Happy new year, everybody! I hope you all had a wonderful winter break!

Jaron
– Recommended practice time: 15 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: G, D, and A Major scales (doing our usual posture and bow hold check each time before playing, and make sure your fingers are not stretched too high for 3-2-1-0 going down the scale), and Allegretto (watch out for leaps 1-3-2 and continue adding in the accents).

Olivia
– Recommended practice time: 30 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: review 2-octave Major and minor scales (try to memorise fingering patterns for each scale and review old scales like D and C Major), Mamma Mia (play through and get familiar with the notes again, and make sure to incorporate more dynamics especially at the beginning and end), and see if there’s anything you want to add to our Zero to Hero arrangement.

Amaia – congratulations on finishing May Song!
– Recommended practice time: 15 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: G, D, and A Major scales (doing our usual posture and bow hold check each time before playing, and make sure your hand does not slide up the neck of your violin), and Long Long Ago (watch out for your first finger on D string (E) in the third line and add in long short-short rhythms).

Grace – congratulations on finishing Suzuki Violin Book 1!
– Recommended practice time: 30 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: 2-octave Major scales (look out for shifts to fourth and fifth position and try to keep your fingers closer together in those higher positions), and Judas Maccabeas (play through slowly and get familiar with the notes, and focus on fourth line with the accidentals and string crossings).

Hendry
– Recommended practice time: 30 min/day, 5 days/week
– Practice: C, D, E-flat, F, and G Major scales (2 octaves, doing our usual posture and bow hold check each time before playing, and really paying attention to intonation do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do), D minor scale (1 octave, review the differences between natural, harmonic, melodic), Two Grenadiers (watch out for 1.5+0.5 syncopated uneven rhythms, and make sure your low first finger for B-flat is low enough), and Catharsis (aim higher for shifts to third position, and aim lower for low first fingers for E-flat and B-flat).

Thank you, stay safe, and happy playing!