I was born in Aberdeen, Scotland into a family of red heads and teachers.
My parents made sure that I and my two sisters were surrounded by music from a very early age. At the age of three I sang "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" on the stage of His Majesty's Theatre. As a child I loved to sing and dance, and recite poetry. At age 7 I started taking piano lessons and when I was 10 I began to play the violin. The school I attended, Aberdeen High School for Girls as it was known then, was very supportive of music. In addition to the instrumental lessons which I received during the normal school day, all pupils participated in singing and movement classes given by teachers who had received training in Kodaly and Dalcroze methodologies. I therefore was very fortunate to have grown up in such a rich musical environment.
I also had a mother who made sure I practiced and who sat with me every night while I did so. Without her diligence and consistency I would not have developed the skills which make it possible for me to now travel and build music programs and enrich the lives of others.
After leaving school I graduated from Edinburgh University with a Bachelor of Music degree. I then went on to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London where I obtained the diplomas L.R.A.M. in piano teaching and A.R.C.M. in violin teaching.
I moved to California in 1973 and after my first son, Robbie, was born I began to be interested in music pedagogy and started to take workshops in the Suzuki approach to music education. In 1976 my second son, Iain, was born, and I dedicated myself to learning how to pass on my love of music to them.
In 1981 I moved to Peru, accepting a teaching position at the American School of Peru, Colegio Roosevelt. By that time, I had a Peruvian husband, Marcial, and two step daughters, Constanza and Micaela. Little by little I started to teach Suzuki violin at the school and piano privately without fully realizing that I was pioneering and that my program would eventually serve as a model for others.
I was fortunate to meet Marilyn O'Boyle, who became my teacher trainer in violin, my colleague of many years and a wonderful friend. When I could not take any more students, I started to train other teachers in the Suzuki philosophy and methodology. The first such teacher was Roberta Centurion, my colleague at the school and very good friend. Together we organized the First Suzuki Piano Festival in Peru. The children ran from my house to hers and vice versa to take their classes.
In 1985 I became a teacher trainer for the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA), the first teacher trainer residing in Latin America.
In 1987 we returned to the United States and our fifth child, Caitlin, was born. Soon after that I went back to University and received a Masters Degree in Music with Kodaly Emphasis from Holy Names College (HNC) in Oakland, California. I became a lecturer in music theory in that same institution and directed the HNC Summer Suzuki Teacher Training Institute for many years.
I now live in Lima, Peru and dedicate myself to creating and developing Suzuki programs in Latin America. I am a Latin American Liaison for the SAA, and Piano Coordinator for the Suzuki Association of Peru. Since 1989 I have traveled to give Suzuki courses in Cordoba, Tucumán, La Plata, Mar del Plata, and Buenos Aires in Argentina; in Santa Cruz, Bolivia; in Sao Paulo, and Santa Maria, Brazil; in Antofagasta, and Santiago, Chile; in Bogotá, Colombia; and in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico; and San Salvador, El Salvador. In Perú, I have taught in Lima, Arequipa, Cusco, Ica, Juliaca and Huanuco. I also travel frequently to the United States and to Taiwan to give pedagogy courses.
Since studying Kodaly methodology, I have been investigating how to integrate the Kodaly and Suzuki approachesin relation to music reading and have published a series of articles on this subject.
Caroline Fraser