As an adjunct professor at Mary Washington University Mr. Wassum will be hosting the first ever Viola Day on November 3, 2018. This will be a fun and educational day centered around those who play viola, and those who love to listen to violas. Viola Day will be held in Pollard Hall at UMW, and will begin with registration at 9:30am and end at 5:00pm. We have some great clinicians lined up: Senior Master Sargeant Bryce Bunner of the Air Force Strings will start us off with a solo recital and talk on music careers within the military. Clinician Nancy Thomas will give us guidance on preparing the five top orchestral excerpts. A pizza lunch will be provided with time to visit our vendors, followed by a master class by Andrea Houde from WVU. Nancy Kredel will share ideas of Paul Rolland and Karen Tuttle on making viola playing more comfortable. From 3:00-4:00pm there will be a roundtable discussion of viola pedagogies; and we’ll end our day with viola ensemble sightreading led by Dr. Kevin Bartram, Conductor of UMW’s Philharmonic Orchestra..

Our vendors will be as educational as our clinicians! We’ve got Josh Henry, bow maker coming. He will run a Viola Day re-hair special - $60 per bow re-hair. He will take re-hairs on a first come basis, and asks that you bring your bow to him as soon as possible on Viola Day - he hopes to be set up before registration begins and plans to accept bows at 9:00am. Bill Mason from Wm. Mason Violins downtown will be here as well. Lynne Denig from chinrest.com will be here and available to talk about the benefits of custom chinrests to fit each individual.

Please visit https://umwmusic.com/umw-viola-day/ to learn more and register online.

Friends, family members, former and current students gathered on July 14, 2018 to celebrate Mr. Wassum's retirement from teaching public school orchestra.  He had dedicated 40+ years to enriching the music education of public school students nationwide!  Everyone had a wonderful time playing games, listening to music, and discussing future plans.  The toddlers participated in "Pin the Tie on Mr. Wassum"!

Bill is devoting his "retirement" schedule to Wassum String Academy lessons, and his adjunct professorship with University of Mary Washington.  What a fantastic way to start the next chapter!

(Photos courtesy of Laura Hoy)

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"'There are so many things for a violin student to learn to do--hold the bow, get their fingers in position,' said William Wassum, who teaches violin using the Suzuki and Rolland pedagogies at New Life in Christ Church in Spotsylvania. 'Suzuki's emphasis was on listening, because that is what music is all about;' while Mr. Rolland’s emphasis was on the movements used. Mr. Rolland firmly believed that “beautiful movements make beautiful music.”

Suzuki advocated introducing children to violin music early in life, figuring that, just as total immersion into a language guarantees a child will learn that language, so filling his atmosphere with sonatas and arpeggios will help him learn music."

Read the full article here.

Credit: MARCIA ARMSTRONG, FREDERICKSBURG.COM

Mr. Wassum was quoted in this article featured by Violinist.com

"With a little imagination, you can turn all kinds of things into teaching props, said William Wassum at a lecture called "Fun Pedagogical Props from Your Local Shopping Mart for the String Classroom" at the 2015 ASTA conference. Wassum teaches at Thornburg Middle School in Virginia."

Credit: LAURIE NILES, VIOLINIST.COM

"Clara was determined that the disorder would not slow her down. She was already juggling a full schedule as an honor roll student, equestrian, violinist, basketball player, Girl Scout and 4–H member.

The Clara Lemarr Foundation will host a Zebra Ball on May 22 from 6–10 p.m. at the Fredericksburg Convention Center. Tickets are $55 for individuals, $100 for couples and $50 for military members or students. The event will include dinner, a presentation by Dr. Hassan Abdullah and music by Rappahannock Youth Symphony, William Wassum's String Quartet and Angela Hess. There will also be a silent auction. To buy tickets, go online to squareup.com/store/ClaraLemarrFoundation. For more details on the foundation, visit facebook.com/ClaraLemarrFoundation."

Media Credit: AMY FLOWERS UMBLE/THE FREE LANCE-STAR