53 McDonald Road, Edinburgh, UK
Violin Lessons | Jazz Improvisation Lessons, Online Lessons
Bio
Edinburgh-based Dirk Ronneburg is a seasoned violin/fiddle teacher with a relaxed approach and 25+ years experience in performance, teaching, and session work in a variety of styles from Folk, Blues, Americana, Old-Time, Bluegrass, Rock, Jazz & Swing. Dirk currently performs with the bands Viper Swing, Cera Impala & the New Prohibition, & Nouvelle Jukebox, if you’d like to hear him in action.
Teaching Info
Dirk welcomes everyone from beginners to advanced players, children (10+yrs) and adults. He offers a personalized tuition based on the student’s abilities, interests, needs and goals. If you are just getting started, he will help you learn tunes and gain confidence on the instrument with an emphasis on fun and groove. For the more experienced student there is wider repertoire, intermediate and advanced concepts including drones, double-stops, ornaments, vibrato, bowing techniques for articulation & rhythm, closed positions for confidently playing higher up the neck, understanding harmony and music theory, and applying it to your playing.
IMPROVISATION
Ever wonder how someone can just ‘play by ear’? For both beginners and advanced, Dirk is passionate about introducing students to the most enjoyable and personal kind of musical expression: improvisation. While it may seem like a mystical art to some, improvisation is a skill set that can be applied early on in your musical development, enabling creative expression and deepening your understanding and appreciation of music.
PLAY IN A BAND
Would you like to play in a band or session, or to be able to sit in with a group of musicians? With years of experience in many types of bands, from old-time & bluegrass to blues, folk, rock, country, and gypsy jazz, Dirk can help you navigate the in’s and out’s, do’s and don’ts of playing with other musicians from sitting-in to accompanying singers and other instruments.
ABRSM
While he’s mainly a fiddler these days, Dirk was classically trained as a child in the US, and played in a professional orchestra before graduating high school. He primarily teaches adults, but has also successfully tutored kids starting as complete beginners through the ABRSM syllabus up through Grade 6 (thus far) with distinction …and those kids also learned to improvise along the way, cementing a life-long love of music!
NUTS & BOLTS
+Location: Online or my studio in Edinburgh.
+With very rare exceptions, I teach minimum 1 hour sessions. I find 30 minutes too short for meaningful progress.
+For kids under 13, I recommend the parent accompanies the child through the session.
If there’s anything else you’d like to know, feel free to send Dirk a message!
Dirk is an exceptional teacher, he's very patient, calm and incredibly knowledgeable. My son has been thriving under his guidance. No two lessons are the same, because of Dirk's extensive knowledge base he can quickly pull up a new tune, new rhythm, new tempo to try. The lessons are creative, relaxed and fun.
Yolande M.
Five years ago, I had a series of less-than-amicable experiences with my previous tutor and so I approached the violin with an excessive level of anxiety and insecurity. However, Dirk’s calm demeanour and gentle enthusiasm allowed me to enjoy playing again and properly refine my technique. With consistent feedback and exercises for improvement, your playing really will progress to the next level.
Luke D.
I was contemplating my musical pedigree and realised that as far as I can recall, across five generations of extended family, there is not a single relative who plays a musical instrument. That is not to say we don’t like music ; far from it, I just think we are inherently lazy and would rather be entertained than go to the inconvenience of having to perform. For poor old Dirk, this is a very low skill base from which to work and given I am now in my 60’s, is it feasible that an old dog like me, who has more hair in his ears than on his head, could be taught a new trick? Hell yes! And I am loving it. Dirk is an empathetic, intuitive, responsive teacher who, in the 3 months under his tutoring, has nurtured my enthusiasm, assisted me in overcoming any challenges at a pace that is comfortable and unpressured. The first tune I learned (Swallowtail jig) took six weeks, whereas the latest tune (Cliffs of Moher) I have rattled out within two. I openly admit my renditions sound nothing like a practiced fiddler, but here is the value Dirk adds. His knowledge, experience and ability to adjust my foibles makes a significant difference. Practice as much as you like, but without the technique and artistry Dirk imparts, you will never have the skillset to succeed. I am an old geezer who calls it how I see it and I cannot recommend Dirk highly enough. If he has the patience and fortitude to teach me, then what do you think he can do with someone who has a modicum of talent. A five-star rating every day of the week, make no mistake.
