Amarillo’s thriving Suzuki program started with one woman’s dream. 

Suzanne Grooms, born in New Orleans and reared in Tennessee, first encountered the Suzuki program in the late 1960s. The Suzuki method was developed by Dr. Shinichi Suzuki in Japan in the 1940s, and Grooms was among the first group of American teachers to travel to Japan and study with Suzuki. The program has since spread worldwide. But before it came to this area, the seeds were sown on the campus of Southern Illinois University.

Grooms and a fellow graduate student, Beverly de la Bretonne, were studying with Suzuki pedagogue John Kendall. Both were great fans of the method, which strives to create high ability and beautiful character in its students through a nurturing environment. “It was Suzanne’s dream that she and I would someday work together,” de la Bretonne said.

Grooms moved to Amarillo in 1972, soon joining the Amarillo Symphony. That’s where she met Helen Gerald, already a well-respected violin performer and teacher. Grooms introduced Gerald to the Suzuki method, and the two began to attract students.

“I am indebted to Suzanne for introducing me to the Suzuki world,” Gerald said. “Her quiet demeanor and genteel manner, as well as her constant striving for the highest possible quality of performance, were an inspiration to students, parents and teachers.”

Soon, recalling their mutual dream, Grooms invited de la Bretonne to come to Amarillo for five years as a clinician for the burgeoning Suzuki program in Amarillo.

As interest further grew, Amarillo College agreed to house the program, which officially opened in 1977 with violin students only. De la Bretonne finally moved to Amarillo in 1979 to become head of AC’s string department and work with the Suzuki program.

AC not only taught students, but it also became a Suzuki Teacher training center for dozens of new string teachers, as well as influencing countless parents.

“Suzanne Grooms changed my life. Through introducing me to the Suzuki philosophy, she added patience and gentleness to the teaching of both my children and my academic students,” said Carol Nicklaus, whose children went through the program. “In addition, she opened up a world of beautiful music for me.”

Now, the Suzuki program offers instruction in violin, viola and cello for kids as young as 3 years old. The lessons include a comprehensive curriculum of early childhood music, beginning theory, orchestra and small ensemble classes along with one-on-one lesson instruction. AC Suzuki teachers are among the most qualified music teachers in the area, with credentials registered through the Suzuki Association of the Americas.

Graduates have distinguished themselves at many leading universities and colleges, including Indiana University, the New England Conservatory of Music, Juilliard School of Music, Harvard University, and many more.

“By encouraging excellence,” de la Bretonne said, “our goal is to enrich students’ lives through music – whether they become professional musicians or an appreciative audience.”

Grooms died in 2000, but her dream lives on.