Welcome to the R.N. Harris Strings Program
![The violin program at R. N. Harris was started in the fall of 1996 with seed money from a federal magnet grant and donations of time, expertise, and finances from individuals and organizations. Today it is part of the regular curriculum at R. N. Harris under the direction of Ms. Ann Bauer. Instruction is based on the Suzuki Method with adaptations for a school setting. Students play a graded repertoire including folk songs, study pieces composed by the originator of the method, Dr. Shinichi Suzuki, and classical pieces by J. S. Bach and other composers. Our most advanced and motivated violin students perform with the R. N. Harris Suzuki Violin Players.
Dr. Suzuki was a violinist, educator, philosopher and humanitarian who based his educational approach on the belief that, “Musical ability is not an inborn talent but an ability which can be developed.” Suzuki said, “Any child who is properly trained can develop musical ability, just as all children develop the ability to speak their mother tongue. The potential of every child is unlimited,” he stated. [reference notes]
Ms. Bauer has been teaching Suzuki Violin at R. N. Harris as an instructor with the Durham Public Schools since July 2000. Working with parents, teachers, and administrators to nurture the ability of students at R. N. Harris has been a highlight of her teaching career. Ms. Bauer received a bachelor’s degree in music education from Mount Senario College in Ladysmith, Wisconsin, and a Master of Music Education degree with a Suzuki emphasis from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. A highlight of Ms. Bauer’s education was meeting Dr. Suzuki at his Talent Education Institute in Matsumoto, Japan, while she was an exchange student in Japan. She continues to be inspired by educational opportunities offered by the A+ Schools Program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, a nationally recognized whole-school reform model that views the arts as fundamental to how teachers teach and students learn in all subjects.
Contact information:
ann.bauer@dpsnc.net
919.560.3967
Several partnerships which benefit the community and our students have been developed and sustained through the R. N. Harris Suzuki violin program. Some highlights include:
Duke University: Students from the Duke Symphony Orchestra continue to serve as violin tutors for our violin students. In February 2006 we collaborated with a Duke University graduate student in composition who created an orchestra arrangement for our performance with the Duke Symphony Orchestra.
The Campus Club Music Appreciation Group made a generous donation to the violin program in memory of Chairman Milena Sedmak Vesic, Winter 2007. The money was used to purchase Suzuki CD’s and music to assist students with their home practice.
Mallarme Chamber Players: The Mallarme Chamber Players, a Durham-based ensemble of professional musicians, offers concerts and string master classes regularly at our school. The next concert and master class is scheduled for November 2008.
Light Up Durham: Students perform each December as part of the Talent All Over Town.
Durham County Government: Students were invited to perform for an employee recognition event during National County Government Week, April 2008.
North Carolina Symphony and Fidelity Investments: Students performed for a preconcert reception at UNC Carolina Inn, December 2007. In October 2007, the R. N. Harris Suzuki Violin Players welcomed North Carolina Symphony Music Director Grant Llewellyn, Durham School Board members, and other dignitaries in an opening program at R. N. Harris to present Instrument Zoo, an educational initiative sponsored by the Symphony and Fidelity Investments.
North Carolina Suzuki Association: Our students were guest performers for the opening recital of the NCSA Play-In, March 2006. Students also participated in the play-in and workshop.
National Symphony Orchestra: In March 2005, a violinist with the NSO worked with eighteen fourth and fifth grade string students as part of the National Symphony Orchestra’s 2005 American Residency.](Strings%3A%20Ms.%20Bauer_files/shapeimage_1.png)
