Collaboration between Studio Teachers & Orchestra Directors with Stephanie Hellekson

On this week’s episode of the Time to Practice podcast, we’re speaking with professional violinist, music educator including orchestra director in the Seattle Public schools for 10+ years, conductor with the Bellvue Youth Symphony Orchestra, and private teaching experience about collaboration between private teachers and orchestra or ensemble teachers.

I invited Stephanie to come and speak to me after getting a question about how private teachers and orchestra teachers can collaborate. You can see the post that started it all below. I think this topic can be discussed from many angles, so this is the first of many discussions on it, I hope!

Question: Any topics you'd like to hear me speak about? Answer: Talk about private teacher vs orch teacher. Navigating "too many cooks in the kitchen."

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

In this episode we discuss the relationship between private music teachers and orchestra/ensemble directors. We talk about how to navigate potential conflicts or differing approaches between teachers when they show up, and most of all to remember to focus on supporting our students’ musical development.

Here are some of our takeaways for this conversation all about collaboration:

Be curious
Assume positive intent
Try to collaborate, but if that is impossible, DO help the student navigate the situation and adapt as much as possible.

We know that conversation doesn’t cover every scenario or situation that may come up and that everyone’s situation is very different. We’d love to hear from you if you have a perspective or experience share.

This is the first of what I am sure will be many conversations on this topic.