Why Early Start Academy?

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The CAS preparatory teachers are not currently certified in the Suzuki Methodology, however, the concepts that Dr Shinichi Suzuki taught are a strong inspiration to our program.  "Suzuki Talent Education or Suzuki Method combines a music teaching method with a philosophy, which embraces the total development of the child. Dr Suzuki's guiding principle was "Character first, ability second".

Jennifer John studied the first four Suzuki books and the principles of the "Talent Education," with William Starr, an incredible Suzuki pedagogue in Boulder, CO. Dr. Suzuki believed that  "daily listening, development of concentration and memory skills, learning to work with other students, parents, and teachers in group activities, and continual repetition, mastery, and refinement of techniques," are essential for a child's success. 

Dr Suzuki called his teaching method the Mother-Tongue Approach, inspired by the fact that children effortlessly learn to speak their native tongue. Prompted and encouraged by the parents' love and the family environment, the child responds and develops this most difficult of skills, that of intelligible speech."

According to Dr. Suzuki, when a child learns to speak, the following factors are at work:

• Listening 
• Motivation 
• Repetition 
• Step-by-step mastery 
• Memory 
• Vocabulary 
• Parental Involvement 
• Love
• For more  information about the concepts of Dr. Suzuki, http://www.suzukimusic.org.au/phil.htm

• Can he or she play well with others?
• Does your child pay attention when an adult is explaining something to them? 
• Are YOU ready for your child to start lessons?
• Will you assist with practice and attend lessons?
• Do you and your child have the time for lessons and daily practice?

It takes time to build strength and concentration on any string instrument. It also takes several weeks for a student to learn to support the instrument and bow properly and to develop coordination between the left and right hands. Don't be surprised if a child plucks open strings, or practices supporting the instrument correctly the first few weeks.  

At first a student might practice five minutes per day the assigned material a few times a day.  Practice time increases with age, skill level and goals specific to each person.  

learning a string instrument utilizes the way a student learns in school: Visual, Aural, and Tactile awareness; 

• Strength and Flexibility especially in the upper body
• Aural skills
• Improved balance
• Improved spatial awareness, important for reading and math
• Ambidextrous-Arms and Fingers improve strength and coordination. The left hand’s fingers will gain agility. The right hand learns to control the bow and coordinate its movements with the left hand.
• Posture- Good posture is crucial because sound, intonation and technique depend on positive postural and symmetric habits. 

• Improved attention span and focus- Your child has to focus on the teacher, the instrument, and reading music.
• Memory- Your child will need to start memorizing physical movements to make music, as well as how to read musical symbols,  and often they memorize their pieces. 
• Improved self-discipline- Your child will need to practice everyday to improve their skills. Make it fun! Have your child perform for you, friends and family every week! 
• An Emotional Outlet- Playing a musical instrument provides the opportunity to release feelings and a variety of emotions. 
• Reduced Stress- Creating music can reduce depression, anxiety, and other stress-related health issues. Having fun playing music is a great stress relief.

As a parent, you have to decide the best time to start your child and there is no perfect age. If you would like to have an idea if your child is interested, start introducing musical concepts and allow them to explore a musical instrument.  Have them listen to the Suzuki recordings and see how they respond.  Play the recordings repeatedly. Expose them to all sorts of music and take them to live concerts!

The FAC Preparatory Strings starts students as early as five and we hope to add exploratory music classes for all ages. (See group classes)

The primary difference is that the Suzuki method compiled 10 books of graded works, some  composed by Suzuki in the earlier books, but mostly were compiled from pre-existing works.  The modern Suzuki books incorporate scales, tonalizations and practice techniques. Beginning students primarily learn by listening and replicating what they hear on their instrument like a young child learns a language. Often a student in the Suzuki Method starts to read music when they are strong readers in school. Students often start lessons/classes as young as 18 months. 

The traditional approach still encourages listening and rote learning, however, a wide variety of teaching materials are often utilized.  Note reading is usually included at the beginning stages of development. Speak to your child's private teacher to learn about the curriculum that they feel is best for their stage of development. 

String students are encouraged to start as young as possible in both the Suzuki and traditional methods. The brain is wired for language, math and music at an early age with positive encouragement, consistent practice and persistence; an early start will help them in their future.