foxteachingstudio: May 2020

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Practice tip no. 3:

Always warm up with long bows in front of a mirror watching to see if you are pulling the bow at a 90 degree angle from frog to tip and back tip to frog. There are three sound points to consider:
1) pulling on the slight from middle between bridge and fingerboard towards the fingerboard on the lowest two strings, and slightly from middle towards the bridge on the upper two strings.
2) pulling literally on the bridge sul-ponticello on all four strings. You will get a fuzzy sound but a great boundary to use being next to the actual wood of the bridge.
3) pulling the bow near the fingerboard on all four strings using the visual of the fingerboard as a boundary. This is sul-tasto.

It is important here to have good mechanics with the wrist, elbow, and back muscles. Always use a mirror and not to rely visually just looking down on the bow on the string from where our head is on top of the instrument. Good luck.

Thanks,
JMF

Saturday, May 16, 2020

Pedagogy "tidbits" for my studio and all string players will be posted regularly!

Dear Parents and Students:

I am going to post regular pedagogical helpful hints for string students of all ages and circumstances from foxteachingstudio .com.
I hope I am helpful to resolve issues in practicing and development of musical skills! We are all students of our instrument, as artists! Enjoy.

Number one: Practice slowly for intonation remembering that playing beautifully is artistic and expressive. Practice shifting and doublestops carefully.
Always test with open strings and when possible find a chord. Don't understand? Ask me!
Happy string playing!
JMFox

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

foxteachingstudio is now an Accredited member of the Better Business Bureau!

I am excited to have this new professional partnership placing customer needs first and moving forward towards high artistry within a context of fair and ethical business practice! We are emphasizing team work and persevering towards becoming great string players. My freelance work as a violinist is included with this vision.
Please also visit: foxteachingstudio.com

Studio Guidelines

May 10, 2020
PO Box 1731
Knoxville, TN 37901-1731
` (865) 691-8897
jmfoxviolin@gmail.com
foxteachingstudio.com
foxteachingstudio.blogspot.com
Fox Teaching Studio is an BBB
Accredited Business!!
Dear Students and Parents,
To be more user friendly, I have I made my studio guidelines more concise and easier to reference!
1) Mission Statement:
To provide first-class violin, viola, and cello instruction in a care-giving and nurturing environment that
places human dignity first and foremost. My violin performing reflects the highest artistic standards in
the most musical and technically responsible manner. We work with area symphonies, churches, and
educational institutions, to promote beautiful music-making!
2) Procedures:
To stay effectively on task, lessons are weekly year-round. Vacations etc in the summer are
rescheduled. Lessons are paid monthly at the beginning of the first lesson during the first week of the
month. If a student is absent during the first week, payment is still required at that time. Non-payment
may delay further lessons and or require a late fee of $25.00 with the fees. Thank you! Returned checks
are charged a $25.00 late fee for banking reasons. Please pay cash at that time if that happens. I can
take cash but not credit cards!
The student may reschedule a lesson with more than 24 hours notice provided a reason is given and the
make-up occurs in a timely fashion.(I do not want to forget your make-up!) Serious health and
personal emergencies are the only exclusion of the 24 hour procedure if a specific explanation of its
nature is provided to the teacher at the time of postponement. Serious emergency cancellations must be
communicated to me prior to 2 hours of your scheduled lesson period. Work schedules etc and
educational reasons for postponements are not included under 24 hours by the student however. At all
times, the decision to make-up a lesson is at my discretion but I always try to accommodate the
students’ needs as I also will have schedule issues due to changes in my work schedules! If I am late to
a lesson(traffic or overtime at rehearsals)-- please stay at site for 20 minutes before leaving. No worries
then however. I always guarantee make-ups due to my schedule issues.
Please have voice-mail on your phone in case of an emergency and I need to contact you enroute.
When able, I will text. Please do not email schedule requests. I will also give a card with schedule at
the prior two lessons before payment is due each month.
When bad weather occurs, 1:00PM is the time to communicate the pending schedule that day. The
roads must be poor even if schools etc are closed.
We do remote lessons when necessary- or between lessons.If the student needs clarification on a topic,
this gives us more options. I am happy to assist with no charge or fees- consultation on equipment and
music purchases. When I ask for a book for the lesson, please obtain this as soon as possible for
continuity reasons.
3) Philosophy:
The student may study any style of music whether beginner, intermediate, or an advanced level student.
I will share my experiences as a performer directly for the benefit of my students. We are all artists and
students of the instrument!
Fox Teaching Studio upholds effective dialogue and conflict resolution in the most dignified way!
While disagreements will occur at times regarding the pedagogy(playing and teaching the instrument)
and guidelines; its resolution does not have to occur immediately but at its best time. Please do not
argue in the room or outside the lesson- as we wish the lessons to always be enjoyable for you! We can
agree to disagree but a solution is always possible. We are in this endeavor together!
Thank you!!
John Michael Fox

foxteachingstudio