She maintains a private studio and is on faculty at the Suzuki School of Newton and the New England Suzuki Institute in Maine. She taught at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music for thirteen years and was the Head of the Suzuki Cello/Bass Department during her tenure there. Her students have been accepted into such prestigious programs as the Special Music School, LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts, Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, Interlochen Arts Academy, Manhattan School of Music Summer, Ithaca College Summer Music Academy, and NYU SummerStrings.

Jenna’s approach to teaching music is full of vivid analogies, hands-on activities to reinforce ideas, and questions to get her students to think for themselves, not only to analyze what they are looking at on the page, but also how to approach getting an optimal sound out of their instruments. Having experience with the Feldenkrais Method and Music Mind Games, Ms. Girone-Virgilio’s versatile training allows her to approach her teaching from a visual, aural, or kinesthetic standpoint, depending on the student’s needs.

As a performer, Jennifer has appeared as the Principal Cellist with the Mid-Atlantic Foundation for Asian Artists Opera at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C; with the OMNI Ensemble performing Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire, in New York; and playing the soundtrack for “The China Question”, a documentary directed by Brook Silva-Braga, which has been played and featured on CNBC. She can be heard on Warner Brothers’ singer/songwriter Matt White’s album, “Shirley,” Jeff Litman’s “Outside,” and Nate Graham’s “Daylight.” She has also performed with such distinguished organizations as the String Orchestra of Brooklyn, Ensemble 212, the Mimesis Ensemble, Rhymes with Opera, and the Red Door Chamber Players.

Ms. Girone-Virgilio earned her Bachelor of Music degree in Cello Performance from The Hartt School in Hartford, Connecticut, where she studied with Steven Thomas. She went on to receive her Master of Music degree in Cello Performance at New York’s Mannes College of Music, under the guidance of Paul Tobias. Jenna completed training in Suzuki Cello Books 1-8 from the School for Strings with Pamela Devenport, and Books 9-10 with Tanya Carey.

Photo credit: Jaka Vinsek