Mary Koves

Education:
15 years of private instruction. 7 years with the Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestra. Bachelor of Music Education with Viola Performance from the University of South Carolina. 5 years of chamber music coaching including the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival. Currently pursuing Suzuki Method certification. 

Experience:

Mary has been pursuing music her whole life, but officially since she was 4. She began teaching lessons on violin and viola and performing in local churches and a bluegrass band as a high school student. She continued teaching and performing while getting her music degree. There she held a 4-year internship with the USC's String Project, a community music school, teaching children through seniors. Mary then served as an orchestra director in Cobb County Schools for 6 years before returning to private lesson instruction. She performs freelance in her community but also loves her 'regular gigs,' most often with the Palmetto Chamber Orchestra and the Georgia Symphony Orchestra. Mary teaches lessons for violin and viola (all levels) as well as cello (first 2-3 years) and double bass (orchestral/bowed style, first 2-3 years). 

Objective:

Mary loves to use goal-setting and the student's musical interests to guide much of their learning. Joyful learning comes with balance, and a balanced music lesson should have solid technical instruction paired with fun music! Mary also emphasizes student independence and knowledge of good practice strategies. When a student is able to understand and direct their own learning along with their teacher's guidance, more time can be spent enjoying and creating.