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4 Strings Attached Beautiful music from beautiful children

By Sandra Landen Machaj CORRESPONDENT

When the 4 Strings Attached violin group starts playing, listeners are often stunned children are producing the music they’re hearing. Playing a variety of music from classical works, patriotic songs, and just fun “fiddle” music, the performing group of violinists, who range in age from 4 to 18 years, is a delight to listen to. They do not appear as a group of children performing but as a composed professional group with stage presence. Members of the group are serious music students who have gained their skills at the Martin Lopez Academy where they learned the importance of taking their music seriously yet still having fun with it and enjoying the experience. For Lopez, music has always been part of his life. As the fourth generation of his family to play the violin, it is not surprising that he began to learn the instrument while very young. Starting around the age of 3, he began taking lessons at a prestigious private academy under the guidance of renowned violinist Betty Haag. Like many children, although he loved the violin there were times when he didn’t want to practice. “It was my mother who was the enforcer and saw to it

that I continued to practice,” Lopez said. “I would practice for up to five hours per day.” The work put into his violin training reaped its rewards when Lopez, at the age of 5, was included in a concert tour of Europe with Mrs. Haag’s performing group. By the age of 6, he performed a solo with the Chicago Symphony at their Petite Promenade Concert Series and was referred to as a “child prodigy.” Over his young years, he toured Europe with the performing group playing in a variety of countries including France, Germany, and Italy where the group performed in the Vatican for Pope John Paul II. So it is not surprising that Lopez would spend his time teaching others to play the violin and teach them to love it as he does. “I started at the Urban Gateway Program through the Chicago Public School System,” he said. “I spent a year teaching for Roosevelt University of Chicago in the College of Performing Arts. I have also taught at local park districts.” Lopez also started programs at Star of the Sea and Our Lady of the Snows schools on the south side of Chicago. He continues to run programs there although his main location now is in the McHenry/Crystal Lake area where he teaches the next

generation of professional musicians how to get the most beautiful music out of their violins. A place of his own In 2004 he opened his studio in McHenry where he teaches violin to children starting as young as 2-1/2 years of age. “As our students became more proficient, we decided to start 4 Strings Attached, a 501(c)(3) program where we could work with students and give them the opportunity to perform,” Lopez said. “We wanted to see them mature and have confidence in their ability to play for an audience. We also wanted to have them travel and learn about other cultures while they entertain.” After speaking to the parents of the students and explaining what he hoped to accomplish with the kids, the program began and has been very successful. The group plays for local events and has traveled out of the country to perform. The students pay a fee to be part of the group but most of the money needed for their travel comes from donations. Being a non-profit, donations may be tax deductible. They are currently working on raising funds for a trip to perform in Poland.

Above: Martin Lopez works one on one with this student to assure proper placement of the bow on the violin and proper finger placement. Left: Members of 4 Strings Attached pose in front of the remains of the Coliseum in Rome. The students enjoyed touring the city along with performing. MARTIN LOPEZ ACADEMY Hi-Liter

See STRINGS, Page 2

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