"Deborah has been teaching my nine-year old daughter for a little over six months. Having experienced other violin teachers, I can say with great confidence that she is a wonderful teacher and great fit for my daughter. What stands out about Deborah are her complete focus and absorption on my daughter's playing during the lesson; her absolute attention to detail and refinement; her calm and positive demeanor; and the encouragement she gives. Deborah is a talented musician herself and I am sure my daughter is getting a wonderful education on the violin - being challenged and her potential realized."
- Ben A.
"My 5-year-old had two lessons with Deborah when we visited Boston. He absolutely loved it! Deborah is very good at communicating with little kids! She makes learning fun! She fixed my son's bow hold in only one lesson. She has a lot of fun ideas for practicing! I'm so glad that we had the chance to have lessons with her! She's very talented and professional! I highly recommend her to anyone who wants to learn to play the violin!"
- Fiona K.
"This past spring I decided to enter an international violin competition which meant weeks and weeks of intense practicing. Deborah helped me prepare every step of the way. Over the summer we spent dozens of hours drilling the hard technical passages of my pieces, improving my tone, and refining how I used my bow. There were 3 rounds to the competition. In the end I took 3rd place in my division, the youngest student to win a top prize. Deborah inspired me to work hard and to work smart. She helped me personalize my pieces and make them interesting for the judges and audience to hear in a way that was unique to me. She's awesome!"
- Karen F.
"Deborah has been wonderful to work with! My 7-yr-old daughter loves taking violin lessons from her. She is professional and organized. She sets high and well-defined expectations, but is kind and friendly and always encouraging. My daughter comes out of each lesson excited about what she's learned and feeling like she's accomplished something. We're looking forward to many more years of learning with Deborah!"
- Elizabeth C.
"Our daughter was a student of violinist and teacher Deborah Palmer while Ms. Palmer attended The University of Texas at Austin, in 2011 and 2012. Deborah already was experienced in teaching violin to children of various ages, levels and aptitudes. At 9 years old our daughter was a beginner to violin, and Deborah’s teachings began with instructing her on knowing the instrument itself – the pieces and parts, and then so importantly, the correct way to position the violin, hold a bow and play a note. The progression of the lessons included theory and instrumentation, as well as instruction on how to perform and practice with an accompanist.
Deborah’s style was to convey to our daughter that she can play, and she reinforced that at every lesson. She was honest and firm with our daughter, taking into account her innate abilities, confidence level, and receptiveness to instruction and corrections. She was patient and kind as she encouraged Rose to practice regularly and try to get to new levels. Deborah applies her own dedication to the art of playing violin to her teaching. She set a progressive pace in lessons, but also kept realistic expectations about our daughter’s own violin ambitions.
I highly recommend Deborah Palmer as a teacher of violin. While she is very gifted as a performer herself, she is also very professional and courteous, and clearly has a love of the instrument and the teaching of it to others. Her straightforward approach to teaching would seem to benefit a large range of students’ motivations and skill levels."
- Suzanne D.