Suzuki Graduation FAQ

What is a Suzuki Graduation? 

A Suzuki Graduation is a performance celebrating the completion of a Suzuki book. During a Suzuki graduation, the graduates perform every song in the book, demonstrating all of the new skills and technique they’ve learned! At the end of the performance, they receive a trophy. 

Why should I participate in a Suzuki graduation?

Suzuki graduations are opportunities to celebrate the accomplishments of your violinist, and to show how much progress they’ve made!  

Preparing for a Suzuki graduation is also a great way to refine all the skills learned throughout a book. When we review pieces, we reinforce old skills, while layering in new, more advanced technique. As Suzuki said, “Knowledge is not skill. Knowledge plus ten thousand times is skill.” The “Twinkle” that we learned when first starting out on the violin sounds very different from the “Twinkle” we play by the time we’ve graduated book 1! The Suzuki books are laid out such that the new songs rely on technique and ear training skills learned in the previous songs. So the more we practice review pieces, the better prepared we are for new songs! 

How can I prepare for a Suzuki graduation? 

You can review pieces any time with Ms. Mallory in her graduation videos (Book 1 / Book 2 / Book 3) or by playing along with the Suzuki CD!

When your teacher thinks you are ready to graduate, they will sign you up for either a group Suzuki performance (occurs ~once per year when there are 3 or more students ready to graduate), or a solo graduation during their normal lesson time!