Ronda Cole
Director of NVSMS
Violin Teacher
Teacher Trainer for the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA)
I am a graduate of the Eastman School of Music, having majored in Violin and Pedagogy. I first met Dr. Shinichi Suzuki while in undergraduate school. While in high school, my passion was music and my love was with the many children I babysat. As a teenager I had appreciated that children were flexible learners and were still “real.” Passion and love combined pointed to a teaching career. I was not sure what form my teaching would take until I attended a concert given in the Eastman Theater by the Suzuki Tour Group from Japan. The quality and spirit of performance by these young children was thrilling, unprecedented in the US at that time. I decided during the concert that whatever this was, I wanted to become a catalyst in the lives of children that could contribute to the extraordinary development I witnessed. At the time, I did not understand that the value of this and Suzuki’s intention was far more than simply the music.
When I came to the Washington, DC, area in 1970, parents had not even heard of the Suzuki Approach. There were three interested teachers in the area. We felt like pioneers. Teaching has been a fulfilling experience for me. Not many people can say that after 54 years of doing the same work, they still love it. I do say it! I believe in stimulating the development of expressive talent and artistry right from the beginning lessons. Technique should be made easy using balance and release as key components, so that the player can have their heart invested in musical expression rather than on technique. Musical literacy can be fostered from the start, even in the Suzuki format. Students who have studied with me have attended Julliard School of Music, Curtis Institute of Music, Colburn School of Music, Eastman, Cleveland Institute, Oberlin, Rice, and University of Michigan. Continued Training When Suzuki was alive, I went to be with him almost yearly. I participate annually in conferences: American String Teachers, Suzuki Association of the Americas Conferences and Retreats, The New Approach with Kato Havas and the semi-annual Starling DeLay Symposium at Juilliard. Experience and Service In the 1970 and 80’s, I was involved in bringing the first Suzuki Tour Group from Japan to the DC area. This necessitated forming a non-profit organization called Suzuki Association of the Greater Washington Area (SAGWA). I have served on that Board of Directors (BOD) several times, a few times as president and managed the newsletter for several years. When the BOD decided to begin an institute, I was appointed Musical Director. |
I have presented and taught at many Suzuki and non-Suzuki events. I have presented at the International Workshops and other conferences in Austria, Switzerland, France, Australia, Scotland, Norway, Canada, Peru, Panama, Costa Rica, Bolivia, and Haiti. I have also presented at multiple Suzuki Institutes and workshops, led sessions, and have given the keynote addresses at several Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA) conferences, Australian String Teachers Association in Canberra, Australia, and Australian Suzuki Association in Melbourne, Australia. I have led as the violin coordinator for the SAA conference in Chicago. I have retired from the University of Maryland School of Music, where I taught graduate students as Director of Master Degree program in Performance with Specialization in Suzuki Pedagogy. Currently, I am the Director of the Northern Virginia Suzuki Music School and Director Emeritus of the Greater Washington Suzuki Institute.
Awards I was awarded the “Leadership and Excellence” award from the American String Teachers Association (ATSA) Conference in 2004, the ASTA 2008 Virginia "Teacher of the Year," and an "Outstanding Teacher" award from the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. I have also received a leadership award from SAGWA. Certifications I am a Teacher Trainer for the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA), licensed to train Suzuki teachers and licensed to teach the “Every Child Can” course for the SAA. Publications I have written for the Violin Column in the American Suzuki Journal over several years. A few of the articles I have written for the American Suzuki Journal may be found at https://suzukiassociation.org/news/author/ronda-cole. “May I Help You Tune?” DVD The DVD I made with Phyllis Freeman, “May I Help You Tune?” was made to help parents and students with learning to tune a violin, viola, or cello. It contains a lengthy tuning tone for each string while displaying the note written on a staff. There is coaching for tuning by plucking the string (pizzicato) with the violin and viola in the lap. The next level is to bow the string while matching the sounding pitch. The next level is to tune playing two strings at once in fifths. Cellists, especially, will learn to check tuning using harmonics. Children and non-musician parents learning to tune are included in the demonstrations. Finally, there are demonstrations of perfect pitch training and beginning note reading. Please email [email protected] to purchase the “May I Help You Tune?” DVD. 
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David Strom
Violin Teacher
Teacher Trainer for the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA)
David Strom began as a Suzuki kid himself at age three, in the studio of Glen Lebetkin. At 10, he traveled to Matsumoto, Japan, for a week of intensive lessons with Dr. Suzuki. At the same age, David began studying with Eric Lewis the first violinist of the Manhattan String Quartet and an enormous musical and personal influence. He also studied with Katherine Dorn-Lewis, a constant and continuing source of loving encouragement. David went on to complete his Bachelor of Music in violin performance at the Hartt School where he was privileged to study under Katie Lansdale (a former student of Ronda Cole), and receive chamber music coaching from the Emerson String Quartet, and the late David Wells.
Seeing how profoundly he had been shaped musically and personally by his great teachers, David became passionate about music education and child development. David went on to receive his Master of Music from the University of Maryland in violin performance, with a Suzuki Pedagogy specialization, where he first met Ronda Cole and felt immediately the synergy and spark that enliven their partnership today. After graduating, David was the founder and director of Suzuki Violin programs at the Academy of Music in Gaithersburg, the Flint Hill Program in Oakton, and the Herndon Suzuki School. In 2003, Ronda Cole invited him to be her co-teacher at Northern Virginia Suzuki Music School. Since then, David has been in demand as a clinician and lecturer at workshops throughout the country. His students regularly win top prizes at NVMTA competitions and have been concertmaster of all four orchestras of the American Youth Philharmonic. His students have gone on to the top music conservatories, including Eastman, Cleveland Institute, Oberlin, Rice and University of Michigan. They have been accepted to the prestigious National Symphony Fellowship program and the National Youth Orchestra world tour, and attended festivals such as Aspen, Heifetz Institute, Bowdoin, and Interlochen. David is now a registered teacher trainer with the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA). Since 2021, he has directed the Greater Washington Suzuki Institute. David’s dream for all of his students is the development of higher level functioning--sensitivity, expressiveness, persistence, communication, leadership, compassion, and empathy through the medium of the violin. |
In a typical day of teaching David might be found helping a five year old with wandering eyes play on one string at a time, guiding a seven year old to break down “the tricky part” mindfully until it is clear, manageable, and easy, encouraging a ten year old to BE the feeling, story, and drama they are playing, and inviting a teenager to exchange the security of their fears for the power of their own voice. David deeply honors each child’s unique journey through every step of the path.
When not playing or teaching, David is also a composer and arranger in a wide variety of media. David’s most important job is that of father to his beloved daughter Juliet--the light of his life. Ronda Cole about David Strom “David is a gifted teacher. He is a precious combination of heart, instinct, intelligence and training. He cares deeply about his students and is driven by the interest of partnering with their parents in developing their child into smart, focused, responsible, expressive, talented, sensitive and kind citizens in the world. When teaching, he is completely centered on the child. David is creative with imaginative and fun ways to present musical and technical concepts. We share these things and are both growing as teachers, rising on the richness of sharing ideas. David was a conspicuous standout as one of my graduate students in the Master of Music in Violin with Specialization in Suzuki Violin Teaching at the University of Maryland. After he finished his MM degree, he continued pedagogy training with me for two additional years at the University followed then by individual training for several years afterward. David and I are of one mind in our teaching. Our work together in combining our students in repertory class is seamless and powerful. We see them as OUR students.” –Ronda Cole 
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