About
Hi! Nice to meet you! My name is Adam Bern and I am a violinist, composer, arranger, band leader and teacher based in Brookline, MA. I hold a B.A. in Classical Composition from the Berklee College of Music (as well as B.S. in Engineering Physics from Cornell University and an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology from a previous life in the sciences). I have extensive experience teaching in a variety of settings, as a private instructor, tutor, and classroom teacher. Currently, I am focusing on private instruction in classical and jazz violin, Scottish and Irish fiddle, Western music theory, and composition, which are my main areas of expertise. In my lessons, I try to provide a nurturing, collaborative, and communicative learning environment where students feel safe to try new things and make mistakes. After all, that’s how we learn! I believe that each student has a unique and beautiful journey in music, and as a teacher, I consider it an honor to help facilitate that journey.
If you are interested to learn more about private instruction, please feel free to reach out! I look forward to hearing from you!
Here’s a little bit more about me and my own musical journey. I began to learn classical violin at the age of 5. I loved classical music and I loved playing the violin, but the truth is I really hated practicing! It wasn’t until I discovered Scottish and Irish fiddle music that I got really invested. I started practicing like crazy, performing, gigging, even winning some competitions along the way for my fiddling (for example, the 2015 mid-atlantic open Regional Scottish Fiddle Competition run by Scottish F.I.R.E and winning “Best March, Strathspey, and Reel” at the open US National Fiddle Competition.) I later joined a band called FLAN, which mixed funk and R&B with Latino music traditions while I was living in Atlanta in 2018, which greatly expanded my musical horizons. At the same time time I was in a doctoral program in Aerospace Engineering at Georgia Tech, which was my main gig, and it wasn't until Oct of 2020 at the start of the pandemic, when I began to examine my own journey that I was hit with the realization that I needed to pursue music in its entirety for my life to make sense. I decided to leave my doctoral program and within eight days I had applied to the Berklee College of Music. A few months later, in Jan 2021, I was enrolled in Berklee. My experience was as exciting as it was overwhelming! I was able to study anything from jazz violin to Arabic violin, both of which I did, jazz arranging, and even classical composition, which I discovered a deep passion for and eventually chose as my major. I’ve been fortunate to win some recent awards for my writing: I was the most recent recipient of the Berklee Composition department’s Jeronimas Kaçinskas Award for outstanding achievement in composition and won second prize in the prestigious 2024 American Prize Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music. I am now an active musician and teacher in the greater Boston area, and I love what I do, and haven’t looked back! If you’re curious to learn more about me as an artist, you can visit adambernmusic.com.
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
My first lesson is a "meet-and-greet". We talk about what we want to learn and how we want to go about doing that, and figure out an appropriate level for the student. I like to tailor the curriculum of the lesson based on the input from the student. I see lessons as a learning, but also collaborative, environment. Between working on technique and creativity, the ultimate goal of my lessons is to foster a passion for music in the student.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I like to think of himself as a musical chameleon. I have over 20 years of experience and over a decade of classical training. My music is rooted in the Scottish fiddle tradition and gypsy jazz violin, as well as other genres of world music. My past awards include first place at the mid-atlantic open Regional Scottish Fiddle Competition (run by Scottish F.I.R.E) and Best March, Strathspey, and Reel at the open US National Fiddle Competition, the nation’s most prestigious competition for Scottish fiddle. During my previous time in Atlanta, I served as the lead Scottish fiddler for the Rialto's Atlanta Atlanta Celtic Christmas, and played with two Atlanta-based bands, FLAN, as a multi-instrumentalist, and Oakland City Swing, as a guest jazz violinist.
I also gave a workshop on Cape Breton fiddle music at the Frank Hamilton School of Music in Atlanta, GA. I was also hired to teach gpysy jazz violin there for a few terms in 2019, but had to take a hiatus from teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic and during my time at Berklee. While at Berklee I was "Core Music Tutor", or a tutor for the core harmony and counterpoint curriculum. I am eager to resume teaching privately!Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
I charge $45 for 30 min, $ 55 for 45 min, and $65 for 1 hr. I also offer a free 30 min "meet-and-greet" to let you decide whether to start regular lessons with me. I also offer a slight discount if you book a number of lessons in advance. Ultimately, we can discuss this and figure out something that works for you!
How did you get started teaching?
I've been a musician for almost my entire life and have always relished any opportunity to sit down with someone and help them with something they have a question about and/or struggling with. That eagerness to teach has morphed into giving more formal lessons.
What types of students have you worked with?
I have worked with mainly adult students, but am eager to work with younger students also.
Describe a recent event you are fond of.
I gave a workshop on learning tunes by ear and started off the session with a discussion about what makes a good melody. Everyone got really into it! Having these musical discussions are really important and it was fun to see a few lightbulbs light up!
What advice would you give a student looking to hire a teacher in your area of expertise?
I would definitely say look for a teacher that works for you. We all have different styles of teaching, so finding a teacher you "vibe" with is super important. I like to create a nurturing and positive environment where the student learns to enjoy the process of learning music.
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
-What would I like to get out of my lessons?
-What are my reasons for learning music?
-What are my specific interests?
-Does this teacher's teaching style work for me?