Biography

Lily Tam earned her Post-Baccalaureate B.M. in Violin Performance from the University of Texas at San Antonio, has over 20 years of playing experience, and 10 years of teaching experience.

She is a registered instructor of the Suzuki Method, and a graduate of St. Mary’s University as well, where she earned her first Bachelor’s Degree in 2009. She has studied with members of the Austin Symphony, including Diane Dickson and Paula Bird, and with Dr. Stephanie Westney of the San Antonio Symphony.

Over the course of her studies, Lily has participated in an Austrian music camp, accompanied many summer music institutes as a staff musician, accompanied the UTSA Lyric Theater, been a founding member of the Baroque Society at UTSA, won the Starlight Symphony Orchestra’s Young Artist Competition, and is a former Concertmaster of the UTSA Orchestra.

She and her husband are both Texas natives, and have called San Antonio their home for almost a decade. Lily works from a studio with Leroy Esparza, owner of LJE Music Lessons on Culebra Road.

In addition to the violin, Lily also teaches Viola.

Teaching Philosophy

As a result of my instruction my students will:

− Have proper positioning and form. A proper play position is essential to good tone and physical well-being. Squeezing, bending, finger splaying, leg locking and so forth all put harmful stress on the body and diminish the sound produced. It may create shaky sound, less audible tone, nerve pinching, muscle strain, or improper blood-flow.

− Develop good intonation and aural skills. As a fretless instrument, the only way to play in tune on the violin is to know where our pitches are and what they sound like. Students will learn the adjustments to hand and arm that must be made to accommodate pitches on different strings, they will learn the function of leading tones, major and minor 3rds or scale degrees, and be able to hear the perfect 5th

− Develop a relaxed bow hold and arm that is capable of diverse style. Students will be able to use different techniques such as staccato, legato, and tenudo. They will be able to change the pressure used to reflect the music they play, change dynamics, and use proper bow distribution to achieve sustained or short tones as needed.

− Develop a working knowledge of theory, learn to read music, and develop sight-reading skills. It is not satisfactory to simply be able to speak a language, one must be able to understand it on the page as well and interpret the directions to create a sound that is ultimately their own.

− Develop an appreciation and love of various styles of music. In this program, classical is the primary focus, but other styles will be addressed as well, including bluegrass, fiddle, folk, and Irish fiddle. Versatility is a vital skill as a musician, but being able to do something is useless unless you enjoy it. Exposure is the first step toward enjoyment.