Alexander F  
Instruments: Cello
Styles: Classical, Avant-garde

I've been teaching the cello and music to individuals and ensembles for ten years. During my undergraduate degree, I taught with the Virginia Tech String Project. From conducting, coaching sectionals, and helping students with technique during rehearsals, I gained many of the teaching methods and practices I keep today. I also co-taught string ensembles at the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra Summer Music Institute. In these camps, teachers and students together had a week to program, practice, and perform a concert. In spite of the short amount of time together, I felt it was crucial to inspire as much artistry and musicianship as possible so that students left their experience with more than just learned notes. I currently work as an ensemble coach with the New England Conservatory Preparatory School and teach privately around the Boston area. When working with any student, I aim to bring out the interests that make them want to play the cello. I encourage my students to tell me about the music and recordings they find interesting. Ear training and transcribing are significant factors in my teaching as well, as I believe they help make a clear pipeline between our ears and our hands.

With beginning students, I use exercises from Suzuki and Essential Elements books as a basis for note reading, but I also frequently use "echo" or "call-and-response" playing. I find this is especially important in developing a student's ear for pitch and tone early on. As a student progresses and their musical interests develop, I combine standard classical repertoire that I grew up playing with song transcriptions of film, jazz, and rock music formatted to match each student's ability level and current technical goals.