Strings school · Kirkland, WA
Tutti is a small strings school for children from age 3 and their families. Every student has a private lesson and a group class each week, and a parent sits in to learn alongside. Every family starts with a placement visit.
The program
What each path includes, how long it runs and how to leave. Tuition is on our enrollment page, and we go over it at the placement visit.
A weekly private lesson, a weekly group class and a parent in the room, for a full term.
A parent-and-child class for ages 3 to 6, with the first sounds on a small violin.
A weekly private lesson on violin, viola or cello for students aged 8 and up, with no group class.
How billing, make-ups and notice work is on the tuition page.
The path
Students move up when they are ready, not on a calendar. Each step begins with listening.
Hold the instrument and the bow
Listen and copy short sounds
Play open strings in time
Take a bow after playing
Your teacher moves you up when the sounds are steady and you ask for a tune. Everyone moves at their own pace.
Play a first short piece from memory
Keep a steady pulse with the group
Use the bow on each string
Listen for the end of a phrase
When the first pieces feel easy, your teacher adds the next ones. There is no clock.
Read simple notes alongside what you hear
Play with a piano accompanist
Practice a hard bar slowly, then up to speed
Tune the instrument with help
You move on when reading feels as natural as listening. Your teacher talks it over with you and a parent.
Play a piece of a page or more
Shape loud and soft
Learn a new position on the fingerboard
Play for a small room of friends
Your teacher decides with you when a longer piece is ready for a concert.
Play a part in an ensemble
Watch the leader and each other
Start and finish together
Play a part of your own
When your group plays comfortably together, your teacher offers the next piece.
Prepare a solo with an accompanist
Join the school's orchestra
Help a younger player in group class
Choose pieces with your teacher
Sample levels.
For parents
In this method the grown-up is part of the lesson. That takes no music background at all.
You sit beside your child in each private lesson and take notes, so you know what to listen for at home.
Short, steady listening each day does more than long practice once a week. Your teacher shows you how.
In group class the children play together and parents watch from the side. Children enjoy it.
Our teachers
Days are beside each name. Every teacher plays the instrument they teach.
Director · Violin and group class · Mon, Wed, Sat
Conrad founded the school to teach children the way they learn to speak, by listening and repeating. He teaches violin and leads the weekly group class.
Violin, ages 3 to 7 · Mon, Thu, Sat
Viola and violin · Tue, Thu
Cello · Tue, Wed, Sat
Violin, older beginners · Mon, Tue, Thu
Piano accompanist · Wed, Sat
The year
The school year in months. Playing in a concert is always a choice.
Late August · Meet the teachers, hold a small violin and see the rooms.
Early September · Weekly lessons and group classes start.
December · Students who wish to play do so for families and friends.
Late December · No lessons for two weeks.
March · A short evening in the school's main room.
May · The year's longest concert, with a reception afterward.
Sample dates.
A few lines from parents.
4.9
38 reviews
“The teacher told us what to listen for at home. We did it for ten minutes at breakfast and it fit our mornings.”
“I had never held a violin. Sitting in the lesson, I learned along with my son, and the group class is the part he looks forward to.”
“They never pushed a concert. When our daughter said she was ready, they made a plan with her.”
Sample reviews.
Little strings is for ages 3 to 6, with a parent beside the child. Private lessons are for students aged 8 and older. Your teacher will suggest a path at the placement visit.
Not for the placement visit. Ask your teacher before you buy or rent anything, because size matters on a violin and a cello. How renting works is on the tuition page.
No. You learn at the child's side and take notes. Your teacher tells you what to listen for at home.
No. Concerts are for students who want to play, and families are welcome to come and listen.
A short visit where a teacher listens to what your child likes, you try an instrument and we find a teacher and a weekly time.
Book a placement visit, or call during lesson hours and we will find a time that suits your week.
