Violinist | Educator| Songwriter
E D U C A T I O N
"Ariele is a great teacher because she is always coming up with creative ways for her students to get better at playing and enjoy it more. She is very helpful and encouraging even when things are hard. Ariele is also very cooperative when it comes to planning lessons, but most importantly, she makes it easy and fun to play the violin." -Jordan, student
"Ariele is a great violin teacher. She is patient with me and helps me fix my mistakes. She is really passionate about teaching me to get better, and gives detailed and thorough explanations. She makes learning the violin fun." -Sebastian, student
"My daughter Kate began lessons with Ariele 1 1/2 years ago. Though Kate was not new to the violin, she has thoroughly excelled with Ariele teaching her. Ariele challenges and supports her. This past spring, Kate auditioned for, and was accepted, at a performing arts high school for violin. She will now continue to pursue violin not only as an extracurricular activity, but as part of her high school education. A huge thanks to Ariele for pushing Kate to her fullest potential!" -Renee, parent
"Ariele has been teaching my child the violin for over a year and we couldn't be more pleased. She is passionate about her art which is evident in her enthusiastic teaching method. She addresses performance techniques as well as the technical aspects of such a beautiful but difficult instrument to learn. She is consistent and very patient and we are happy to recommend her as a teacher." -Fatima, grandparent
T E A C H I N G A R T I S T S T A T E M E N T
As a multi-genre violinist I am passionate about the journey to freedom of expression. I am influenced by the works of acoustic musician Rhiannon Giddens, singer-songwriter and violinist Andrew Bird, and writer, cartoonist and musician, Rebecca Sugar. I have been working on unlearning toxic music mindsets, guided by colleagues in my field who are further along the path to creative freedom. In the performing arts industries we internalize what is handed down to us, and sometimes those mindsets leave us stuck and unable to grow. I believe that it's up to us educators to address our internal journey and model growth for the next generation of artists.
I believe it is most important to show my students that the overall goal of musicality is served by technique, creativity, a healthy attitude, and dedication to the craft. Cultivating intrinsic motivation in my students is most important in their success as musicians. I am consistently working towards providing an anti-racist music education for each of my students. It gives me joy to meet students where they are and help them become their own teachers in our lessons through problem solving, experimental exercises, questions, and fun analogies unique to each personality.
For more information you can contact me at ariele.grace@gmail.com or through the contact page on my website.