VIOLIN & VIOLA LESSONS IN NORTH VANCOUVER
Gabriel DubreuilGabriel Dubreuil is a violin, fiddle and viola teacher in North Vancouver, BC, Canada. He works as a live and studio session musician and tours with his group Early Spirit. Gabriel is a musical director for the North Shore Celtic Ensemble, and directs group fiddle classes for adults (The String Theory Fiddlers). Gabriel was the director for the Bad To The Bow youth fiddle groups in Gibsons, BC until 2020. As well as being classically trained, Gabriel is a graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music (BMUS, Jazz Violin Performance & minor in American Roots Music).
Gabriel offers private lessons and workshops for students of all ages, beginners to advanced. Lessons are positive and focus on ear training, intonation, good posture, timing, theory, reading, and beautiful tone. Online lessons (Zoom, Skype or FaceTime)Lessons can be in person or online (COVID policies posted at the bottom of the page). I have been teaching through Zoom since 2019 to students in rural communities, and COVID has inspired me to fine tune Zoom, so we can still have very productive lessons and learn together in real time. I have used Zoom to teach to my Vancouver students, as well as to students in Whitehorse, Toronto, and as far as France and New Zealand.
Performance OpportunitiesStudents are encouraged to participate in the recital at the end of the school year. Families and friends are welcome to come cheer you on!
Book a LessonEmail Gabriel at gabe@gabrieldubreuil.com to book a trial lesson, or call/leave a message at (six-zero-four)803-8228
Testimonials"Gabriel is a very talented teacher. Not only is he a very accomplished professional musician, but he is an amazing teacher. Very capable and also kind. Our daughter, Paige has really improved since she began taking lessons with Gabriel and she enjoys the time they spend together each week. We hope to have lessons for many years to come from Gabriel."
- Paul and Sandra, North Vancouver, BC "We are really happy that our daughter will keep on learning from you on Zoom. As a parent there is nothing more wonderful than watching Jack developing a passion that you keep igniting. Playing the violin is her happy place." - Bianka, Whitehorse, YT "Thank you so much for coming over to the Coast to lead a fab fiddle camp. Even the heat could not deter us from having a wonderful experience. Thanks for the instruction and the music. I hope I won’t need the latter if I put in lots of practice before the next (hoped for)camp!" - Sue, Gibsons, BC "Thank you Gabriel! I had so much fun at the workshop. The tunes were fun and your method of teaching made it easy to learn by ear, (though I very much appreciated having the sheet music for reference). Your patience with us adult learners is commendable and your enthusiasm is contagious! Looking forward to doing another workshop or camp with you." - Koree, Gibsons, BC "Gabriel is an extremely talented music teacher. He is patient and kind, and encourages his students to continually grow their musical skills." - Dana Woolliams, Gibsons, BC "The Sunshine Coast is so lucky to have had Gabriel instructing here over the past three years. He came here by ferry every week to teach many groups and students and also came up for big events when we were combining groups or just a teachers meeting. His enthusiasm to keep us all inspired and included within the community through music is so admirable. We will miss his positive energy, super teaching, great fiddle arrangements and fun jamming. Hope to see you in person by World Fiddle Day at Persephone’s in 2021." - Michelle Bruce MSM (founder of Coast String Fiddlers Association), Gibsons, BC "Fiddle camp with Gabriel was so much fun! The atmosphere was friendly and inclusive and the instruction was extremely well orchestrated. The tunes we learned were new and interesting ones and Gabriel accommodated the different skill levels of playing seamlessly. It was a pleasure to learn from Gabriel and get to experience his excellent musicianship and skill on the fiddle." - Janet, Gibsons "Gabriel is an exceptional musician and music educator. Patient, caring and thoughtful. He is always learning, and brings his growth mind set to his teaching - he always brings something new to the lesson. He meets students where they are, encourages progress, and helps students to realize their abilities. He carefully chooses music that is diverse and technically interesting to help grow skills. As a skilled and incredibly knowledgeable musician he is always inspiring to learn with!" - Alison Heath, North Vancouver, BC "Gabriel always finds super fun and challenging tunes for me to work on. I’m always excited for his Zoom lessons and they leave me super motivated every time. I feel really lucky that I have the chance to learn from him.” - Jack, Whitehorse, YT "Gabriel’s adult group sessions have been an absolute highlight for me over the past 2 years! Under Gabriel’s direction, sessions are at the same time comfortable, challenging, and a lot of fun. Through his thoughtful music selection , his interesting musical arrangements, and his gentle and encouraging instruction he manages to coax out a group sound that we are always delightfully surprised by!" - Barbara Lang, North Vancouver, BC "Gabriel’s musical passion, enthusiasm, and enjoyment of music is infectious. He is a very talented teacher and performer." - Dennis Matheson, North Vancouver, BC "Gabriel Dubreuil is a highly talented and extremely disciplined fiddle player who has explored a wide range of musical genres. The adult fiddle group on the Sunshine Coast has benefited enormously from three years of instruction by Gabriel. He pushed us to new levels of playing, introduced us to a myriad of tunes from many countries and always made even the painful bits fun! The Sunshine Coast fiddle community will always have the welcome mat out for Gabriel..... I recommend Gabriel as an instructor for any age or fiddle-playing level......" - Bobbie Mauel, Gibsons, BC "I am an intermediate level guitar player who accompanies an adult fiddle group on BC’s Sunshine Coast. Gabriel has been our musical director for the past three years. Under Gabriel’s lead, we have been exploring and learning Celtic music from around the world. My favourite set of sessions focused on Galician tunes. Gabriel’s gentle but effective teaching style, and his passion for the music was very much appreciated." - Rick Cloherty, Gibsons, BC "Gabriel is not only a great violinist but also a great teacher. I have been taking violin lessons from him and find him to be a professional, disciplined and patient teacher. He cares about his students’ progress and comes up with easy exercises for his students to overcome their challenges. I would recommend Gabriel to any violin student seeking a fun, and yet goal-oriented and positive violin teacher." - Kam D, North Vancouver, BC "Gabriel, I just must tell you again how much I enjoyed our day together. Your talent and your teaching ability and your enthusiasm are infectious. The mini-workshops were absolutely amazing and I hope they can be incorporated into every festival, in every discipline, going forward. I think the group learning such as you did today is even more valuable than one-on-one because it engages everyone." - Sue, Sunshine Coast Festival of the Performing Arts, Sechelt, BC |
Teaching PhilosophyLessons should always be fun and dynamic! I believe that students should have the freedom to explore various musical styles within the realms of classical repertoire, jazz styles and roots music, while developing a solid technical foundation. I help guide my students towards achieving their personal musical goals and strive to inspire them and make them appreciate music in a new light!
Studio PoliciesRATES: My rates for the 2021-22 season* are $63 for 1-hour lessons, $47.25 for 45-minute lessons, and $31.50 for 30-minute lessons.
À-la-carte/pay-as-you-go lessons are $65/hour (no annual commitment). *annual fee increase takes effect on September 1st COVID-19: Please review my COVID-19 procedure for in-person lessons. All students must agree to the lesson procedures to come to my studio for in-person lessons. I will also continue with lessons over Zoom. BILLING: Billing will be by semester tuition. I will send invoices for the September-December 2021 semester once your lesson time has been scheduled and confirmed. Payment for the Fall semester can be made three instalments payable with post-dated cheques for September 1, October 1, November 1 and December 1 2021. E-transfers should be received before the first lesson of every month. Reminders will be sent on the last day of every month. Payment can also be made as a single cheque or e- transfer. If you will be away at all during the semester, please let me know before the semester starts. CANCELATIONS: I will make up a maximum of two missed lessons over the entire year.* Make up lessons will be at the end of the semester. If a conflict comes up and you need to shuffle/swap lesson times, please let me know with at least 3 to 4 days of notice. If you or anyone in your household are sick your lesson will be online. If you are too unwell to attend your lesson online, please call me the morning of. *I do not provide make-up lessons for forgotten lessons or no-shows that are not communicated ahead of time so that I am waiting for you. MAKE-UP LESSONS: Make-up classes will be on December 13 2021 and in June 2020 (date TBD). Make sure to mark your calendar with the December date, just in case! COMMITMENT: I require all students to commit to a full academic year of study, from September 2020 until June 2021. If you need to stop taking lessons (for any reason), I require 4 weeks notice so I can fill your spot. PRACTICE: You are expected to practice every day, and to show up prepared for your lesson with all lesson materials. If your lesson is virtual you are expected to log into Zoom on time, with your instrument tuned and ready to go. If you are having connectivity or technology issues please let me know via text and we can find a solution. STUDENT AGREEMENT: I will ask all my students and parents sign a form in the fall acknowledging my studio policies, including my cancellation policy, COVID-19 policy, and practice expectations. RECITALS: This year there will be one recital, in June 2022. I strongly encourage all my students to participate in the end-of-year recital! This is a great opportunity to show everyone what you have learned! Important documents for students...
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