Those who know Alison know she is one of the most extraordinarily gifted and brilliant people they will ever hope to know. I’ve been lucky enough to call her colleague and friend for more than twenty years, first as my children’s music teacher, and then as a musical collaborator. She introduced me later to her astonishing integrated arts curriculum. Her Musical Minds curriculum has depth and breadth of scope that is not only ahead of its time, but will live on long after she has left us. What I didn’t know about her, however, is how profoundly deep she goes when she is seeking answers to solve problems. In looking for answers to heal her own health conditions and experiences, she went to lengths few would have dedicated the time or discipline to so thoroughly explore. And, being who she is, sharing what she learned is as natural for her as breathing. Around the time I was seeking answers to ongoing Issues I have had, Alison was reaching out to people to help them with the challenges they faced as teachers, performers, and in their personal journeys. We found ourselves in Alexander Technique training together, and then in a group for musicians interested in transformational life coaching. When I learned of her deep study of somatic practices and the integration of NLP, EMDR, and other healing modalities and the training she had taken in so many disciplines, I knew I needed her help to overcome some lingering performance anxiety and confidence issues, particularly as it related to practice preparation, memorization, self-trust, and ability to let go on stage. Our work together was revelatory. The conversations alone were deep and helpful, but the somatic practices I learned, while simple tools, were profoundly life-changing for me. Her ideas about practice, preparation and memorization were original and apparent from any I had encountered in my forty-year career as both a teacher and a performing cellist. I am forever changed through our work, finding more ease, confidence and joy in performing, teaching and transmitting my love for music and my instrument. My gratitude and praise for her integrity, character, perception, and loving spirit is as boundless as my admiration. Work with her! She is fabulous!

Alicia Randisi- Hooker, cellist and teacher

Musical Minds Courses and Book Reviews

Spectacular! This book (Multicultural Songs)is amazing. Alison is very inspiring. There’s nothing else like this book around. 
Laura Carr, creator of Stringosaurus

A masterpiece. I think it’s wonderful to teach children these folk tunes. No one does anymore. I am enjoying all the didactic uses you put them. All your ideas for beginning, intermediate and advanced students are marvelous. I can say right now that this is something that all teachers who are teaching … children need.

Eloise Hellyer, Suzuki teacher, author of 1 Teaches to Learn

 I took part in the introductory course for Musical Minds and am just now finishing Course Level 1. I have to say, before I started the introductory course, I was skeptical. I have been a cello teacher in Germany for over 25 years. I have a system that works. Kids make progress. But I’d been feeling a little bit as though I could stand to make things more fun. I felt pedantic. After beginning the introductory course, I realized that what Alison has delved into to come up with Musical Minds is exactly what I could use to enrich my lessons, make them more fun, more accessible to children, more inspiring. Did I say more fun?? I’ve become inspired to examine sources I have in German and began using them right away. My students were immediately receptive and began taking what I had shown them and applied it to other things. And that is what Musical Minds is all about! Inspiring young people to find and recognize musical elements in many different sources whether they recognize them immediately as such or not. They are simply soaking it up. Alison presents things in such a natural way for children. Musical Minds is like planting little seeds and then watching them sprout, grow, form flowers and fruit. I’m SO glad I’ve gone down this lovely path!!” Carol Werbow-Schier, cellist and teacher

 After 40 years of teaching, I thought I had seen, heard, or thought of it all. I was wrong. I took Alison's introductory course of Musical Minds out of curiosity and was amazed to find that it had me thinking about teaching the violin from a very different angle. Alison's resume shows she has achieved high levels of training not only in the piano and the violin (which is already quite an achievement), but also in dance, eurythmics, and other disciplines. She incorporates and integrates all of these into her highly original courses which would be of great benefit to anyone who takes them. Her holistic approach to learning a musical instrument will ensure that students take more responsibility for their own music education and enjoy doing so as well. I highly recommend her courses to anyone who loves music and loves teaching it. Her curriculum will make your teaching life a lot easier and more joyful. -- Eloise Hellyer Violin Teacher Life Coach blog: www.violinteachersblog.com

I have read countless books on teaching artistry and attempted to better myself as a player and artist by taking extra lessons and doing much observation. Still, there was no single volume, approach, or cohesive presentation of material in one place that addresses the development of the complete musical artist in the comprehensive way that Musical Minds does. Here you will find the relationship to gesture and movement, poetry and rhyme, art and architecture, and musical context that is sorely lacking in our field. What Alison has done with this work is to distill the best of her extensive educational background and experience, along with her vast curiosity and scholarship, into useable and practical help for teachers and parents alike, in an appealing and accessible way. It is a great gift to all of us who care about our children’s creative development, not just as instrumentalists, but as human beings who value all the arts, and who may then develop their own creative voices as human beings not only in music, but in all their future endeavors. ~Alicia Randisi-Hooker, cellist and teacher