Sudbury String Studio
Quality - Caring - Personalized
Private lessons in our home studio.
Violin, Viola, Cello, and Double Bass
Robb Aistrup (double bass and cello) and Nicki Payne (violin and viola) are dedicated and passionate about teaching and work very hard to provide personalized lessons based on each student's unique strengths and needs. We believe music is for everyone, no matter what your aspirations may be. If your goal for your child is to grow up appreciating music, learning the value of sustained careful work yielding positive results, and patient problem solving, these are our primary goals as music teachers. Many of our students who started lessons with us, often at a very early age, have continued to study with us until they graduated from high school. To have those long-term relationships, providing stability and continuity throughout a child's education, is one of the most rewarding and joyous parts of what we do.
Our Story:
Robb and Nicki met while fellows at the New World Symphony orchestral training program in Miami Beach in 1994. Married in 1997, we moved to Tenerife, Spain to work in the Orquesta Sinfonica de Tenerife. We eventually bought a beautiful villa on a finca on which there were 40 fruit trees in various states of malady. It became our hobby to bring those trees back to health! In 2003, our beloved triplet sons were born. We loved Tenerife and our orchestra, but not wanting to raise our kids so far from our families, we moved back to the USA in 2004. We were both hired by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Nicki serving as Acting Principal Second Violin for the 2004-2005 season. In August of 2005, we lost just about everything in Hurricane Katrina. (Our amazing cat miraculously survived the flood and went on to live to age 19!)
After the hurricane, we relocated to Kansas City, where Robb was hired for a year position in the Kansas City Symphony, later becoming the personnel manager. Nicki subbed in the orchestra regularly, but decided to go to nursing school, after which she worked as an RN for four years. We moved back to Sudbury, Nicki's home town, in 2010, and soon thereafter launched our teaching studio. Robb immediately worked his way into the Boston freelance scene, and became a teacher in the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra ICP program. Nicki left nursing in 2012 and returned to being a full time performing musician and teacher. Since that time, our studio has grown to some 60 students. Between our own practicing, and that of our sons (all string players), and the music lessons 7 days a week, our house is constantly overflowing with music.
Many of our past and current students are members of top youth orchestras in the Boston area, including Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, Boston Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Rivers School Conservatory. Our students have gained entry into BUTI (Boston University Tanglewood Institute). Many of our students have earned top spots in multiple Junior and Senior Districts Festivals in Massachusetts, as well as the All State Festival. In addition we have helped students earn placement in top conservatories. For Sudbury residents, we have successfully prepared dozens of young students for their Select Orchestra auditions at Curtis Middle School.
No matter what your child's goals are, our commitment to you is to provide first rate, personalized instruction, in a positive, encouraging environment. Lessons are focused, goal-oriented, and productive, but fun and humor are always close at hand. Our only goal is to help your child learn to play with the best technique and develop musical instincts. Along the way, we help kids develop discipline, focus, and an appreciation for hard work leading to desired quality results. These life lessons are invaluable.
Recitals and Performance Classes:
In addition to weekly private lessons, we hold 2 recitals per year, as well as optional, less formal performance classes in which students get a chance to play a prepared solo piece with a pianist in front of a small group of fellow students. Emphasis is always on positivity and support! These performance opportunities help immeasurably in the growth of each student's musicianship and skill level.
Chamber Music at Sudbury String Studio:
In spring of 2025, we launched a brand new String Quartet program, with our first group forming at Spencer Brook Strings in Maynard on June 5th! In 2026, we currently have two string quartets and a group of four violinists. We are excited to put together additional groups going forward. If your child is interested in exploring the wonderful world of chamber music, we hope you will reach out to us. Groups will be formed based on level and age and can be comprised of students of ours as well as those who study privately elsewhere.
Daily Practice and Goals:
Because progress depends on individual preparation at home, students are strongly encouraged/reminded to practice every day between lessons. For students of all ages, parents play a major role in establishing a daily practice routine. We welcome parents' questions about practicing and value their input regarding their child's learning style, which we recognize is as unique as their personality.
Our emphasis is on acknowledging and respecting that style, working with it to maximize each student's enjoyment and improvement. Students are motivated to play their instruments every day and make progress when they have concrete goals. Those goals can range from conquering every piece in Suzuki Book 1 to achieving a spot in a conservatory to study music as a profession! We each have over twenty-five years of experience with all ages and levels, with proven results. We also have been where you are as parents of young musicians. Our triplet sons (not surprisingly) all play string instruments and are now finishing their undergraduate degrees in applied music - two at Boston University and one at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
We are proud and endlessly grateful to have become such a trusted source for families looking for quality string instruction in the greater Boston area since 2012.
Private lessons in our home studio.
Violin, Viola, Cello, and Double Bass
Robb Aistrup (double bass and cello) and Nicki Payne (violin and viola) are dedicated and passionate about teaching and work very hard to provide personalized lessons based on each student's unique strengths and needs. We believe music is for everyone, no matter what your aspirations may be. If your goal for your child is to grow up appreciating music, learning the value of sustained careful work yielding positive results, and patient problem solving, these are our primary goals as music teachers. Many of our students who started lessons with us, often at a very early age, have continued to study with us until they graduated from high school. To have those long-term relationships, providing stability and continuity throughout a child's education, is one of the most rewarding and joyous parts of what we do.
Our Story:
Robb and Nicki met while fellows at the New World Symphony orchestral training program in Miami Beach in 1994. Married in 1997, we moved to Tenerife, Spain to work in the Orquesta Sinfonica de Tenerife. We eventually bought a beautiful villa on a finca on which there were 40 fruit trees in various states of malady. It became our hobby to bring those trees back to health! In 2003, our beloved triplet sons were born. We loved Tenerife and our orchestra, but not wanting to raise our kids so far from our families, we moved back to the USA in 2004. We were both hired by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Nicki serving as Acting Principal Second Violin for the 2004-2005 season. In August of 2005, we lost just about everything in Hurricane Katrina. (Our amazing cat miraculously survived the flood and went on to live to age 19!)
After the hurricane, we relocated to Kansas City, where Robb was hired for a year position in the Kansas City Symphony, later becoming the personnel manager. Nicki subbed in the orchestra regularly, but decided to go to nursing school, after which she worked as an RN for four years. We moved back to Sudbury, Nicki's home town, in 2010, and soon thereafter launched our teaching studio. Robb immediately worked his way into the Boston freelance scene, and became a teacher in the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra ICP program. Nicki left nursing in 2012 and returned to being a full time performing musician and teacher. Since that time, our studio has grown to some 60 students. Between our own practicing, and that of our sons (all string players), and the music lessons 7 days a week, our house is constantly overflowing with music.
Many of our past and current students are members of top youth orchestras in the Boston area, including Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, Boston Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Rivers School Conservatory. Our students have gained entry into BUTI (Boston University Tanglewood Institute). Many of our students have earned top spots in multiple Junior and Senior Districts Festivals in Massachusetts, as well as the All State Festival. In addition we have helped students earn placement in top conservatories. For Sudbury residents, we have successfully prepared dozens of young students for their Select Orchestra auditions at Curtis Middle School.
No matter what your child's goals are, our commitment to you is to provide first rate, personalized instruction, in a positive, encouraging environment. Lessons are focused, goal-oriented, and productive, but fun and humor are always close at hand. Our only goal is to help your child learn to play with the best technique and develop musical instincts. Along the way, we help kids develop discipline, focus, and an appreciation for hard work leading to desired quality results. These life lessons are invaluable.
Recitals and Performance Classes:
In addition to weekly private lessons, we hold 2 recitals per year, as well as optional, less formal performance classes in which students get a chance to play a prepared solo piece with a pianist in front of a small group of fellow students. Emphasis is always on positivity and support! These performance opportunities help immeasurably in the growth of each student's musicianship and skill level.
Chamber Music at Sudbury String Studio:
In spring of 2025, we launched a brand new String Quartet program, with our first group forming at Spencer Brook Strings in Maynard on June 5th! In 2026, we currently have two string quartets and a group of four violinists. We are excited to put together additional groups going forward. If your child is interested in exploring the wonderful world of chamber music, we hope you will reach out to us. Groups will be formed based on level and age and can be comprised of students of ours as well as those who study privately elsewhere.
Daily Practice and Goals:
Because progress depends on individual preparation at home, students are strongly encouraged/reminded to practice every day between lessons. For students of all ages, parents play a major role in establishing a daily practice routine. We welcome parents' questions about practicing and value their input regarding their child's learning style, which we recognize is as unique as their personality.
Our emphasis is on acknowledging and respecting that style, working with it to maximize each student's enjoyment and improvement. Students are motivated to play their instruments every day and make progress when they have concrete goals. Those goals can range from conquering every piece in Suzuki Book 1 to achieving a spot in a conservatory to study music as a profession! We each have over twenty-five years of experience with all ages and levels, with proven results. We also have been where you are as parents of young musicians. Our triplet sons (not surprisingly) all play string instruments and are now finishing their undergraduate degrees in applied music - two at Boston University and one at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
We are proud and endlessly grateful to have become such a trusted source for families looking for quality string instruction in the greater Boston area since 2012.