#1 Suzuki School of Music in Smyrna, Georgia
Where your children grow through music
Children here start as young as two years old. They perform for a real audience several times a year, and grow with the same teacher who knows them, challenges them, and cheers them on.
- Suzuki method
- 60 years in business
- Instruments available
years
teaching students of every age
lessons
across the school year
recitals
a year, plus performances in the community
The Curriculum
A full school year of music, from August through June.
Students settle into a weekly rhythm, play alongside one another in group sessions, and step onto a stage several times before the year is out.
The same teacher and mentor
Dr. Snyder teaches every student herself, from the very first lesson onward.
Sixty years of experience
Dr. Snyder has taught children and adults at every level, from first lessons to advanced repertoire.
A stage, several times a year
Students participate in three recitals and community performances.
Begin as early as two years old
Suzuki students learn by ear first, long before they read sheet music.
Composer study along the way
Students learn about who wrote the music they are playing.
A rhythm that fits a family calendar
Thirty-five weekly lessons, with group sessions two or three times a month.
Composer study
Students also learn music history.
Each composer gets his own turn, and the studio marks the occasion properly, cake included. Children remember Handel because they had a party for him, and the music stops being anonymous.
Where students play
Somewhere to play, all year long.
Performing is a skill of its own, and it grows the same way playing does, through practice. Students here get plenty of it.
Students play out in the community as well as at the studio, in front of audiences who came to listen. Playing in front of an audience gives students confidence in their abilities, helps with public speaking makes them comfortable being in front of an audience.
Three recitals a year
Students perform three times each year, so a stage becomes a familiar place.
The Christmas tour
Every December, students bring music out into the community and play for their friends and neighbors.
And when the chance comes up
Fairs, wine tastings, and other events
Beyond the recitals and the Christmas tour, students play wherever the year offers an opportunity. Which events come up varies, so they are never promised in advance.
What is taught
Piano and Strings
Piano and strings are the heart of the studio, and students stay with the same teacher from their first lesson through advanced repertoire. Clarinet and saxophone are taught here as well.
Piano and Strings
- PianoAge 2 through adult
- ViolinAge 2 through adult
- ViolaAge 2 through adult
- CelloAge 2 through adult
- String bassAge 2 through adult
Also taught
- ClarinetBeginner through advanced
- SaxophoneBeginner through advanced
Private lessons
One student and one teacher, thirty-five times across the school year.
Group lessons
Two or three times a month, students play together and learn a great deal from one another.
How to perform
Performing is taught here rather than left to chance. Students learn how to walk on, how to bow, how to begin, and what to do if something goes wrong.
Music theory
How music is put together, learned alongside playing it rather than kept as a separate subject.
Composer study
Students learn who wrote the music they are playing, when it was written, and how the world was different during that time.
MEET YOUR TEACHER
Dr. Colleen Snyder
Owner and Director
Dr. Snyder is a graduate of Stanford University and has been a music educator for 60 years. She has taught all ages from pre-school to adult. She is also a professional performer on piano, violin, viola, and saxophone/clarinet and performs regularly in several bands and orchestras. She is frequently asked to be a professional adjudicator for music festivals and competitions.
- BA, MA, DMA in Music, Stanford University
- Sixty years teaching students of every age
- Conductor of the Kings Symphony Orchestra for seventeen years
- Directed choir, orchestra, jazz band and concert band at Reedley College for thirty-two years
- Member, Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA)
- Member, American String Teacher's Association (ASTA)
Common questions
Questions families usually ask.
What is included in a year at the studio?
Thirty-five private lessons from August through June, group sessions two or three times a month, all three recitals, and the community performances. Composer study is woven into the lessons themselves.
What does it cost?
One price covers the whole year: all 35 lessons, group sessions, every recital and every community performance. The tuition page lists the figures and exactly what is included. Instrument rental is billed separately, and the studio keeps a limited selection of string instruments to rent.
My child is three. Is that too young to start?
Not at all. Suzuki students often begin at two or three. At that age lessons are 30 mins and a parent sits in and learns alongside the child, which makes practice at home much easier. Reading music comes a few years later.
We do not own an instrument yet. Can we still begin?
Yes, and most families start that way. The studio keeps a limited selection of string instruments for rent, across the fractional sizes children need as they grow, so in most cases you can rent one here rather than going looking. Dr. Snyder checks sizing at the first lesson.
Do you teach older beginners?
Yes, music lessons can start at any age and all beginners are welcome reguarless of age.
Give us a Call
Dr. Snyder would be glad to hear from you.
Smyrna, GA, and welcoming families from Vinings, Mableton, Marietta and Austell.