Holley Ross

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Bio

Holley Ross has been playing the violin since the age of 9. As a graduate of East Carolina University (BA, Music Education and Music Therapy) and of UNCG (MA, Music Education), Holley is excited to be fulfilling her dream of moving to Asheville to teach violin and fiddle lessons!

Holley has taught music, orchestra, and general music, in Charlotte and Durham public schools and has taught Suzuki violin, viola and cello for over 20 years to students ages 4 to adults. She has received her Suzuki certification in Volumes 1-3 and has also created her own unique curriculum for teaching music theory and note reading skills to young Suzuki students.

She was inspired to become a fiddle player after attending the “Swannanoa Gathering” in 2001. Since that time, Holley has expanded her classical Suzuki repertoire to include a wide range of fiddle tunes of various styles including Irish, Scottish, and Old-Time. As an avid contra dancer, Holley has danced to and jammed with some of the best and most reputable musicians in the country.

Educational Philosophy

Dr. Suzuki believed that to teach a child to play an instrument was to teach the whole child. It was not just about playing violin but about creating a more beautiful person. Holley strives to exemplify his teaching with all her students. Self-discovery, a sense of responsibility, cooperation, empathy and caring for each other, learning from failures as well as successes and creating the building blocks for life-long learning, are all integral parts of the Suzuki philosophy which permeate her teaching. Learning to play an instrument helps to teach the large lessons of life in a small enough bits for children to understand and put to use.

Another important aspect of the Suzuki philosophy is the importance of the ensemble. Students, as part of an ensemble, learn to cooperate, have integrity and commitment to the craft, to listen and respect one another, to be a good leaders and followers, while always striving to be fine musicians whatever their playing level. Holley’s students have weekly individual lessons, at which parents are encouraged to attend, and an optional monthly group lesson. Group lessons often include students at various playing levels. This type of group encourages the beginning students by demonstrating what their musical future may hold and allows the advanced students to support, musically and educationally, the less experienced ones.

Fiddle tunes found their way into Holley’s teaching repertoire after she began contra dancing regularly and playing tunes used for contra dances from other genres, such as old-time, French-Canadian and New England tunes. Holley has found that the use of fiddle tunes allows classically trained students to play and think of music in new ways. She has played in a contra dance band and has joined Asheville’s open band nights on several occasions.

Testimonials

“Holley Ross is so awesome with all the kiddos that take violin. She does a great job keeping them all in line!”
-AMS parent