Information About Charlie - Nottingham teacher

Personal Description:

Hi! My name is Charlie and I am a third year student studying English and Philosophy at Nottingham University. I have played the violin for over a decade and the viola for four years. I performed in the Harrow Young Musicians youth orchestra for three years, including leading the viola section in my last year. I performed with them across England, as well as travelling to Venice twice to play baroque music in some of the most prestigious churches in Italy, including the Basilica of Santi Giovanni e Paolo and San Moise. It was intense but I loved every minute of it, and the time spent travelling the world to play music are moments in my life which I treasure. I have achieved ABRSM Grade 6 in both instruments, but stopped taking grades in order to learn how to play in my youth orchestra more effectively because solo playing and playing in an orchestra are very different disciplines.

Tutoring Experience:

In my final year of leading my viola section at my youth orchestra, I had to tutor my section through our parts as part of rehearsal. We were expected to play well even on the first time playing the piece we had been given. Players in my section often looked to me in order to know when to play, and I often gave advice on bowing and intonation to my peers to help us get the best out of ourselves. I really enjoyed the responsibility of helping my section get better, and I think that has given me a lot of great skills to teach an individual how to pick up an instrument and feel confident that they can perform with a smile on their face.

Tutoring Approach:

My approach to music tuition is simple: in order to allow a tutee to flourish, you have to give them the confidence to do so. Particularly as grade III and IV students are mostly young, I believe that an encouraging supportive approach is the most effective way to get the best out of a student. If a tutee wants to learn a specific piece of music simply because they enjoy it, rather than focus on their selected pieces for their grades, then I will allow them to dictate what we do during the time we have. Often music students enjoy practise less because they have no desire to run through seemingly endless amounts of scales and repetitions of pieces although of course scales are important. Practise is essential to bettering yourself as a student, but I believe that if they spend 20 minutes practising a pop song because they enjoy it, it will have the same effect as running through scales for double the amount of time. Additionally, the tutee will enjoy what they are playing and therefore want to practise more.