Timothy Kantor

A Deeper Understanding: Creative Music Making in the Practice Room

What does it mean to play musically, and how can we inspire and guide students toward a more intentional and thoughtful musical process? While technical development often follows clear paths—scales, etudes, and carefully curated repertoire—developing musical understanding can be a more elusive journey. This presentation will focus on strategies for growing creativity and intentionality in the practice room, empowering young string players to make confident, personal interpretive choices.

Key topics include:
• Where to start? Developing musical ideas from the very first lesson
• Tools for inspiring students to experiment, listen critically, and find meaning in their playing
• The interplay between interpretation and technique, and how to nurture expressive artistry alongside technical development
• Practical strategies to encourage students to approach every piece, scale, and exercise with a musical mindset

Join me as we bridge the gap between practice and performance, guiding students to discover their musical voice and play with purpose.

About Timothy Kantor

Violinist Timothy Kantor enjoys performing around the globe at some of the world’s greatest concert halls and chamber music series. As a member of the Afiara Quartet in Toronto, Mr. Kantor has performed hundreds of concerts and helped to develop several innovative projects. One of the quartet’s projects, Spin Cycle with DJ Skratch Bastid, culminated with a Juno Award-nominated album and a solo performance with the Toronto Symphony. Mr. Kantor has performed chamber works with many of today’s leading musicians, including Joshua Bell, Jaime Laredo, Sharon Robinson, Atar Arad, Mark Steinberg, the Dover Quartet, and the Pacifica Quartet. Mr. Kantor has been featured as an artist on American Public Media’s “Performance Today” and CBC Radio.

A dedicated teacher and coach, Mr. Kantor was recently appointed Senior Lecturer of Violin at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Previously Mr. Kantor served as Associate Professor of Violin at the University of Arizona and was a founding professor of the Programa Gabriel del Orbe in Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic).