NURTURING PERSONAL EXCELLENCE
Ottawa Suzuki Strings
Class Registration
Are you interested in starting or continuing your child in Suzuki music instruction?
Firstly, carefully read our faculty biographies. You will also need to read about our group classes and/or Stellae Boreales. Group classes and Stellae Boreales rehearsals are both on Monday nights. Group classes are an integral part of the Suzuki method. Students participate in regular group class lessons where they learn from and are motivated by their peers. They learn to play as a team in unison following the leader (group class teacher). Skills learned in private lessons are reinforced in group class. A review of repertoire is essential for Suzuki music students.
Contact the Managing Director by phone or email, and she will be able to provide up-to-date information about which teachers in your area have openings and put you in contact with them.
Once a teacher has agreed to accept you, you must submit both a Registration Form (see below) and since the Ottawa Suzuki Strings runs on volunteer power, a Volunteer Commitment Form and log.
Thanks in advance for volunteering (4 hours or more per year) where you can. For questions, contact the school’s Managing Director Judy Ginsburg at admin@ottawasuzukistrings.ca or by phone at (613) 569-7995.
School Year
Ottawa Suzuki Strings’ (OSS) school year is 37 weeks beginning Labour Day and ending the first full week of June with 2 weeks off in December – January for the winter break and one week off for the March break. The schedule for the year is published on the Google calendar on the Ottawa Suzuki Strings website. Click below for descriptions of the various programs offered. A Parent Handbook is available at the beginning of each year with more details.
Private Lessons
Ottawa Suzuki Strings teachers teach private lessons from their homes in various locations in Ottawa and Gatineau as well as at a studio in Kanata at the Beaverbrook Mall. Private lessons are scheduled at a time agreed upon between the parent and teacher. Lessons typically start at 30 minutes and are usually increased in increments of 15 minutes as the students become more advanced.
OSS’ philosophy is nurturing personal excellence. All OSS teachers are highly trained and strive to nurture personal excellence in all their students. The better a student can play an instrument, the more they will enjoy it.
Group Class
Group classes are held Monday nights at Woodroffe High School from 6:15-8:30 pm. No classes are scheduled on holiday Mondays.
Two Playdown/Potlucks are held every year. The first is held at Woodroffe High School on the last Monday night in December before the winter break and the second is held at a local church on the last Monday night of the year in June. This is a chance for the school to come together to hear individual group performances and the powerful effect of the entire school joining together to make music, from the Pre-Twinkle students to Stellae Boreales.
Beginner to Suzuki Book 4
Beginners (Pre-Twinklers) have one class from 6:15-6:55 pm. Once a student is in Suzuki Book 1, they have an instrumental group class and Rhythmic Reading class (basic theory). Theory is offered up to the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) Book 5 level.
When a young child learns new words, they don’t master them and never say them again. They repeat them over and over and become a part of the child’s vocabulary. The Suzuki pieces should be acquired in the same way. Group class provides an opportunity for review in a group setting of earlier repertoire. Suzuki students are able to perform old familiar pieces at a moment’s notice, providing a boost to a student’s confidence.
Junior Performance Group
Ottawa Suzuki Strings has two Junior Performance Groups: Fine Tuners (violin) and Guitar Performance Group (guitar). Students hone their ensemble playing skills in unison in the Books 1-4 classes. In the Junior Performance Groups, they play music in 2 and 3 parts, all from memory. The groups have coaches but the students learn to start leading themselves within sections. Students must be at a certain level as outlined in audition requirements to join the Junior Performance Groups. These groups rehearse for 1.5 hours and are a stepping stone to the Senior Performance Groups.
Senior Performance Group
Ottawa Suzuki Strings has a well-established senior violin performance group namedStellae Boreales. Students must be at the level as outlined by audition requirements to be accepted into Stellae Boreales. Stellae Boreales performs music in two and three parts at a higher level of difficulty than the Junior Performance Group. Along with performances in the local community, Stellae Boreales tours annually both nationally and internationally. Previous tours have included Victoria BC, China, New York, Iceland, Washington, Cuba, Minneapolis, Stratford ON and Argentina. Stellae Boreales rehearses for 2 hours with coaches but the students lead themselves in performance.
Theory
Ottawa Suzuki Strings offers theory classes as part of the Monday night group class program from the basic Rhythmic Reading level to the Royal Conservatory of Music Level 7.
The OSS theory program complements students’ musical development at every level. Students will benefit from the deeper understanding of music that theory studies provide.
Community Performances
Ottawa Suzuki Strings has a vibrant presence in the community. Students have the opportunity to perform in groups at various venues in the community including the National Arts Centre, Ottawa International Children’s Festival, Kiwanis Music Festival, Music & Beyond, Libraries, Embassies and Seniors’ Residences.
Students perform with piano in two OSS private studio recitals in winter and spring. Studio recitals are held at Trinity United Church. These special events motivate the students to practice. Dressing in their concert attire and preparing themselves for a performance further develops the students’ confidence and pride.
Registration
Learn, Play, and Perform
Ottawa Suzuki Strings is a music school providing violin, viola, cello and guitar instruction using the Suzuki Method. Our experienced faculty have music degrees and are trained in Suzuki pedagogy. Students range from very young “Twinklers” to advanced students in Stellae Boreales.
Private Lessons, Group Classes, and Performance Opportunities
Students get a broad and exciting music experience, and some distinguish themselves by competing in local and provincial competitions and have also had the opportunity to perform in other Canadian cities and overseas.
Please complete a separate form for each registrant and send via email to admin@ottawasuzukistrings.ca. Please use REGISTRATION in your subject line. You may call our Managing Director at any time at 613-569-7995
Donate
We count on the generous donation of community members.
Contact Us
We would like to recognize the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation, on whose traditional unceded territory we operate. We gratefully acknowledge them as the past, present and future stewards of this land.
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