Master of Music (Boston University)
Bachelor of Arts (Brandeis University)
Zoe Fong is a M.M. graduate of Boston University School of Music and B.A. graduate of Brandeis University, where she studied music education and music composition respectively. She is a viola, violin, and ukulele player and has performed (primarily as a violist) in Canada, the United States, Austria, Germany, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and the Philippines. As a composition student at Brandeis, she focused on film scoring and minored in film studies, and additionally went abroad to Vienna, Austria for one semester to focus on viola performance. She loves musical theatre as well and has experience as a music director, conductor, performer, pit orchestra musician, and producer in various community and university productions.
While Zoe has found joy in many musical areas, she has found her true calling in music education. She has taught a range of ages and musical subjects including preschool music, elementary chorus, band, strings, and general music, middle school jazz band and strings, high school strings, chorus, and music theory, and private viola, violin, and composition lessons. There is nothing she loves more than sharing her passion for music and helping her students find their own passion and artistic voice.
Get to know Zoe…Beyond the Bio!
Hobbies: Teaching myself new instruments, dancing, reading
Musical influences: Kim Kashkashian, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Danny Elfman
Favourite food: Dumplings
Least favourite food: Broccoli
Favorite music: A little of everything!
Favourite song: Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen
Favourite movie: Ladybird
Favourite movie music: Edward Scissorhands – Danny Elfman
Favourite musical theatre/opera: Les Miserables, Hadestown, and Hamilton
Best quote from your teacher: “Don’t leave your baggage at the door. Bring it in and let’s make music with it.”
Favourite quote: “This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” – Leonard Bernstein
Favourite book: The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon…and also Harry Potter by JK Rowling
Latest Homework from Zoe
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Weekly Homework Post – January 27/28, 2021
I hope everyone is staying warm during this freezing week!
Jaron – great work sight-reading May Song today!
– Reminder: if you can, please purchase Suzuki Violin Book 1
– Recommended practice time: 15 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: G, D, and A Major scales (making sure to do a posture and bow hold check before playing), O Come Little Children (great progress on the notes, now on to making sure we start with an up bow for each phrase), and May Song (play through slowly and get used to the notes).
Olivia
– Recommended practice time: 30 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: review 2-octave major and minor scales and try to memorise finger patterns, Mirror duet (second section rhythms, making sure all eighth notes are even), and Avatar State (watch out for third-finger G on D string and that it’s not too flat, look ahead at second part if you wish to do so).
Amaia – congratulations on such great progress on scales!
– Reminder: your A string is out of tune, so when you find the time, please see if you can get it tuned by a professional at a music shop like Long & McQuade. I would call ahead and see if you can drop the violin off for tuning. Please let me know if this doesn’t work or if you’d like to talk through different options!
– Recommended practice time: 15 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: bow hold window washer and rocket exercises with focus on curved fingers, 0-1-2-3-2-1-0 fingering pattern on all strings, G, D, and A Major scales (making sure to do a posture and bow hold check before playing each scale), Twinkle (theme and variations A, C, and D – pepperoni pizza, green pepper, and pepperoni. Try not to rush when playing and set reminders for yourself to check posture and bow hold!).
Hendry
– Recommended practice time: 20 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: C, G, and D Major scales (1 octave), C Major scale (2 octaves, with bow hold and posture check before playing each scale), Minuet 1 (down-up-up bowing pattern in first line, watch out for F# 2-3 finger pattern in second section, and make sure to count beats for half notes and dotted half notes), and Starting the Case (first few lines, watch out for accidentals like G# and D#, and 3/2 rhythm in second section).
Grace
– Reminder: if you can, purchase Suzuki Violin Book 1
– Recommended practice time: 15 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: continue to check posture and bow hold, window washer bow hold exercise, down-up-down-up bowing pattern on all open strings, G, D, and A Major scales, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (beginning to end and add in down-up bowings when you feel comfortable).
Thank you and happy playing!
