Violin lessons in Richmond

I had the great privilege of having Sofia preparing me for a competitive international orchestra audition in November 2022. During the brief time we had for the preparation, Sofia has not only shown thorough understanding of violin techniques - from the fundamentals to the more virtuosic - but also a command of the whole spectrum of musical expressions, both of which she was able to convey with clarity and effectively. Furthermore, due to her extensive experience in performances/auditions, she identified my strengths and weaknesses immediately from the start and designed a strategic practice plan specifically for me, which helped me improve rapidly within our short time frame and maxed out my performance at the audition. She is a rare teacher who is encouraging and shares the students’ passions, without compromising critical judgement in any flaws in performance, giving me a realistic assessment of my abilities and a great sense of security before the audition. Musical matters aside - she is a caring, warm, and passionate person who does not hesitate to mobilise all her resources to help me -intellectually or otherwise, despite her busy schedule. I honestly could not have completed my audition without the advice and confidence she gave me. 10/10 would recommend.

Ismael is an amazing teacher. He is very encouraging, supportive and quick to adjust to the needs of his students, while still being very attentive to proper technique, form, posture, musicality, etc. He is able to balance being friendly and being professional. Ismael is always punctual and regularly checks up on you during the week to send you reminders, sheet music, etc. I strongly recommend him as a viola teacher.

Aki is very patient and warm. I am an adult amateur violinist, who has mostly played in orchestra. I thought I'd take a break from orchestra and work on improving my technique. She knew precisely the areas that I needed to work on; and assigned proper scales, etudes, and fun solo pieces. I will enjoy improving my violin playing with her tutelage.