Cello Teachers

Jien-Hua began studying piano at the age of six. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Taipei, Taiwan. She taught and performed for over ten years throughout Taiwan, and also toured and performed internationally in many countries including Hong Kong, China, Italy and Switzerland. In Taiwan, every year her students performed and won awards in competitions at the municipal, county and national levels. Since moving to Canada in 2009, Jien-Hua has taught in Toronto and is an ensemble player, accompanist and solo performer.

Lea Kirstein is a violinist, violist and cellist from British Columbia. She holds a Bachelor of Music Education and classical viola performance from the University of Victoria. Lea's philosophies are in student-centred education. She loves to help students to make the connection between what they are listening to and what they are able to do: she believes that lifelong enjoyment of music stems from ability development, student empowerment and active listening, as well as composing and improvising. She draws much of her pedagogy from the Suzuki Method, helping students to mastery through "playing by heart." She has led a grades 4-8 strings program in a Waldorf School and has been teaching private and group studio lessons for the past 7 years. Lea has toured the US and Canada as the violist of the Boston-based Folk Arts Quartet, and now makes her home in Toronto with The Verse Quartet, and with Reenie, her wife's original R&B project. She has collaborated on a CD with Juno award-winning fiddler Oliver Schroer, on CDs and music videos with several independent rock bands, and has even dabbled in jazz and electric cello with the Hypatia Creative Women’s Jazz Orchestra. With her classical roots and love for eclectic new music, Lea is convinced that on string instruments, anything is possible.