West Jersey Music Academy
a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Music School
In-Person & Online
Private Lessons
WJMA offers private in-person and online private lessons (utilizing platforms such as Zoom, Facetime, Google Hangouts, and Skype). In all lessons, students move at their own pace. The lessons are structured by their teacher on their strengths and weaknesses and their preferences and individual interests. Students in a private lesson are given assignments to help them with hand positions or rhythms they may need to work on. If a student has a real passion for music and demonstrates talent, private lessons are recommended. Personalized coaching creates an environment best suited for grasping fundamental skills and personal growth.
In-Person Individualized Instruction, as well as Online Remote Instruction
Wide-Variety of Instruments Available
Student-Faculty Matching
Annual Recitals & Performances
Flexible Scheduling
Financial Aid Available
Highly Experienced & Credentialed Faculty
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Suzuki Method
More than fifty years ago, Japanese violinist, Shinichi Suzuki, began to apply the basic principles of language acquisition to the learning of music. The ideas of parent responsibility, loving encouragement, constant repetition, and careful listening are some of the special features of the Suzuki approach.
Parents are highly engaged in the musical learning of their children to create an enjoyable learning environment. They attend lessons with the child and serve as “home teachers” during the week. Listening to music every day is important, especially listening to pieces in the Suzuki repertoire so the child knows them immediately. Constant repetition is essential in learning to play an instrument, since children add everything they memorize into their repertoire, gradually using it in new and more sophisticated ways.
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As with language, the child’s effort to learn an instrument is met with praise and encouragement. Each child learns at his/her own rate, building on small steps so that each one can be mastered. The Suzuki repertoire is designed to present technical problems to be learned in the context of the music rather than through dry technical exercises. The Suzuki Method guides children to basic competence in their instrument and proficiency before they are formally taught to read music.
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Currently, our violin instruction utilizes the Suzuki Method.
