Sara F.
Violin
Margaret was truly one of the most wonderful and kind teachers I've ever had. She helped me to hone not only my technical skills as a violinist, but also the artistic and emotional skills necessary for performance, which I found to be just as important. Margaret is a teacher who will value you both on a musical and personal level, and I cannot recommend her enough.
Jennifer F.
I started virtual lessons with Margaret at the height of the pandemic, and have since continued. Studying violin throughout such a turbulent period gave me not only an outlet, but joy in my pursuit of the arts. Now that I have returned to my regular schedule, I still find virtual lessons rewarding and challenging. Margaret adds patience, kindness and humor to her lessons. I often look forward to our sessions and am inspired and motivated to learn new pieces.
Violin
Susan F. &
Bob P.
We are so grateful to have had Margaret as our son's violin teacher for over 7 years. She is a wonderful teacher. She is patient and encouraging, and knows how to "pitch" her instruction, so as to be motivating and not overwhelming. Our son learned much more than the notes on the page.
Violin
Susan F. &
Bob P.
We are so grateful to have had Margaret as our son's violin teacher for over 7 years. She is a wonderful teacher. She is patient and encouraging, and knows how to "pitch" her instruction, so as to be motivating and not overwhelming. Our son learned much more than the notes on the page.
Violin
Pam M.
Piano
Margaret is a wonderful teacher! She is an extremely talented musician who teaches with patience, humor, and care. She employs creative methods of teaching tailored to the student and the task at hand, and welcomes input and ideas from her students. She is skilled at teaching students of all ages and abilities and has a knack for challenging her students without them even realizing it!
Catherine D.
Violin
Margaret is a passionate, reliable, and caring teacher. I greatly enjoyed all 4 years that I studied the violin under her supervision. Margaret always provided a welcoming and friendly learning environment. Lessons were centered around the student and their individual needs and learning styles.
Ally M.
Viola
Margaret's flexible, student-centered style of teaching is what fueled my passion for music. My passion grew because I was playing pieces that I genuinely wanted to learn. I'm so grateful that Margaret gave me choices during our lessons and helped me discover music that spoke to me. She also helped me understand that learning an instrument isn't about fast results. In fact, taking your time learning a piece is extremely rewarding and fun in its own way.
Because of Margaret, I felt completely prepared to audition and play with a serious orchestra. She helped me develop new skills and empowered me to take on this challenge. Along with the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, I spent my junior and senior year playing with a string orchestra and a viola ensemble. I'm so thankful that Margaret encouraged me to take advantage of all these opportunities in the Rochester area. I couldn't have done it without her.
Anissa B.
Violin
Margaret is an incredibly gracious and naturally intuitive teacher. While there is much time devoted to learning the technicalities of playing an instrument, her tutelage places an emphasis on fostering a student's relationship with music as self-expression and an art. I am so glad to have had 8 years of lessons with Margaret who has provided me the guidance to foster a passion for music that will last a lifetime.
Rigel E.
Violin
Margaret is probably the main reason I am still playing music today. When I first came to her, I was completely disenchanted with the violin and music in general. I was terrified to pick up my instrument, and I wasn't sure I would ever take lessons again. She helped me get past my crippling anxiety and insecurity on the violin to the point where I could enjoy making music again.
Margaret truly wants the best for her students, and I think her teaching reflects that. With her, it isn't about doing things right or wrong, or playing things "correctly". Rather, she focuses on developing the individual musical voice of each of her students. She works with students to understand and develop musical ideas and then to express this through the instrument. In this way, she helped me to grow far beyond where I thought I could go.
It's not an exaggeration to say that Margaret helped me rekindle my love of music. After a few weeks taking with her, I started genuinely looking forward to our weekly lessons and was excited to pick up my instrument. Margaret is an excellent teacher and I would recommend her to anyone looking to begin or continue their musical life.
Mary F.
Violin
Margaret Coote was the perfect teacher for our daughter who loves classical violin, but experienced performance anxiety and stress when playing. Our daughter lacked confidence and wouldn’t even practice if someone else was at home. She began lessons with Margaret after she had been playing for about 5 years. Margaret took the time to get to know her interests and abilities, always treated her with kindness, and shared her sometimes silly sense of humor! She made lessons challenging and fun.
Margaret has studied Alexander Technique and was able to give our daughter exercises to help her play without tension. Margaret is a delightful person and a talented instructor, but the best testimonial I can offer is this: Last year our daughter went away to college. She decided to audition for the University Symphony, never having played in an orchestra before, and made it into the first violin section. She sent us a video of her and another student playing a duet in the dorm, surrounded by friends. There were a few mistakes, but lots of laughter. She was sharing the joy of music with others, which is the goal of all those years of lessons, after all.
Jim L.
Violin
My daughter was referred to Margaret from her previous teacher that was moving away. Margaret was able to quickly connect and help her to the next level through a holistic approach, understanding the pressures of perfection and the importance of joy in music. This included advancement in solo play, orchestra music, and learning to find and play music she likes. Margaret used many methods to support her creativity by including art through painting, drawing, writing, movie-making, and much more. The lessons are therapeutic and restorative. On top of it all, my daughter has learned to take meaningful notes under Margaret's guidance. At the end of each lesson, we both are happy and energized.
Nora B.
Violin
Once a week, I walk into Margaret’s music-teaching studio – where plants flourish by the window, art and books of all kinds line the wall, and music comes to life. No matter how bad or tiring my day has been, walking into her studio and pulling out my violin to play with her immediately boosts my spirit. Together we’ve worked on everything from playing Suzuki to improvising to writing our own music, and I’ve learned so much within the time I’ve taken lessons with her. Not only does she incorporate the development of musical techniques in her teaching, but she also blends that with discovering the art of music; we’ve improvised using art around the room, recorded duets of our own pieces, assigned colors and textures to notes, created medleys of our favorite songs, made our very own key signatures, learned about musical endeavors worldwide, and so much more. I’ve never been bored in that room, and there are always discoveries being made, whether they’re about the instrument in my hand, the music on the stand, or what it means to be a musician and artist.
I’ve learned so much about myself from Margaret; we’ve walked down so many avenues of music, which has made it possible for me to find myself as a musician. Whenever I have new ideas in mind, she embraces them with open arms and pours her heart and soul into making them possible. Not only does she follow my ideas, but she prompts new ones, too; she pulls the artist out of me and challenges me to think why and ask how. This has inspired me to do things with my music I never before thought I would (or could) do. Even outside of our lessons we’re always seeking out music in our lives and in the world, sharing instances of music or art we discover with each other. Having this outlet for my urge to learn, discover, and create is what has shaped my music into what it is today.
Margaret, however, hasn’t just shaped my music; she’s also shaped a beautiful community of musicians within the area. Her enthusiasm for music has reached many people of all ages; I’ve met a handful of them at the recitals she holds, which were in person before the pandemic, but were well-adapted to Zoom once the pandemic began. For example, Margaret painted beautiful signs of each of our names to hold up to the camera when it was our turn to perform, and she prompted everyone to bring something colorful to wave around instead of unmuting to clap. Her fun and creative ideas like these seem to be never-ending, just like the love of music she’s inspired within me and the immense gratitude I have for her. I have no idea what the future holds for my music, but I know whatever I do, the knowledge of music and the life lessons I’ve learned from Margaret will stay with me forever.
Greg B.
Violin
In addition to her technical knowledge of violin, I really love Margaret's attention and accommodation for the creative process. This really allows her students to be able to take real ownership of their own musical performance in ways that are wonderful to see and hear.