Moments & Memories (5 of 8): Over the Rainbow

Blog

As graduates this month of CMW's Fellowship Program, Rachel and Arlyn were asked to provide several memorable
moments or anecdotes that would shed light on their favorite experiences over
the past two years spent at Community MusicWorks. Their responses are
posted as a series on this blog throughout the month of June.

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Teaching my students at CMW for the past two years has given me so much joy! I can recall lugging my first few loads of violins to the West End Community Center with Minna, ready to distribute instruments for my students’ very first lessons two years ago. They have all come such a long way since that day, when I showed them how to take their instruments out of their cases, stand in rest position, and form “cupcake fingers.”

Earlier this year, I reflected on my teaching priorities, and what I want to leave with my students as I depart CMW.

10 goals for my violin and viola students as they move forward next year:

1. Love to play
2. Love to learn
3. Healthy and efficient playing mechanics
4. Be an intonation detective!
5. Always searching for a “yummy” sound
6. Reading D and A string notes, with rhythms up to 16th notes
7. Comfortable with improvisation
8. Working together, leading together, playing together
9. Know that it’s OK to make mistakes
10. Unfettered and unafraid to be musical/expressive

With these goals in mind, I arranged the beautiful tune, Over The Rainbow, for the final Performance Party to give my students a chance to enjoy their yummy sound and express themselves musically through improvised solos. I’m so proud of every one of them!

Arlyn2

Audio: Over the Rainbow (14 MB)

-Arlyn Valencia, Fellow (07-09)