Music is a faithful mirror and window to the world, encouraging the best of ourselves and helping us hear and speak our truth.
About Me
I began my music training in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and am happy to return to the vibrant Twin Cities music community. I earned performance degrees from Oberlin Conservatory (BM) and the Yale School of Music (MM), and my teachers have included Taichi and Robin Chen, Milan Vitek and Syoko Aki. I have performed and held positions with major orchestras in the United States and abroad, including the New Haven Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Macao Orchestra, and City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong. In addition to orchestral work, I’ve been active as a chamber musician, co-founding the Hong Kong Chamber Music Collective, and in ad hoc projects as a soloist, conductor and composer.
While performance has been a core emphasis throughout my career, music education has always been central as well. I have been teaching and coaching students in my private studio for over 10 years, and have led and conducted a variety of ensembles of all ages and levels.
COVID-19 UPDATE: At this time, I’m offering either virtual or in-person instruction. Inquire to discuss what lesson format or venue is most effective for you.
My Teaching Philosophy
The opportunity to be a part of a student’s musical journey is a true privilege. Each student’s situation, perspective, learning style and goals are unique and valid. I seek to understand what brings them to music and to the violin, what they hope to achieve or what they feel is standing in their way, and how I can assist constructively in defining and working toward new goals. Along the way, the development of skills, discipline and understanding should be in balance with a sense of musical empowerment and creative freedom, to patiently build a musical foundation that supports curiosity, exploration, and growth.
With students at all levels of experience, I work to create opportunities to:
• Establish a strong foundation of comfortable and functional technique, literacy in musical notation and theory, and listening/aural skills
• Draw from and craft a diverse set of practical tools for tangible progress
• Collaborate to define the course of instruction
• Enrich the learning experience with musical interpretation, creativity, self-expression, improvisation and fun
Music by its nature contains seeds of joy, and doing the work to grow that enjoyment illuminates so much about ourselves and calls on us to engage our whole selves in the process. Getting to see students grow beyond their limits and discover their own voice is a true privilege, and work I find endlessly rewarding.
Thank you for your interest!
Write to me for online appointment bookings or questions
eshallcrossmusic@gmail.com