I took private lessons with Sam from May 2013 until August 2016. For context, I'm an adult student who played cello in grade school, then didn't play for years, then took lessons for the first time as an adult. Sam is a wonderful teacher! While I was his student, I know he had lots of other students (from little kids to middle-aged folks) who worked with him just as long as I did (or longer!), so I know that there's something special about him that makes students want to stick with him. Here's my take on what makes him a great teacher:
-He really values mastering the BASICS, so he takes things slow in the beginning. It was weird at first to practice holding a pencil like a bow, but now I'm confident that I'm holding the bow correctly (after holding it wrong for years).
-He keeps things INTERESTING. He has lots of music to play at each level, which means (1) there's some variety in your practicing and (2) he's able to match a piece to your level of ability so that it's hard enough to be challenging, but not so hard that it's frustrating.
-He progresses through music by GENRE, so that you're learning to contrast different types of music at the same time that you're learning cello techniques. For instance, I started by learning folk tunes, then moved on to Baroque, and then Romantic.
-He takes a multifaceted approach to MASTERY of a piece. He asks us to memorize the pieces that we practice, but it's not enough to remember to play the right notes at the right time. He also talk about the structure of the pieces, the phrasing, and importantly, the CHARACTER of the piece. He asks us to come up with words to describe the character of each piece, and then try to convey that in our playing. By looking at each piece from all of these angles, playing become more interesting and enjoyable, and I learned to be more intentional in my playing.
-Maybe most importantly, he's just a nice guy! He's easy to talk to, and very patient! He will explain things in multiple ways if you're having a hard time understanding. He's willing and eager to answer questions, and get feedback about how things are going.
Anyway, I could go on, but the only way to really understand what it's like to learn cello with Sam is to sign up for lessons :) read more