2025 Strings Play-In -- Register now!
 
SAC is happy to announce that we will be holding the Strings Play-In again this year on January 25, 2025.
 
This year, our Play-In, Master Class, and Teacher talk will be led by Laura Anderson-Schleiger! Laura is Adjunct Faculty, Suzuki, at University of Denver and Assistant Concertmaster of the Symphony of the Rockies. We are so pleased to have Ms. Schleiger lead us this year.

Also available this year: Special reduced hotel rates for places to stay in the area, including the Courtyard, the Element, and the Residence Inn. 
 
For more information, and to Register for the Play-In, Master Class or the Talk with Lunch, click HERE.


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Recap: 2024 Denver and Colorado Springs PianoPlay-Ins
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Approximately 30 Suzuki Piano students recently played in this year's Piano Play-Ins in Denver and Colorado Springs.​
 
Led by Laura Benson, Tom White, Wendy Lambrech, Carol Jilling and others, Suzuki students from different age groups and backgrounds played as one with their groups at Graner Studios (Colorado Springs) and Classic Pianos (Denver.) Some even came from as far away as Snowmass and Fort Collins.
 
At the Denver Play-In, we had the special privilege of having Bob Baker, the manager of Classic Pianos and long-time Suzuki pianist himself, give a speech to our budding pianists. Classic Pianos also provides the pianos at our Colorado Suzuki Institute in Beaver Creek every year and has also provided pianos to PPSI. As such, we are extremely thankful to Bob and Classic Pianos and we encourage our members to purchase their pianos from Classic Pianos if you're in the Denver area.
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​More info and pictures HERE.

Thank you Classic Pianos (Denver) and Graner Music Store (Colorado Springs)! And of course, CO Suzuki teachers!

Welcome New Board Members!

SAC is proud to announce new board members: Joanna Johnson and Wendy Lambrech. 

Joanna Johnson is the Violin/Viola Director of Noteworthy Strings and will join the board as Co-VP, Chair of Strings Play-In
With a passion for music education and a warm heart for her students and their families, Joanna Malm has been an inspirational teacher since she began her private music studio in 2003. Joanna has a BA in Music and has completed a post-graduate Certificate in Suzuki Pedagogy at the University of Denver. She has studied pedagogy with James Maurer, William Preucil Sr., Mark Bjork, and Edmund Sprunger. Committed to life-long learning, she has training in injury-prevention for musicians with Valerie Gardner, has completed teacher training in Music Mind Games with Michiko Yurko, and has studied the Ploger Method of Music Perception and Cognition with Marianne Ploger at Vanderbilt University. Joanna has performed violin and viola throughout the US and England and is currently the Assistant Principal Violist of the Arapahoe Philharmonic. More info here: https://noteworthyschoolforstrings.com/faculty/


Wendy Lambrech is the owner of Lambrech Music Studio and will join the board as Colorado Springs regional representative. Lambrech Music Studio is a Suzuki Piano Studio started in early 2014 by Wendy Lambrech in order to provide the wonderful opportunities that the Suzuki method affords to those students in the Monument, Palmer Lake, and northern Colorado Springs region.

Wendy was classically trained in piano from the age of 8, taking lessons from pianist Leah Porter and also studied trombone with Dr. Raymond Horton. While attending Indiana University, Wendy pursued studies in Music Education, Piano, and Trombone, receiving a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Mathematics Education as well as a Computer Science Education endorsement.

After moving to Colorado and starting a family, Wendy decided to return to the wonderful world of music education inspired by Dr. Suzuki’s vision of teaching and after watching her own three children excel with the Suzuki method. She studied Suzuki theory and piano with Jane Kutscher Reed, Joan Krzywicki, and Nancy Modell at the Colorado Suzuki Institute in Beaver Creek, CO and has taken additional training in Suzuki early childhood education courses. She is an active member of the Pikes Peak Suzuki Music Association, the Suzuki Association of Colorado, and the Suzuki Association of the Americas. More info here: https://www.lambrechmusicstudio.com/about

Seeking candidates for President

We are seeking candidates for the President position. We are looking for candidates who are passionate about Suzuki, who are organized, who work well with others, and are Positive. Examples of this include, inviting your students to the SAC events, attending SAC events, contributing to SAC board meetings with ideas, and working with other board members to expand and strengthen SAC's development in the coming years. 

To encourage more qualified candidates to step forward, the SAC board, through a grant from a donor, will award the new President of the 2024-2025 term, up to $500 to cover the cost of attending a national SAA event during this term. Another grant of up to $500 will cover the cost of attending a national SSA event to other members of the board. More info here!

2024-2025 Calendar of Events

Piano Play-Ins

Colorado Springs: at Graner Music Store
Saturday, Sept. 28th 9:15 - 10 am (arrive a few minutes early)

Denver: at Classic Pianos
Saturday, October 5, 10:30 - Noon; arrive by 10:15 am to check in.

January, 2025:
Strings Play-In, Master Class, and Talk (with Lunch) at St. Phillips, Denver 
Featuring Laura Schleiger (see above.) Click here to register.

February 15, 2025:
Zoom class with Andrea Glass
"Beating the Practice Blues"--a special Parent talk on practicing with littles to teenagers. Followed by Q&A.

Winter 2024-2025
Zoom piano and strings master classes to be announced

February 14, 2025:
Scholarship Application Deadline
 
June 2025
Colorado Suzuki Institute at Beaver Creek
https://coloradosuzuki.org/
 
July 2025
Peaks to Plains Suzuki Institute
https://www.ppsicolorado.com/

Purchase Institute tix at their respective websites. Calendar is subject to change. Ticket purchasing opportunities for each event will become available as we approach the event. 

2024 SAC Scholarship Winners' Testimonials

SAC is pleased to share the following from this year's scholarship winners on their experiences attending Suzuki Institutes this year. Read the complete testimonials here.
 
1. Kristen Folden, Piano Teacher, attended virtually the Suzuki Institute at the Music Institute of Chicago
 
2. Katie Burns, Cello and Violin Teacher, attended the Southwestern Ontario Suzuki Institute
 
These recipients had 100% of their registration fees paid for.
 
3. Ojas Sinha, Student Pianist, attended Peaks to Plains Institute
 
4. Jonah Pierce, Student Violinist, attended Peaks to Plains Institute
 
5. Abner Covarrubias, Student Violinist, attended Colorado Suzuki Institute at Beaver Creek
 
These recipients had 60% of their registration fees paid for, and 100% of the fees paid for if they had financial need.
 
6. Jacque Pierce, Violinist, attended Peaks to Plains Institute
 
7. Breanna Duffy, Violinist, attended Peaks to Plains Institute
 
8. Austin Ray, Violinist, attended Colorado Suzuki Institute at Beaver Creek
 
9. Constance Stone, Pianist, attended Colorado Suzuki Institute at Beaver Creek
 
 
The board encourages everyone to apply next year! Remember, in an effort to award more qualified applicants throughout the SAC community, recipients can only apply every five years.
 
Check out more information about the institutes right here in Colorado:
 
Beaver Creek
 
Peaks to Plains
 
 
SAC thanks Colorado Suzuki Institute Beaver Creek, for partnering with us and paying for 50% of each scholarship award where the student will be attending CSI Beaver Creek.

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2023 SAC Community Questionnaire-- More Results Released Shortly

A big thank you to all who participated. We received close to 50 responses which have provided a good deal of insight. SAC's board would like to ensure that we are doing all that we can to help the community thrive and are using your membership fees responsibly. Thank you for your help.