I am an adult student so it was quite of a project to start learning at such life stage. I can definitely say Mara had the most profound impact on my musical trajectory. She is also the reason I actually started taking my music project seriously despite my lack of confidence. My shyness faded as my inspiration grew from her broad passion, deep knowledge and patience. I was looking for someone who could go deep into how to play an instrument properly without making it drudgery, and that is exactly what I found. She made sure to ask what I was looking for, and where I wanted to take playing the violin. Each lesson that followed has been tailored to add another piece to that foundation. She goes through many aspects of the spectrum, not only bowing but also posture, tone, expression and historical context of the pieces. I feel confident that her excellent level of instruction places me in the development of legitimate frame of advanced playing. She really keeps me interested in playing and that is the master skill! Therefore, I can only enthusiastically recommend Mara to any levels of viola and violin players. Diane