Time To Practice: Good Practice Makes Good Habits
with Tamara Gonzalez
Practice makes perfect. Practice makes permanent. The more I practice, the luckier I get.
You’ve heard the cliches. But what do they say about practicing? Not much.
MacPhail’s Tamara Gonzalez joins podcaster Christin Wilson Goodner, on her show Time to Practice, as the two discuss, well… practice. They talk about helpful practice ideas, how orchestra is the team sport of musicians, and Tamara’s passion for conducting and arts education.
“Because again, that idea that bad practice makes bad habits. Good practice makes good habits. So, I would say that that would be my biggest tip is to just embrace the smartphone that you have in your hand and videotape things (that) you think will be good supplements to your written notes so that you’re making the most out of your practice time.” Tamara Gonzalez, quote from podcast, Time to Practice.
Tamara Gonzalez, Suzuki DaCapo and Sinfonia Orchestra Conductor, Ascension Catholic School strings instructor & MacPhail Northside Youth Orchestra instructor, joined the faculty at MacPhail in 2014, after teaching in the greater Chicago area for 10 years.
Tamara has performed as a member of the Illinois Symphony, Rockford Symphony and SouthWest Michigan Symphony orchestras. She is currently the violist in the Stone Arch Collective and has performed with many faculty ensembles at MacPhail. Her conducting responsibilities at MacPhail range from beginner to intermediate level string and full orchestras and have included the MacPhail Northside Youth Orchestra. She is a sought out orchestral clinician in Minnesota and was an MPR Classnotes Conductor from 2017-2019. In 2020 she was the invited guest conductor for the Robbinsdale Spring Orchestra Festival and will serve as guest orchestra conductor for the Trio-Metro All Conference Arts Festival in 2021. In 2020, Tamara was named conductor for the GTCYS Concertino East orchestra.
She is a regular instructor at the Chicago Suzuki Institute, and has taught Suzuki workshops across Minnesota, and in Memphis, Puerto Rico, Austin, and Connecticut. She was lead instructor and developed curriculum for group violin classes at Smiling Strings and worked in music outreach programs in the Southside and Westside of Chicago for more than 7 years. Tamara studied violin and viola performance at the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music and holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Violin Performance from DePaul University. Tamara has completed Suzuki Violin Teacher Training units 1-10 in addition to ECC, Violin Practicum, Viola Units 4, 5 & 6 and SPA training courses.