Community & Support for Parents/Caregivers: An Interview with Violist Grazzia Rode-Sagastume

Grazzia Rode-Sagastume is a Honduran born- American based Suzuki Viola, Violin, and Early Childhood educator. She began studying the viola at age 13 in her hometown, San Pedro Sula, Honduras at the Escuela de Música Victoriano López. She discovered her passion for teaching and mentoring while doing her Master degrees and Suzuki long-term training at the University of New Mexico with renowned Suzuki pedagogue, Susan Kempter. Grazzia has been teaching for ten years and loves working with different communities. In her teaching, she prioritizes empowering others through music and helping families succeed in their personal Suzuki music journey. Grazzia teaches Suzuki Viola, Violin, Early Childhood Music, Caregiver support, and String Sprouts at the Omaha Conservatory of Music in Omaha, Nebraska. She currently serves as the interim director for the Omaha Conservatory of Music Suzuki Institute and SoundWaves Summer Program.

On this week’s episode of the Time to Practice podcast we’re speaking with violist Grazzia Rode-Sagastume about how she fell in love with the Viola right from the start of her music journey, the importance of community, and how she works to support parents and caregivers in her program.

Time to Practice Podcast Episode 38. Community and Supporting Parents/Caregivers with Grazzia Rode Sagastume

To Listen to the full episode you can find the Time to Practice Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Audible , Google Podcasts, or your favorite podcast platform. You can also listen directly from the link below:

Highlights of our Conversation with Grazzia Rode-Sagastume Include:

About her first experience with music lessons: so actually, I was a soccer player up to, well I was 17, but my mom wanted me to do something more related with the arts. So when I was 13, she took me to the school of music in my hometown in San Pedro. It’s called Espquela De Musica Victoriana Lopez. And when I showed up there for the audition, I was one of the older children and everyone had previous experience with instruments and I had never played an instrument in my life.

So they asked me to audition and by the grace of God, I got in. I don’t know how, but they accepted me and that’s how I started. I started when I was 13 and they wanted to give me the Violin as my instrument. And I just fell in love with the viola at first sound. I, I even remember going to the student who was doing the demonstration and I asked, oh my goodness, that’s such a beautiful piece. What is it? And he’s like, it’s called the G major scale. And I was like, oh!! <Laughs>

About what practice was like for her as a beginner: You know, I remember everything because I started so late. I remember that at the beginning, I didn’t really understand or correlate that practice made you play better. So at the beginning, my first year, I didn’t really practice as much as I could, but after the first year, my second year at the school of music, I won first chair for an orchestra. And I had to practice, but then I had this like sense of (being) very excited whenever I nailed something and I liked it. So I didn’t really think about it then, that practice made me better and I played better. So I felt happier, but I just really enjoyed practicing so much that my mom would have to tell me stop.

Grazzia Rode-Sagastume’s tip for practice: Have everything in little groups. So if you have a phrase or a measure that is too complicated, you can always break it down to the most simple step and that not only helps you in practicing, but it also helps you in life because that’s such a valuable skill to have.