Suzuki String School of Guelph partners with the Faculty of Music

Aug. 18, 2021

Laurier’s Faculty of Music is pleased to announce a partnership with the Suzuki String School of Guelph, offering Laurier students academic credit for completion of the Suzuki Pedagogy Program for violin, viola and cello.

Laurier Bachelor of Music students can earn 1.0 credits towards their degree by completing this two-year program. The Suzuki Pedagogy Program equips students with the skills to teach young violin, viola or cello students utilizing the Suzuki Teaching Method.

“I am thrilled our strings students can now enrol in the Suzuki Pedagogy Program for academic credit towards their Laurier degree,” says Jerzy Kaplanek, Laurier Strings Coordinator. “This is an amazing opportunity for our undergraduate students to learn from world class Suzuki Teacher Trainers right here at Laurier.”

Suzuki Association of the Americas Accredited Teacher Trainers Paule Barsalou (violin), Elayne Ras (violin) and David Evenchick (cello) will teach and provide feedback to students through seminar, observation, coursework, mentoring, lecture recitals and practicum experiences. Students can receive up to 52 hours of practical teaching experience.

“Our program prepares graduates to develop their own teaching studio or to join a renowned Suzuki program anywhere in the world,” says Paule Barsalou, Suzuki Teacher Trainer. “It gives them the tools to work with students and parents on their journey of musical discovery in a joyful, community minded environment while striving towards high standards of excellence. This course will equip you to tackle your future teaching with confidence and introduce you to a community of supportive colleagues who will accompany you on the road ahead.”

Laurier students should contact Laurier’s String Coordinator Jerzy Kaplanek to apply or Paule Barsalou with the Suzuki String School of Guelph for further details.

About the Suzuki Teaching Method:

The Suzuki Method® is a worldwide-recognised approach to teaching music. More than fifty years ago, Japanese violinist Shinichi Suzuki realized the implications of the fact that children the world over learn to speak their native language with ease. He began to apply the basic principles of language acquisition to the learning of music, and called his method the mother-tongue approach. The ideas of parent responsibility, loving encouragement, constant repetition, etc., are some of the special features of the Suzuki approach.