Reagan's First Violin Recital

On Saturday, we had Reagan’s first violin recital.  This was a little different format, the kids were all playing at the rest home where Cameron works.  They had a nice area for the kids to play and all the residents were happy for some entertainment.

Reagan started violin lessons in October of last year.  This came after her begging me for quite a long time.  I know how much time and effort is involved and I did not want her to make this decision lightly.  She committed to work hard and practice and I set out to find her a teacher.  My neice, Crystal, teaches lessons so I contacted her to see if she might be able to teach Reagan.  It is a bit of a drive, but I am happy to have Crystal working with Reagan.

It is definitely a slow process.  Crystal spends a lot of time working on form and technique, so Reagan really does not know many songs at this point, but she is continually working on the way to stand, hold her bow, press her fingers on the fingerboard, move her elbow properly…..and the list goes on and on.  Looking back at my own experience with violin, I really did not learn the fundamentals at the very beginning like this and I can see how it will help Reagan in the future.

After the kids all performed their numbers, Crystal had them walk around to the residents and ask if they would like to hear a song.  I thought this might be hard for Reagan, but she went ahead and did it.  She played for many people, her very limited number of songs.  I was glad to see that she was not afraid and that she was willing to share her talent.  I thought she might cower around me, but that was not the case.  Way to go Reagan!!

Getting the lay of the land.

Crystal helping with positions.

Group Number

Playing the for residents after the recital.

Cameron was convinced to play something and of course he did it from memory.