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Krista Miller Ochenjele, violin | Megan Miller Goff, violin
Therese Miller, viola | Leah Miller, cello
Questions and Answers
Leah Miller
How did four young women, all sisters ranging in ages from 17 to 24, raised in the middle of farm country, Illinois, become the Eden String Quartet?
Music began in our lives with piano lessons, beginning for each of us between the ages of 5 and 7. Our Grandma was a pianist and lived close by, so every week we would walk to her house for piano lessons. A few weeks into it, we came home and told our parents that we were going to quit and they said, “No way, the Millers aren’t quitters.” I know that I struggled with my attitude for a while after that, but I finally realized that I wasn’t going to talk my parents out of making me play piano. So I had a choice: I could either practice with a bad attitude, which was pretty miserable, or I could practice with a good attitude and choose to have fun. That lesson really stuck with me and it is practical to everything in my life!
I am pretty enthusiastic by nature, so once I choose to have a good attitude, playing piano became my favorite after-school activity.
If you asked our parents now, I know they would tell you that the reason that they wouldn’t let us quit wasn’t because they had a long-term plan for their four daughters to form a string quartet, or even for them to become great musicians. It was all about building character in us. They wanted us to learn to do hard things and to do them excellently for the Lord.
Music wasn’t the only hard thing that they made us do. When I was a little older, my dad was coaching Megan and Krista’s softball league, and my parents made me join the team. It doesn’t sound like a torturous thing for a parent to do to their child, but for the five summers between third and eighth grade, I had to choose to have a good attitude about playing softball. My parents probably had to choose to have a good attitude about me playing softball too, because I’m not a very athletic person. I think I caught the ball once when I was standing in the outfield. I actually wasn’t paying any attention to the game, but I had the glove open, and a ball actually landed in it!
A few years into taking piano lessons, Meg and Krista heard our cousin play violin, and they asked if they could learn to play violin too. My mom brought them to their first lesson, planning for both of them to play violin. But after meeting them, the teacher suggested the Krista play violin and Megan play viola. I had always wanted to play cello, so when I was nine, I began studying that. A few months later, when Therese was seven, she began taking viola lessons as well.
Megan, Krista and I played in a quartet with various other girls for our second violinist for about five years, and then in 2002, Therese joined our quartet. We had to shift instruments around a little bit since Meg and Therese both played viola, and for a string quartet you need two violins, one viola and one cello. So Megan switched to violin so that we could play as a string quartet of four sisters.
You four have done something amazing — learning classical music is tough enough without the additional work of forming a quartet and then performing in public! All those long hours of practice — what made it all worthwhile for each of you?
For me, I didn’t go into a practice room every day with my cello and think, “I am practicing so that I can become a great musician.” Our parents never put those thoughts into our heads. It was all about being faithful to what God called us to do that day and working whole heartedly for Him, whether we were doing school, playing a sport, learning how to cook, or practicing our instruments.
I’m guessing that a lot of coordination and working together is involved for the four of you to play together effectively. What have you learned about teamwork, and how has that helped you in other areas of life?
In order for our quartet to sound good, all four of us need to give playing a 100% effort. If one person hasn’t done their personal practice before quartet rehearsal, it is really obvious.
I’ve also learned not to take criticism personally. If I’m out of tune, I need to fix it, or if I’m playing too loud, which my sisters usually think I am, then I need to play quieter. It doesn’t help if I get all bent out of shape or offended.
Let’s talk to parents — do you recommend that ALL children should be encouraged to learn an instrument for at least a little while, even if they have no interest in music?
Music is a great way to form character in children. Practicing may not always be fun, but in the end it is a skill that you will have for the rest of your life. Even if the child does not end up making a profession out of music, they will appreciate the hard work of those who do. And there are all kinds of statistics that show how beneficial music is for young children’s brain development, motor skills and creativity.
It is also good for kids to learn to do things that are hard for them. When we are forced to do things that aren’t naturally appealing to us, we learn that it is possible to make a choice to have a good attitude.
What warning would you give parents who may be too “pushy” in terms of expecting their kids to become great musicians and perform like you’ve been able to?
For Christian parents, I believe that their goal should be to raise children who are equipped to be warriors for Jesus Christ in whatever capacity He calls them to. But beyond that, I think that parents should be very careful and prayerful about over-planning their child’s life. Only God knows the plans that He has for the children he creates.
Our parents never set out for us to have a string quartet. They just encouraged us to be faithful each day as we were practicing. As we have gotten older and God has brought us opportunities, we have been prepared for them, but it was never our plan to be performers or great musicians.
On the other hand, let’s say my child really seems to have interest and skill in performing music, and I want to give them every opportunity to pursue a musical career — if that’s what they want. If they started this in school and have been taking lessons from the local piano teacher — what’s the next step?
Again, I think it is really important to be prayerful. Think about what the goal is. If it is to get to “the top” of the classical performing world, that child is going to have a really tough life. There are thousands of great musicians out there.
Talk about your home schooling experience. What were some pros and cons for how that worked in your family?
I was the first person in our family to be home schooled. I was home schooled through high school for every year except one, and I loved it! Of course there were days that had their ups and downs, but I would definitely recommend home schooling as a very efficient way not only to learn academics, but to bond with your child and give them a Christian worldview.
Your family runs a farm — which can be pretty demanding work! On top of that you have this string quartet, with all those hours of practice and performances. Do you have time for anything else?
We are very busy and didn’t have a lot of free time growing up, which I think was a positive thing. Bible time and school always came first, we had time to practice our two instruments, and sometimes we were in sports. When we were older, we started giving music lessons to pay for our own, and we continue to teach many students, which keeps us very busy!
Is it ever tough for the four of you to get along? During a performance, have you ever had to “grin and bear it” even though you might not have been very happy with one of your sisters at the time?
“The look” is a pretty effective way to get the message across very quickly to one of the girls who is playing out of tune or is off in some way. I’m very good at it, especially with Therese, because I always know her parts as well as my own and can tell right away when she makes a mistake. “The look” is always given in Christian love, of course.
Your group has a new DVD out which combines some of your performances with “behind-the-scenes” interviews of your family. A key theme that we hear over and over from this DVD is the importance of your faith. Talk about how you incorporate that in both your music and your lives.
I think the key here is not how we incorporate our faith into our lives, but that our faith is our lives! It is our desire to glorify our Savior, Jesus Christ, in every aspect of our lives and music.
Eden String Quartet
Updated 12.27.07
Krista Miller Ochenjele, violin | Megan Miller Goff, violin
Therese Miller, viola | Leah Miller, cello
Questions and Answers
Leah Miller
How did four young women, all sisters ranging in ages from 17 to 24, raised in the middle of farm country, Illinois, become the Eden String Quartet?
Music began in our lives with piano lessons, beginning for each of us between the ages of 5 and 7. Our Grandma was a pianist and lived close by, so every week we would walk to her house for piano lessons. A few weeks into it, we came home and told our parents that we were going to quit and they said, “No way, the Millers aren’t quitters.” I know that I struggled with my attitude for a while after that, but I finally realized that I wasn’t going to talk my parents out of making me play piano. So I had a choice: I could either practice with a bad attitude, which was pretty miserable, or I could practice with a good attitude and choose to have fun. That lesson really stuck with me and it is practical to everything in my life!
I am pretty enthusiastic by nature, so once I choose to have a good attitude, playing piano became my favorite after-school activity.
If you asked our parents now, I know they would tell you that the reason that they wouldn’t let us quit wasn’t because they had a long-term plan for their four daughters to form a string quartet, or even for them to become great musicians. It was all about building character in us. They wanted us to learn to do hard things and to do them excellently for the Lord.
Music wasn’t the only hard thing that they made us do. When I was a little older, my dad was coaching Megan and Krista’s softball league, and my parents made me join the team. It doesn’t sound like a torturous thing for a parent to do to their child, but for the five summers between third and eighth grade, I had to choose to have a good attitude about playing softball. My parents probably had to choose to have a good attitude about me playing softball too, because I’m not a very athletic person. I think I caught the ball once when I was standing in the outfield. I actually wasn’t paying any attention to the game, but I had the glove open, and a ball actually landed in it!
A few years into taking piano lessons, Meg and Krista heard our cousin play violin, and they asked if they could learn to play violin too. My mom brought them to their first lesson, planning for both of them to play violin. But after meeting them, the teacher suggested the Krista play violin and Megan play viola. I had always wanted to play cello, so when I was nine, I began studying that. A few months later, when Therese was seven, she began taking viola lessons as well.
Megan, Krista and I played in a quartet with various other girls for our second violinist for about five years, and then in 2002, Therese joined our quartet. We had to shift instruments around a little bit since Meg and Therese both played viola, and for a string quartet you need two violins, one viola and one cello. So Megan switched to violin so that we could play as a string quartet of four sisters.
You four have done something amazing — learning classical music is tough enough without the additional work of forming a quartet and then performing in public! All those long hours of practice — what made it all worthwhile for each of you?
For me, I didn’t go into a practice room every day with my cello and think, “I am practicing so that I can become a great musician.” Our parents never put those thoughts into our heads. It was all about being faithful to what God called us to do that day and working whole heartedly for Him, whether we were doing school, playing a sport, learning how to cook, or practicing our instruments.
I’m guessing that a lot of coordination and working together is involved for the four of you to play together effectively. What have you learned about teamwork, and how has that helped you in other areas of life?
In order for our quartet to sound good, all four of us need to give playing a 100% effort. If one person hasn’t done their personal practice before quartet rehearsal, it is really obvious.
I’ve also learned not to take criticism personally. If I’m out of tune, I need to fix it, or if I’m playing too loud, which my sisters usually think I am, then I need to play quieter. It doesn’t help if I get all bent out of shape or offended.
Let’s talk to parents — do you recommend that ALL children should be encouraged to learn an instrument for at least a little while, even if they have no interest in music?
Music is a great way to form character in children. Practicing may not always be fun, but in the end it is a skill that you will have for the rest of your life. Even if the child does not end up making a profession out of music, they will appreciate the hard work of those who do. And there are all kinds of statistics that show how beneficial music is for young children’s brain development, motor skills and creativity.
It is also good for kids to learn to do things that are hard for them. When we are forced to do things that aren’t naturally appealing to us, we learn that it is possible to make a choice to have a good attitude.
What warning would you give parents who may be too “pushy” in terms of expecting their kids to become great musicians and perform like you’ve been able to?
For Christian parents, I believe that their goal should be to raise children who are equipped to be warriors for Jesus Christ in whatever capacity He calls them to. But beyond that, I think that parents should be very careful and prayerful about over-planning their child’s life. Only God knows the plans that He has for the children he creates.
Our parents never set out for us to have a string quartet. They just encouraged us to be faithful each day as we were practicing. As we have gotten older and God has brought us opportunities, we have been prepared for them, but it was never our plan to be performers or great musicians.
On the other hand, let’s say my child really seems to have interest and skill in performing music, and I want to give them every opportunity to pursue a musical career — if that’s what they want. If they started this in school and have been taking lessons from the local piano teacher — what’s the next step?
Again, I think it is really important to be prayerful. Think about what the goal is. If it is to get to “the top” of the classical performing world, that child is going to have a really tough life. There are thousands of great musicians out there.
Talk about your home schooling experience. What were some pros and cons for how that worked in your family?
I was the first person in our family to be home schooled. I was home schooled through high school for every year except one, and I loved it! Of course there were days that had their ups and downs, but I would definitely recommend home schooling as a very efficient way not only to learn academics, but to bond with your child and give them a Christian worldview.
Your family runs a farm — which can be pretty demanding work! On top of that you have this string quartet, with all those hours of practice and performances. Do you have time for anything else?
We are very busy and didn’t have a lot of free time growing up, which I think was a positive thing. Bible time and school always came first, we had time to practice our two instruments, and sometimes we were in sports. When we were older, we started giving music lessons to pay for our own, and we continue to teach many students, which keeps us very busy!
Is it ever tough for the four of you to get along? During a performance, have you ever had to “grin and bear it” even though you might not have been very happy with one of your sisters at the time?
“The look” is a pretty effective way to get the message across very quickly to one of the girls who is playing out of tune or is off in some way. I’m very good at it, especially with Therese, because I always know her parts as well as my own and can tell right away when she makes a mistake. “The look” is always given in Christian love, of course.
Your group has a new DVD out which combines some of your performances with “behind-the-scenes” interviews of your family. A key theme that we hear over and over from this DVD is the importance of your faith. Talk about how you incorporate that in both your music and your lives.
I think the key here is not how we incorporate our faith into our lives, but that our faith is our lives! It is our desire to glorify our Savior, Jesus Christ, in every aspect of our lives and music.
Eden String Quartet
Updated 12.27.07
How did four young women, all sisters ranging in ages from 17 to 24, raised in the middle of farm country, Illinois, become the Eden String Quartet?
Music began in our lives with piano lessons, beginning for each of us between the ages of 5 and 7. Our Grandma was a pianist and lived close by, so every week we would walk to her house for piano lessons. A few weeks into it, we came home and told our parents that we were going to quit and they said, “No way, the Millers aren’t quitters.” I know that I struggled with my attitude for a while after that, but I finally realized that I wasn’t going to talk my parents out of making me play piano. So I had a choice: I could either practice with a bad attitude, which was pretty miserable, or I could practice with a good attitude and choose to have fun. That lesson really stuck with me and it is practical to everything in my life!
I am pretty enthusiastic by nature, so once I choose to have a good attitude, playing piano became my favorite after-school activity.
If you asked our parents now, I know they would tell you that the reason that they wouldn’t let us quit wasn’t because they had a long-term plan for their four daughters to form a string quartet, or even for them to become great musicians. It was all about building character in us. They wanted us to learn to do hard things and to do them excellently for the Lord.
Music wasn’t the only hard thing that they made us do. When I was a little older, my dad was coaching Megan and Krista’s softball league, and my parents made me join the team. It doesn’t sound like a torturous thing for a parent to do to their child, but for the five summers between third and eighth grade, I had to choose to have a good attitude about playing softball. My parents probably had to choose to have a good attitude about me playing softball too, because I’m not a very athletic person. I think I caught the ball once when I was standing in the outfield. I actually wasn’t paying any attention to the game, but I had the glove open, and a ball actually landed in it!
A few years into taking piano lessons, Meg and Krista heard our cousin play violin, and they asked if they could learn to play violin too. My mom brought them to their first lesson, planning for both of them to play violin. But after meeting them, the teacher suggested the Krista play violin and Megan play viola. I had always wanted to play cello, so when I was nine, I began studying that. A few months later, when Therese was seven, she began taking viola lessons as well.
Megan, Krista and I played in a quartet with various other girls for our second violinist for about five years, and then in 2002, Therese joined our quartet. We had to shift instruments around a little bit since Meg and Therese both played viola, and for a string quartet you need two violins, one viola and one cello. So Megan switched to violin so that we could play as a string quartet of four sisters.
You four have done something amazing — learning classical music is tough enough without the additional work of forming a quartet and then performing in public! All those long hours of practice — what made it all worthwhile for each of you?
For me, I didn’t go into a practice room every day with my cello and think, “I am practicing so that I can become a great musician.” Our parents never put those thoughts into our heads. It was all about being faithful to what God called us to do that day and working whole heartedly for Him, whether we were doing school, playing a sport, learning how to cook, or practicing our instruments.
I’m guessing that a lot of coordination and working together is involved for the four of you to play together effectively. What have you learned about teamwork, and how has that helped you in other areas of life?
In order for our quartet to sound good, all four of us need to give playing a 100% effort. If one person hasn’t done their personal practice before quartet rehearsal, it is really obvious.
I’ve also learned not to take criticism personally. If I’m out of tune, I need to fix it, or if I’m playing too loud, which my sisters usually think I am, then I need to play quieter. It doesn’t help if I get all bent out of shape or offended.
Let’s talk to parents — do you recommend that ALL children should be encouraged to learn an instrument for at least a little while, even if they have no interest in music?
Music is a great way to form character in children. Practicing may not always be fun, but in the end it is a skill that you will have for the rest of your life. Even if the child does not end up making a profession out of music, they will appreciate the hard work of those who do. And there are all kinds of statistics that show how beneficial music is for young children’s brain development, motor skills and creativity.
It is also good for kids to learn to do things that are hard for them. When we are forced to do things that aren’t naturally appealing to us, we learn that it is possible to make a choice to have a good attitude.
What warning would you give parents who may be too “pushy” in terms of expecting their kids to become great musicians and perform like you’ve been able to?
For Christian parents, I believe that their goal should be to raise children who are equipped to be warriors for Jesus Christ in whatever capacity He calls them to. But beyond that, I think that parents should be very careful and prayerful about over-planning their child’s life. Only God knows the plans that He has for the children he creates.
Our parents never set out for us to have a string quartet. They just encouraged us to be faithful each day as we were practicing. As we have gotten older and God has brought us opportunities, we have been prepared for them, but it was never our plan to be performers or great musicians.
On the other hand, let’s say my child really seems to have interest and skill in performing music, and I want to give them every opportunity to pursue a musical career — if that’s what they want. If they started this in school and have been taking lessons from the local piano teacher — what’s the next step?
Again, I think it is really important to be prayerful. Think about what the goal is. If it is to get to “the top” of the classical performing world, that child is going to have a really tough life. There are thousands of great musicians out there.
Talk about your home schooling experience. What were some pros and cons for how that worked in your family?
I was the first person in our family to be home schooled. I was home schooled through high school for every year except one, and I loved it! Of course there were days that had their ups and downs, but I would definitely recommend home schooling as a very efficient way not only to learn academics, but to bond with your child and give them a Christian worldview.
Your family runs a farm — which can be pretty demanding work! On top of that you have this string quartet, with all those hours of practice and performances. Do you have time for anything else?
We are very busy and didn’t have a lot of free time growing up, which I think was a positive thing. Bible time and school always came first, we had time to practice our two instruments, and sometimes we were in sports. When we were older, we started giving music lessons to pay for our own, and we continue to teach many students, which keeps us very busy!
Is it ever tough for the four of you to get along? During a performance, have you ever had to “grin and bear it” even though you might not have been very happy with one of your sisters at the time?
“The look” is a pretty effective way to get the message across very quickly to one of the girls who is playing out of tune or is off in some way. I’m very good at it, especially with Therese, because I always know her parts as well as my own and can tell right away when she makes a mistake. “The look” is always given in Christian love, of course.
Your group has a new DVD out which combines some of your performances with “behind-the-scenes” interviews of your family. A key theme that we hear over and over from this DVD is the importance of your faith. Talk about how you incorporate that in both your music and your lives.
I think the key here is not how we incorporate our faith into our lives, but that our faith is our lives! It is our desire to glorify our Savior, Jesus Christ, in every aspect of our lives and music.
Eden String Quartet
Updated 12.27.07