Choi Violin & Viola Studio

"My daughter took violin lessons with Chi-Li Yen from elementary school through high school. We had an excellent experience at her studio. Chi-Li made sure that my daughter learned and practiced the technical aspects of playing the violin and let her play a variety of pieces that she enjoyed and that were a good fit for her skill level. Chi-Li is a demanding teacher who enables her students to successfully audition for the All South Jersey and the All State Youth orchestras. In addition to private lessons, she and her husband, violinist Walter Choi, offered audition prep for the entire Choi-Yen studio as group. This experience fostered relationships with other young string players and helped the students get used to playing in front of others and playing as a group. The Choi-Yen studio also organized formal recitals for their students, as well as occasional outdoors summer concerts/picnics with fun ensemble music. The overall learning experience for my daughter (who never had musical career aspirations) was very positive. She connected with Chi-Li at a personal level and enjoyed Chi-Li’s sense of humor, and ended up with a solid foundation in violin playing as well as an appreciation of classical music. At the same time, I have no doubt that Chi-Li Yen, who is a fantastic violin/viola player herself, will bring out the best in students with professional ambitions."

"If you live in south Jersey and you want to learn to play violin, this is where to go. This is a friendly but no-nonsense husband and wife team with an established studio of students. They follow traditional violin pedagogy. This is not a Suzuki method studio. If you are interested in fiddle, get your violin basics here before studying fiddle, you will learn fiddle faster later. These teachers are patient. You must be willing to work hard. There is no magic pill to learn violin, even if you play other instruments competently. These are professional musicians who play in orchestras. They are willing to use texts appropriate to the individual student. For example, I prefer Galamian scales to Flesch or Hrimaly. I also prefer the Harvey method for stops to the standard double stop texts. You will be happy you studied here."

"My children not only had such improvement in their skill level and confidence while studying at Choi, they also grew to have a wonderful relationship with their instructors; trusting thier feedback and and appreciating the time spent enjoying music with them."

"I couldn't be happier with Walter and Chi-Li's exceptional teaching over the past 8 years. They've been instrumental in laying a solid foundation for my children in violin and viola, and have truly nurtured their love for music. Thanks to their guidance, both of my daughters not only found joy in music but also excelled to the point of joining the South Jersey Orchestra and progressing to the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra. I highly recommend both Water and Chi-Li for their outstanding dedication and expertise in nurturing young musicians."

"Chi-Li and Walter are two incredible teachers. When I first came to the studio I came from a long time teacher that was a close friend of mine who was moving and recommended Chi-Li. They are both friendly, kind, and motivating teachers with a clear passion for education."