Concert violinist/violist with doctorate (20+ yr exp) offers university-level lessons! All ages, biomechanics, patience. Expert mentoring: strong start, excel in auditions & performances!

I met Lana while advocating for an orchestra program for the Northville School District outside the Post Office, and her enthusiasm for supporting music education immediately stood out. I later began studying with her and continued lessons for more than four years.

Learning with Lana feels like being under the guidance of someone who genuinely cares about both your musical growth and your well‑being. Her instruction is exceptional—clear, thoughtful, and rooted in deep expertise. She recommends repertoire that is both challenging and inspiring, and she approaches every lesson with patience and understanding.

One of the most meaningful gifts I received from her was the moment she placed a viola in my hands. That simple gesture opened an entirely new world for me, enriching my experience as both a violinist and now a violist. Lana’s ability to recognize a student’s potential and nurture it is truly remarkable.

Alicia studied violin with Ms. Lana for four years, starting with no prior experience and growing steadily toward an advanced level under her guidance. Those years were profoundly meaningful for Alicia. Ms. Lana taught with extraordinary attention to detail, genuine kindness, and a deep dedication that went far beyond instruction. She saw Alicia’s potential, nurtured her confidence, and helped her discover her own musical voice. The impact of her teaching remains with Alicia even now. We are truly grateful for the care, patience, and heartfelt commitment she brought to every lesson, and we remember our time with her with great affection and appreciation.

Lana Tsivinskaya is an exceptional teacher and even more extraordinary person. My son took violin lessons from Lana for nearly a decade, and during that time his mother (my wife) was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer and died 4 years later. Lana not only helped my son reach his best skills in violin, but was also a great support to Thomas, to me and to my late wife Susan.

Lana is an exceptional artist and teacher. I'm a technical engineer and at the time was nearing my 40s. I felt like I had solidly mastered my trade and my brain needed something more. I was already a bit of a guitarist and a saxophonist in high school and college band.

As a long-time engineer, I am pretty good at sorting the wheat from the chaff when it comes to people's adeptness at their trade. I was concerned that I might feel a bit 'odd' as an adult beginning violinist, but Lana's pleasant manner immediately put me at ease, and she had other adult beginners as well.

Sometimes teachers tend to have the 'artist' part down pat but don't necessarily demonstrate mastery of the technical and practical sides of their trade. I found Lana to exude a mastery of the 'total package' and beyond. As an example, here are a couple of Lana's 'superpowers' that I found exceptionally useful:

1. Lana is a very strong diagnostician - Whether it's an issue with your posture, bow-arm, your sight reading, practice methods - doesn't matter. She has eyes like a hawk and can help you spot and correct issues you weren't even aware of!

2. Lana is exceptionally educated about and a fantastic purveyor of critical learnings relevant to building healthy habits that help students avoid repetitive stress injuries, etc. (Think Alexander Techniques, body mapping, the Grossman Method, etc.)

3. I could go on and on, but most importantly, I've known Lana as a teacher and later friend and will tell you that hands-down she is one of the very finest human beings that I've ever had the pleasure to know.

Thanks for the opportunity to share a bit about my experience with Lana!

Prof Tsivinskaya is an absolutely wonderful and motivating violin instructor. In addition, she’s a world class violinist who inspires her students with her electrifying performances. Highly recommended!

I took violin lessons from Lana for about three years, and she was a great teacher. I improved significantly in both my technique and overall playing ability during that time. She held me to high standards and always knew what I needed to improve on and how to help me get there.

I especially appreciated hearing her play, listening to her stories, following her instruction, and learning from her advice. It was clear that she genuinely loved what she did and cared about helping her students improve. She not only helped me become a better violinist but also taught me valuable lessons about discipline, confidence, and continual improvement.

If you are serious about improving at violin or viola and are willing to put in the work, I would definitely recommend Lana. She is a knowledgeable, skilled, and effective instructor.