My name is Mike Hall and I am currently the teacher and organizer for the Orchestra Iowa School violin groups. If you are interested to read my more formal bio click here. I will also add a few other things below.
I have recently celebrated my 21th year as a part of the Cedar Rapids area musical community as a teacher at the Orchestra Iowa School (formerly the Cedar Rapids Symphony School). I am a third generation teacher of some sort in my family, and music runs there as well! My mother played the piano and sang, and my father was both a virtuoso pianist and trumpet player. Both my parents were also church organists. My brother currently plays bassoon in the Canadian Opera, Hamilton Symphony, and the Grant Park Orchestra in Chicago. His wife plays violin in those organizations. My wife, a former college music major and former member of the Cedar Rapids Symphony also plays violin and we have enjoyed playing weddings and many church events together. I continue to play in Orchestra Iowa, play various weddings and other events, and am probably one of the few strolling violinists in the area. In addition to playing violin and viola, I have played piano since I was 3 and took 2 years of guitar.
At the Orchestra Iowa School in addition to my private studio, I have been the coordinator and instructor for the violin group classes. I have also been active for many years in the Fifth Grade Fiddles and Third Grade Strings programs in the public schools in Cedar Rapids, which have introduced many students to the violin. While violin is my main instrument, I have also studied viola both in school and at many summer camps. Throughout my college years I usually played and coached in multiple chamber music groups in both violin and viola, and performed in Europe on viola in chamber groups and orchestra. I have also taught viola for many years. I have registered long term teacher training through the Suzuki Association of the Americas in all 10 Suzuki violin books as part of my degree program. I was in the first graduating class to receive the Masters in Violin and Suzuki Pedagogy at the Cleveland Institute of Music under Michele George. While not all of my additional coursework has been registered with the SAA, I have taken the opportunity to take all of those courses again with other teachers.
I have recently celebrated my 21th year as a part of the Cedar Rapids area musical community as a teacher at the Orchestra Iowa School (formerly the Cedar Rapids Symphony School). I am a third generation teacher of some sort in my family, and music runs there as well! My mother played the piano and sang, and my father was both a virtuoso pianist and trumpet player. Both my parents were also church organists. My brother currently plays bassoon in the Canadian Opera, Hamilton Symphony, and the Grant Park Orchestra in Chicago. His wife plays violin in those organizations. My wife, a former college music major and former member of the Cedar Rapids Symphony also plays violin and we have enjoyed playing weddings and many church events together. I continue to play in Orchestra Iowa, play various weddings and other events, and am probably one of the few strolling violinists in the area. In addition to playing violin and viola, I have played piano since I was 3 and took 2 years of guitar.
At the Orchestra Iowa School in addition to my private studio, I have been the coordinator and instructor for the violin group classes. I have also been active for many years in the Fifth Grade Fiddles and Third Grade Strings programs in the public schools in Cedar Rapids, which have introduced many students to the violin. While violin is my main instrument, I have also studied viola both in school and at many summer camps. Throughout my college years I usually played and coached in multiple chamber music groups in both violin and viola, and performed in Europe on viola in chamber groups and orchestra. I have also taught viola for many years. I have registered long term teacher training through the Suzuki Association of the Americas in all 10 Suzuki violin books as part of my degree program. I was in the first graduating class to receive the Masters in Violin and Suzuki Pedagogy at the Cleveland Institute of Music under Michele George. While not all of my additional coursework has been registered with the SAA, I have taken the opportunity to take all of those courses again with other teachers.