Performance and Teacher Training
Mrs. Crespo-Almond holds a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from the University of Arkansas, where she studied under Maestro Rico McNeela.
After completing several levels of Suzuki certification, Vivian sought deeper, sustained study beyond brief, week-long training programs. In 1998, she relocated to the Washington, D.C. area to pursue advanced training in Suzuki pedagogy, completing two years of post-graduate–level study under Ronda Cole at the University of Maryland. This work was carried out within a master’s-level Suzuki pedagogy program, in which she fulfilled the full coursework requirements and taught as part of the program. Her academic and practical training focused on high-level Suzuki philosophy, repertoire progression, group teaching, and parent education, with regular teaching responsibilities integrated throughout the two-year course of study.
Vivian’s professional development has been guided by extensive training through the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA), grounding her teaching in a deep understanding of both the musical and human dimensions of the Suzuki approach.
Vivian’s early musical formation began in Bolivia, where she studied at the Instituto de Bellas Artes with Martha Shakford through the Partners of the Americas exchange program, and with Maestro Daniel Perego of Argentina. Her international background brings a broad cultural perspective to her teaching, blending discipline,
curiosity, and joy.
Suzuki Community Leader
A respected leader in the Suzuki and violin teaching community, Vivian has served for many years on the Board of the Suzuki Association of the Greater Washington Area (SAGWA), helping to shape teacher development and student programs across the region.
She also teaches at the Greater Washington Suzuki Institute, where she mentors young violinists each summer.
Vivian’s students enjoy a wide range of performance and masterclass opportunities throughout the year, including studio events, camps, masterclasses, and community concerts organized through D.C.–area teacher cooperatives.
Performer
In addition to her teaching, Vivian performs regularly throughout the Washington, D.C. area with chamber ensembles including the Amore Trio, the Potomac Symphony Orchestra, the Trinity Chamber Orchestra, and other professional string quartets, sharing her lifelong love of music with both students and audiences alike.
Giving the Heart in Suzuki Teaching
In the Suzuki tradition, teaching is sustained not by method or technique alone, but by a deep commitment of the heart. Dr. Suzuki believed that a child’s growth depends on the quality of the relationships surrounding them — the steadiness, care, and faith offered day after day, long before results are visible.
For Vivian and her husband Chris, a piano teacher, giving the heart means teaching music with attentiveness and care that does not waver with short-term outcomes. It means forming real relationships with students and families, listening closely, and responding to who each child is becoming.
This emotional connection is not separate from musical rigor; it is what sustains it. Over time, it creates the trust, motivation, and resilience that allow both character and musicianship to take root and flourish.
Exploring the Suzuki Philosophy as Practiced in Our Studio
These articles emerge from the day-to-day life of the studio and reflect the questions, discoveries, and values that shape Vivian’s teaching. Rooted in the Suzuki philosophy, they explore how musical growth unfolds over time through consistency, encouragement, and thoughtful guidance.
