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What my students are saying…
I can’t believe that I am already playing Last of the Mohicans! The song has gotten me through some hard times. I played it for my Mom and she said, “Lisa! You are playing The Last of the Mohicans!”. I was so happy I thought I could cry.
It’s never too late to become a violinist!
Hi! I’m Jenny O’Connor – violinist and online teacher.
Learning violin as an adult can be tougher than a two-dollar steak. I know because I learned as an adult too!
I’m from a small town in Texas where music is for football games. My Dad worked and my Mom stayed home. We had all we needed, but there wasn’t a lot extra to shell out for music lessons and things like that, even if orchestra there was a thing.
I remember the first time I heard the Irish fiddle. I was in high school, and it stunned me how sad and happy music could sound at the very same time.
The first violin teacher I spoke to thought I was there to sign up my kid and told me I was too old. Embarrassing.
I juggled through different teachers in Central Texas for a few years. I learned tons of tunes and great things from each of them, but I still felt frustrated because I couldn’t play one single tune and have it sound good at all!
So I decided to get serious and did something scary.
I dropped a semester of college and moved to upstate New York to live with my grandparents, so I could take lessons from Judy Hyman.
When I wasn’t taking lessons in Judy’s little white-washed music studio in the tippy-top of her farmhouse attic, I was working at a local dairy farm milking 40 cows.
I remember often coming out of my room from practicing to join my grandparents for Jeopardy as it glowed blue on the tiny silver TV. My Grandpa would soon commence teasing me by imitating an air-bow on his air-fiddle and singing, “Squeak, squeak, squeak! Squeak, squeak, squeak!”
He was a shining example of the greatest generation. But man, his jokes would sure sting, ha!
One day, I was at Judy’s looking up into those attic rafters trying to hold back a flood of tears because I still felt so stuck.
I couldn’t even hold it right – the thing is all corners!
But that’s when…
My teacher told me one of the most important violin lessons I ever received. And I want to pass it on to you…
The power of perseverance
I went on to become a full-time traveling violinist for 10 years. As a recording artist, I released 9 albums that sold over 50,000 copies and have been played by thousands of people on Spotify and Pandora.
This has been the adventure of my life.
And if I can do it, you can too!
I’m not saying it was easy!
I definitely endured a lot of trial and error and ups and downs.
This is what I wanted my violin progress to look like:
But it actually looked like this:
That’s why I developed a step-by-step plan, so you can skip the time-wasting pitfalls and fulfill your violin dreams!
So what are you waiting for?
You can do this!
Let’s do this!
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