Suzuki music method?

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Hi, I was wondering if anyone had learnt an instrument using the suzuki method. My 5yo son with AS is learning violin using Suzuki and I am interested to know if it will suit his learning style as he grows. The perfectionist in him gets very frustrated when we learn new pieces, however he loves to perform and there is no set time anything has to be done in, which seems to suit us as a family.

Any thoughts?

I started Suzuki violin when I was five, because my parents wanted me to... they had no idea what thye were getting themselves into.

It sounds like you are having a much easier time with your son than my mom had with me; I cried every time she tried to practice with me, and I was hyperactive to boot, so I had a hard time paying attention all the way through a piece.

However, she perservered. I'm still playing today, except that I switched to viola about six years ago. So, yes Suzuki worked with one Aspie!

I think the most important thing with Suzuki is to make sure you have a teacher who not only can teach (and hopefully play!) well, but who also has infinate patience with any personality/learning style quirks your son may have. For example, my teacher had to spend a long time with me trying to get me to stand in the same place for an entire piece. I'm sure I did lots of other things that were quite out of the ordinary, but he had the most amazing store of patience. The really remarkable thing about this, in retrospect, was that I wasn't diagnosed at the time, so I was just a wierd little kid, instead of someone with a "disability." My parents thought at the time that I was ADHD, because I was so hyper and I had such a hard time staying focused, and they were going to put me on Ritalin, but he interceded with my mom, and begged her not to medicate me, for which I am eternally grateful.

So, making sure that your teacher is good is probably the most important thing. Your son's perfectionism will probably help him out quite a lot if you both decide to stick with this for the long term. Most musicians that I know are perfectionists, or OCD or not very good. I would highly recommend sticking with music for as long as possible; I've learned most of my most important lessons about problem solving, working with people, and just life in general from playing viola/violin. I have found the musical community to be wonderfully accepting of my eccentricity; I hope the same will apply to your son.

All the best! Pm me if you have any more questions; we have a wonderful Suzuki program where I live, so if I don't know, I can quickly find someone who does!

Yeah music!