have studied directly with Alice Kanack, author of the highly successful and innovative "Creative Ability Development" Method, which uses musical improvisation learning games to foster creative thinking and musical ensemble (teamwork) skills. 

I graduated from the Claire Trevore School of the Arts at UC Irvine with a  Bachelor of Music degree in Viola Performance in 2001, and since then have continuously sought out new opportunities for professional development.

Tuition rates per individual lesson range between $40 (beginners), and $80 (advanced students), depending on the students' level & lesson length. Tuition for group classes (taken in tandem with private lessons) ranges between $200-$400 per semester.

For private lessons taken during the school year (September through May), there is a 10% private lesson tuition discount for ordering and pre-paying for 25 or more lessons (i.e. the whole school year's worth of lessons).

I offer an additional 5% discount on private lesson tuition if students are also enrolling in one of my Pasadena area group classes at the same time as taking private lessons.

Families with more than one child taking lessons scheduled back-to-back can get a small discount by paying for a single, longer lesson instead of two beginner-level lessons; families with more than one child enrolled in group classes can get a 10% discount on group class tuition for the 2nd child.

I have always been drawn to teaching, and I love working with children. I think it was around 4th grade when I knew that teaching was the vocation for me.

By the time I was in high school, I had begun volunteering as a Sunday School teacher at my church. In college, I took a job as a TA for beginner's string classes in a local public school system, and at the same time, a few of my cousins begged to learn to play music, so I began teaching my first private lessons to family members at that time, too.

After graduation, my childhood violin teacher called me with the opportunity to take a Suzuki method teacher training class. That course inspired me with a whole new set of teaching ideas...  I've been teaching music in private lessons and groups - and taking advantage of professional development courses for teachers - ever since.

Music and teaching are two of my earliest passions, and while it's not always easy, I thoroughly enjoy my job.

My youngest students are in my baby and toddler class (ages 0-3). My youngest private lesson students are in pre-school (the age 3-4 range), and I teach many elementry, middle, and high school aged children. I have also taught college age students and adults of all ages - you’re never too old to begin!

I work with students of all abilities, personalities and learning styles. If you or your child have special needs or goals I would be happy to discuss them with you, so that you can determine if I am the right teacher for you.  :-)

Observe several different teachers in your area before deciding who to take lessons from. Listen to how the teacher plays their own instrument: is that how you want to sound?

Ideally, in order to get the most for your money, you want to have a good long-term relationship with a music teacher, and for that, you need to be comfortable with their teaching style, and confident that the sound they are teaching you to make is what you want.

Try to describe what you're looking for in music lessons, include your past experiences with music as well as what you want to learn now, and ask the teacher what level of commitment is required to reach your goals.

For example, are you a complete beginner, or do you already have an understanding of how to play the instrument? Have you played another musical instrument before, or is this your first music lesson ever?

Are you looking for long-term lessons (learn everything the teacher knows about music!) or short-term lessons (learn a specific technique, a specifie piece of music, or get coaching for a single upcoming concert)?

Is there a specific song you want to be able to play, or a performer who inspired you to want to play "like" them?

These sort of things will help both you and the teacher decide if their lessons are the right fit for you.