Violin learning

[MusicLessMusic]

Hello all- I am in desperate need of help and hence posting here for traffic.

Any music / violin teachers out there please help. My DS is 7 and has been going to violin lessons for over a year. Unfortunately he ended up having to leave the teacher ( who I thought was quiet good) as the teacher suddenly declared, that he was retiring & wont be taking any further classes. At that point my DS was working towards getting his grade 1.
We were left in a lurch but after much looking around, found a newly established music institute & joined there.
It doesn't feel the same as our previous class. The class never gives out any photo copies or books or any other related material.
DS's previous material which he has been practising for almost a year, says ABRSM but the current hasn't got much idea about it.

I haven't got a clue about all this. Please help me understand what I should be looking at? Please point me in the right direction. Any help is greatly appreciated.

What do you mean by "the class"? Is it group tuition or individual tuition?
It sounds a bit strange to be honest.
Maybe go over to the ABRSM forum and ask there as there are lots of music teachers who may be able to help you.

Photocopies of music are usually illegal, copyright is very strict.

But he should have some kind of sheet music, usually a book. What does he use to practice from?

Is he playing new stuff regularly? Do you feel he is improving? That's what matters. Some teachers are keen on doing all the exams, some not so much - there are benefits to both, just personal preference really. If he's learning and improving then I wouldn't worry about the exams.

ABRSM is just one of the exam boards (Associated Board).

When you say institute what is it exactly? Where is it based? It does seem a bit odd that DS has no music books to practice from.

Are there any individual violin teachers in the area? If there are and you can afford their fees you could perhaps sit in on a lesson and see how they get on with DS and what they do. Is the lesson interesting, fun etc. I think I’d want to know more about who is currently teaching him. What are their qualifications, how long have they been teaching etc. A poor teacher can do more harm then good in terms of establishing bad habits (speaks from bitter experience from when DBs friend taught me beginner violin).

Thank you everyone for your replies.
It's a one to one lesson not a group lesson. The music institute is relatively new, not more than few years. The whole establishment is run by recently graduated people.
I am finding it hard to ask the right questions, because I haven't got a clue what to ask.
DS seems ok but I am not sure about his progress.

Op, there is extra curricular activity in education board. There is a monthly music thread all the musicians hang around. They are all very helpful.

I learnt the violin many moons ago and never got copies of music because of copyright issues. The only time we had copies was when we were in orchestra.

We had to purchase our own books although very early on we used our teachers to see if we could progress onto level 1.

Can you ask to watch a lesson to find out what he is supposed to be practising at home? Does he have a notebook with tasks listed as to what he has to do?
Go and have a chat with the teacher if you can.

Sounds like they could be on the fiddle.

I think you need to find a proper private teacher, there are usually quite a few violin teachers around. Are you UK based?

If so try the Ism website (all approved teachers have had to provide a reference from a students parent and pay for a recent DBS check every 3 years as I've just done mine) musicdirectory.ism.org/cdirectoryadvancedsearch.aspx

Or music teachers
www.musicteachers.co.uk

As previously mentioned it is illegal to photocopy and most teachers ask the parents to buy the books.

Age 7 he will progress more readily if you are able to help him at home. Ask if you can sit in on a lesson and make notes of what he is to practise. I'd be surprised if they won't let you do this - if they don't I'd find it a red flag in fact. Then hopefully you can get a better idea of what he is doing and whether there are books they would like you to get or whatever.

If he was working towards his grade 1, he should have a book with a selection of pieces in (which he should be practising). He should be also be practising scales and arpeggios, which may be written out in a book, but don't need to be.

My daughter changed violin teacher at about the same stage and went backwards for a while because the new teacher changed her bow hold. It is possible that your son's new teacher has identified problems that they want to sort out before thinking about an exam.

I think you need to check with new new teacher how your son is doing, what the plans are for an exam, and whether there is any music you need to buy.

Also I wouldn't expect a pre grade 1 child to be playing the same material for a year.

If he’s still playing the same material he was playing a year ago that’s no good. He should be progressing. Ds teacher gives him new material to work on every week. He’s a bit older and further down the track (grade 4) but still. I think you are being short changed.