Information About Olivia - Greenwich teacher -

(1 review)

Personal Description:

Hi!
I'm Olivia. I'm principally a recorder player, although also play piano and bassoon. I hold a 1st class honours degree in the recorder from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, but my studies have also taken me across Europe, principally to the Netherlands and Poland. I have both Grade 8 in recorder (2012 - Distinction) and an ATCL Performance Diploma in recorder (2014 - Distinction). I also have Grade 5 Theory (2015) and Grade 8 in Piano (2017 - Distinction). Alongside this, I spent 6 years between 2012-2018 in part of a scheme called 'Aldeburgh Young Musicians'. Thanks to this scheme, I worked with over a hundred renowned musicians, including leading music educators Tim Steiner and Pete Churchill, as well as well-known conductors Jessica Cottis and Catherine Larsen-Maguire, folk musicians such as Paul Sartin and Benji Kirkpatrick (former members of Bellowhead) and jazz musicians Kit Downes and Eddie Parker, and so many more. Thanks to working with such incredible musicians, I'm really interested in all types of music. Outside of studying, I have a real love for folk music, and play in my own "folk" trio 'Nimba', and previously played in a 6-piece folk group called 'Prebula'.

Tutoring Experience:

I went through all the graded exams as a child, so I know how they work! I took exams on recorder, piano, bassoon, drum kit, oboe and voice under both Trinity and ABRSM exam boards, so I'm well equipped to understand what it's like to prepare for these exams! Alongside one-to-one music teaching, I also really enjoy workshop leading, and have my own workshop team called 'Songrise Workshops' with whom I go into community settings and run music-based workshops with all ages, from children to the elderly, including those with special educational needs. I have also spent time in Greece running workshops in refugee camps and squats in and around Athens with a charity called 'The Wind-Up Penguin Theatre Company', and will continue to work with them next year in other countries.

Tutoring Approach:

As I have been through the graded exams myself, I am well equipped to teach for exams, and am more than happy to work through scale/exercise and repertoire books as needed. I find that practising and playing music is much more effective when one is enjoying it, so I always strive to focus on areas that interest and excite the student.

Personally, I love to improvise and learn music by ear and have a lot of experience in doing that myself, so for those who are less interested or who simply struggle with reading music, I'm equally happy to work in a more creative way!