Suzuki Guitar

Our Suzuki Guitar program is a curriculum designed for teaching guitar to children ages 3.5-12. Skills developed in the program include ear training, theory, sight-reading, and instrumental technique. Unlike traditional music lessons, where the parents have little or no involvement with their child's lessons, children in the Suzuki guitar program learn the instrument with the help of a dedicated home teacher: the mother, father or guardian, who practice with the child, and attend all lessons and classes. The home teacher is trained prior to the start of the child's lessons.The Suzuki method relies heavily on the 'mother tongue' approach, meaning that children can acquire a language by being immersed in an environment that fosters its acquisition. Music is understood by the brain as a language also, therefore children learn music by being immersed in an environment where the pieces they are learning are being played by the parents, as well as being heard from a CD, in the car or at home. Children begin by learning the material without seeing written music. Reading notes with the instrument is postponed until the basic playing technique is mastered. For children in the Suzuki guitar program, learning the guitar is as effortless as it was to learn their native language, provided the environment is carefully fostered according to the teacher's instructions. For the children in the Suzuki guitar program, practicing is a game that they look forward to every day.

At home and during lessons and classes, parents must pay constant attention to correct posture and proper arm, hand and finger placement as well as the production of beautiful tone. The music children learn in the Suzuki guitar school is standardized and carefully sequenced by a committee of professional guitarists. Each piece prepares the student for the next. In addition to the core repertoire, children learn pop songs, movie themes, and anything else that they have an interest in.