The Strad: Tips for Small Framed Violists

“When I was a student at the Curtis Institute of Music, my teacher Michael Tree lent me a 16.5-inch viola. It was quite large for me, because I’m only 5’1” tall, and I remember saying, ‘Mr. Tree, this is too big! I don’t think that I can play it.’ He just said, ‘Don’t worry. Take it, make it work and don’t hurt yourself.’ That was some of the best advice that anyone has ever given me.”

Read the full excerpt on The Strad’s website here, or the full article in The Strad’s January 2022 issue available here.