Elise Blake has run South Adams Music Violin Studio in historic Rockville, MD since 2021. Students in her Violin Studio focus on strong fundamental technique, expressive music-making, and productive practice habits in weekly private lessons. They perform in area youth orchestras, participate in Maryland All-State, enter chamber and solo competitions, and attend institutes such as Meadowmount, Heifetz, and Interlochen.
Previously, Blake served on the faculty of Mary Baldwin University for five years, teaching individual violin and viola lessons, coaching chamber music, running weekly studio classes, supervising juries, and performing faculty recitals. She has also taught, given masterclasses, and presented recitals at Montclair State and James Madison Universities, University of Virginia, and University of North Carolina at Greensboro, among others. Blake was named a recipient of the Fellowship in Violin Pedagogy from Heifetz International Music Institute during the program’s first year in Staunton, VA.
She has coached for many youth orchestra programs including DC Youth Orchestra Program and Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, and has also worked on a unique program with the International Rescue Committee to bring violin instruction to recent refugees as part of their community integration and service mission.
In the studio and beyond, Blake’s approach to teaching is rooted in her own performance, practice, and journey. In 2021, she did an ABC TV interview about her recovery from the long-term neurological effects of COVID-19 which initially made it difficult for her to play the violin after returning home from the hospital. She passes on her own lessons in patience, resiliency, movement, and recovery to her students, and encourages individuals to use their musical gifts to lift up others.
