EDUCATION

PRIVATE LESSONS

Each student is at a unique place in their musical journey. This is an opportunity for you to co-create an individualized learning experience with Phoebe Hunt through either a single lesson or a multi-week exploration together!

If you have a specific goal in mind, please:

email: letters@phoebehuntmusic.com with the subject line: Music Exploration?
In the body of the email, please describe the vision you hold for your learning experience and Phoebe will let you know if she feels she can help you reach your goals!
Click booking link for availabilities and to book. Upon booking, you will receive an email with your zoom link and specific guidelines for your lesson(s)!
If you have a special circumstance, and need financial assistance, please email: letters@phoebehuntmusic.com and we will do her best to accommodate your personal needs. This includes multiple lessons within the same family (siblings, etc) and partial scholarships.

Sample Themes

FIDDLE

Transitioning between classical violin and fiddle.
Specific tunes you are wanting to learn in any of these styles: bluegrass, old time, Irish, jazz, swing or classical.
Playing violin/fiddle and singing at the same time
Chords theory and practical application on the fiddle - Rhythmic support aka "chopping"
Improvising in various styles- Bringing the notes off the page and into their expression
Anything you are working on that you would like some personal feedback on
Composing string arrangements for recordings
SONGWRITING
Song structure, form and consistency
The conservation of language
Expressing your truest voice through your writing
Reflections on your current work with edit tips/feedback for transformational value
Discovering the "north star" of your song and aiming for it
Defining melodies that move the meaning of the song to the next level
Refining chord/backing guitar parts
Songwriting with an instrument other than guitar... pianists, mandolinists, fiddlers and ukulele’s welcome!

OPTION 1: SINGLE LESSON 60 MIN $125

OPTION 2: MONTH OF 4 LESSONS $400

ABOUT PHOEBE HUNT

Phoebe Hunt has been playing the violin since she was 6 years old. Immersed in a family of musicians, she studied the suzuki method until her middle school years both attending private weekly lessons as well as participating in the UT String Project every Saturday morning between the ages of 7-16 where she concluded her time as the concert mistress of the advanced symphony.Through middle school and high school she was a member of the Austin Youth Orchestra, graduating as the concert mistress of the ensemble her Senior year, when she was asked to perform Max Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26 as a soloist.

Throughout her college years, she attended University of Texas at Austin as a business major. She continued studying violin as one of the 2 non music majors to audition into the UT Symphony. While in college, she was invited to become the violin teacher at the Austin Montessori School, facilitating an after school violin program for 20 private students/week for 5 years.She simultaneously began branching out as a "fiddler" in this time. She joined a folk trio, The Hudsons performing every Thursday night for 4 years at The Waterloo Icehouse. The group was awarded "Best Folk Band" at the Austin Music Awards in 2006. Hunt continued exploring the fiddle landscape when she attended the Mark O'Connor Fiddle Camp in San Diego in 2007. That year she was selected as the recipient of the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin, an honor bestowed upon 1 fiddler each year to a student showing promise not only as a musician but as someone with a "heart to give back" to the world.

Meeting Johnny Gimble, Alex Hargreaves, Brittany Haas, Rushad Eggleston, Tristan & Tashina Claridge, Casey Driessen and many inspiring teachers at that camp changed her musical trajectory. Hunt began to sink her bow into Texas Swing, Gypsy Jazz and improvisation. Upon her college graduation, a young band from New Orleans approached her to be their fiddle player and what emerged was 4 years of heavily touring as a member of The Belleville Outfit. The group was nominated as Emerging Americana Band at the Americana Awards in 2011, playing festivals including Bonarroo, ACL and Mountain Stage. Hunt began to develop a love for songwriting in this time, and was invited to record her first solo EP with producer Matt Rollings. In the next 8 years, she self released 4 additional full length albums under the name Phoebe Hunt & The Gatherers. Her latest release, Neither One Of Us Is Wrong beacons the message of reconciliation in the divisive time we live within.

Simultaneously, her songwriting path led her to explore other ways to give back, establishing the non profit, Fuel Our Fire offering transformational songwriting experiences for at risk communities. This endeavor resulted in the creation of the One Village Music Project and the Reveille Songwriting Retreat. These projects led her to speak on two TEDx stages where she shared the insight gained from working with these populations. This is where she discovered that songwriting, at its foundation, can be used as a healing modality.

When the pandemic changed the world, Hunt, like all touring artists, was taken off the road. Feeling for the community of artists she had met over 15 years of touring, she realized that it would be beneficial for professional artists and music dabblers alike to experience community through dedication to the study of music. She started a movement for people to "point their minds to practicing" during the lockdown. The result was 27 online courses serving over 200 students and offered 33 musicians gigs in 18 months.

She has also developed a program to help parents to Plant The Seeds of Music in their homes and communities called ukulele sprouts (ukulelesprouts.com). This unique opportunity invites parents into her Parent Teacher Training Program to move through a 12 month journey where they BLOOM into becoming ukulele teachers for their own child as well as their greater local community at large! She hosts a Free FB Group called Raising Musical Children for parents who are interested in this work as a community support system for parents around the world!

Now, as the world is re-emerging, Hunt is in a place where she is exploring her options and allowing the path that is in the highest good to unfold. "We are all new people following the pandemic and I am excited to see how I can best serve at this new beginning."

REGISTER HERE

Testimonials

Fiddle

When asked "What was your biggest takeaway?" from the recent fiddle course Phoebe hosted, students anonymously responded:

"Widening my repertoire of fiddle tunes and different styles of music!"
"One is how much I slur so that I can do it less (because I’m really realizing I do it to much) and two, learning more about how to keep in rhythm"
"Learning new songs but with the help of written music. I learned how to listen better to music to try to learn to play it."
"Focus"
"Being able to learn songs by ear"
"I was able to work a lot on my time feel across various styles"
"Music is the greatest healing tool ever"
"Always being playful with practice is an important part of growth. The class also offered many incredible tunes to check out across styles I have not explored extensively until now!"

Songwriting

When asked "What was your biggest take away?" from the most recent songwriting course Phoebe Hunt facilitated, her students responses were anonymously as follows:

"How opening my heart allows me to create, and the power of the rewrite!"
"I learned the value of community and songwriting as a tool for healing."
"The economy of words and how not to be a lazy writer!"
"1) centering and grounding before writing. 2) the skill of removing your attachment to your work to look more objectively for editing."
"Tools to help me begin to find melody in my words. An amazing sense of community and sharing."
"Make the focus specific and the song title (purpose) can be delivered via all the lyrics working together without the title popping up repeatedly."
"That's tough, there was (and still is) so much value in the course!! One would be Deciding/exploring" when I want to create/perform a piece with more conventional song structure, and/or when the piece might be well-suited to take a more unique form. Another takeaway would be how much the (war) song I'm still working on developed in our time together."

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

"I first had the chance to work with Phoebe when I was seventeen years old, and I can honestly say that it was exactly what I needed at the time. Phoebe's undying optimism coupled with her exceptional musicianship is enough to set her apart, but what makes her even more unique is her constant effort to share her joy of creativity with the wider world. Her influence has forever since been a reminder that whenever I find myself being caught up in frustration or doubt, to simply turn inward and remember what it is that really calls us to do this work" － Ray Duncan

"Phoebe is a special heart filled cosmic sister that brings light, wisdom, kindness, grace, timelessness, "worldliness," spiritually centered grounding, generosity, talent, ease and humor...wherever she is. Phoebe is a gift to this Universe and I love having her in my life!!" － Edee Gail

"I have had the great fortune and pleasure to work with Phoebe in several different settings and projects and she is always incredibly attentive, intuitive, and gifted. She has a talent to help draw out the meaning and scope of songs through her explorative and authentic questioning, and to offer practical suggestion on messaging and direction. She is loving, kind, energetic, enthusiastic and an absolute blast to work with." － Adam McCabe

“Phoebe has a unique gift of being present and open to inspiring and being inspired by everyone she interacts with. This has allowed her to pursue both her musical dreams as well as her dreams of using music as a tool to healing and building society - because she understands the vessel that either a conversation or a song can be to change a life.” － Mark Godges, Hip-Hop musician and student of Phoebe

“I have learned how to appreciate my past and where I come from by knowing who I am and what my purpose in life. Music gave me the courage to feel, heal and embrace the path I walk in my divine knowing to always trust my vision and my gut to heal the world around me and for those surrounding me. Music is the medicine tool that I have learned from Phoebe and the One Village Music Project and how to live in community.” － Naomi Mwangi, Meru, Kenya

"I have had the pleasure of watching the creative talent of Phoebe Hunt flourish over the 15 years that I have known her. I first met Phoebe when she was competing in the Open Division of the Texas State Fiddle Championships and later as a participant in our Live Oak Fiddle camp. She clearly stood out among the participants with her positive energy and intense focus on improving the depth and breadth of her musicianship. Wanting to expand her songwriting and performance skills, she entered our Songwriter Serenade competition and won it by a landslide after only her second year of songwriting.

Phoebe has evolved into a creative force not only successfully expanding her career but energizing the careers of countless other musicians that she collaborates with. Best of all, she generously gives her time and energy to enhance the lives of others. Through her Fuel Our Fire Organization and the Reveille Songwriter Retreat, Phoebe works with disadvantaged children and our veterans to expose them to the healing power of music." － Tom McDaniel