New music studio strikes right note
—Photo by LYNNE HALEY Caytlin Reese, left, and Rachel Gordon, right, welcome budding musicians from toddler to adult at their new studio, Bella Note’.
SANDPOINT — Children who interact with music from an early age learn skills that will inform them throughout their lives. By tuning into the rhythms of the world, the nuances of language and the joys of song, children develop an essential yet often untapped element of being human. So say professional musicians and music teachers Caytlin Reese and Rachel Gordon, who work with students of all ages to nurture their innate need to experience and create music.
While both women have studied, performed and taught music for several years -- Reese specializing in piano and violin, and Gordon focusing on the flute -- their new business venture, Bella Note' Studios, located at 1205 Highway 2, is a new chapter in their careers.
With an open house event on Saturday, June 4, they launched a dream that had taken nearly a decade to materialize.
"When we first met, about 10 years ago, we talked about someday opening a music studio," said Gordon. "But we weren't ready to do it yet."
Now the two, along with voice instructor Chloe' Cavender and cello teacher Mika Hood, they are gearing up for a busy summer. Their group class schedule includes Family Music for Toddlers, Cycle of Seasons for pre-kindergartners, Pathfinders Class for ages 5 through 8, Sandpoint Summer Flute Choir, and Violin & Fiddle Camp.
Both Reese and Gordon clearly love what they do, their eyes lighting up as they effuse on their plans and aspirations for Bella Note'. Both have plenty of previous experience teaching early childhood music, and by coincidence, both are mothers of young children.
"This is the perfect time for us to get our studio started," they said.
Plans for their open house, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., include short class sessions, live music performances, and refreshments from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Classes begin in June and continue throughout the summer. Students who register by June 15 qualify for early bird pricing. Private lessons are also available.
Information: BellaNoteSandpoint.com, BellaNoteStudios@gmail.com.