There is one Junior Recital (2:15 p.m.) and two Senior Recitals (3:15 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.) this Sunday, February 26th, 2023. Church of the Incarnation - 1240 Old Abbey Lane, Oakville. You are all welcome to attend, even if you’re not playing.
Next weekend, March 4th and 5th, is the Violin Workshop….the first one since 2019! TJ McAvery, Elayne Ras and a magician are coming. All students who are currently enrolled in group class, may attend free of charge. Non group students in Book 4 or higher are also free. You still need to register, however, so that OSA can organize the classes. On Sunday are the masterclasses that require a fee and registration.
Instrument purchase and rentals
There is quite a bit of information on my website about this, so if you haven’t seen it, please take a look.
Since Covid especially, there have been more families obtaining inferior instruments. Kijiji and Craigslist are not usually good places to find a violin and bow. They are often in poor condition, poor quality and sitting in someone’s closet for too long. They have rarely been taken to a luthier for check-up, repairs and adjustments. Violins deteriorate when they are neglected. Guitar shops are also not a good place to find a violin. The reason is that the set-up has not been done in these places. The set-up refers to all the adjustments that need to be made to a violin after construction (bridge, nut, fingerboard, sound post, pegs, et al.). Only a qualified luthier knows how to do this properly. When it hasn’t been done well, it affects not only the sound of the instrument but also the playability. It is frustrating for the student to try to learn when the strings aren’t the correct distance apart or the bridge is too high or low or the pegs and fine tuners won’t move. Please only shop for your violin and bow at reputable violin dealers.
A little fun! Speaking of luthiers, one of our students (Isaac) has an aunt who is a luthier in Haliburton. I recently learned that she can rehair bows in colours! Red, Orange, Pink, Yellow, Green, Greenish-Blue, Blue, Purple or Rainbow. Her process does not damage the hair in any way and uses non-toxic dyes (see pictures above). It would make a nice gift and bows can be mailed.
If you are interested in getting this done to your bow or purchasing a spare bow with coloured hair. please contact:
Bethany Houghton
705-448-1991
February musician: Felix Mendelssohn
Born February 3, 1809
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