Sarah Jo Zaharako
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  • About
  • Music
  • Library
    • Book Reviews
    • Storytime
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  • BLOG
  • About
  • Music
  • Library
    • Book Reviews
    • Storytime
  • Contact

How I got to here . . .

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I started playing violin when I was five. That's me with my little sister.

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I went to Oberlin Conservatory where I studied music. I also studied art and pedagogy. Pedagogy is the art of teaching.

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A few years after moving to the Bay Area, I completed a Masters of Fine Art at Mills College. Those people who look like me are my parents.
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In 2015, I began a new route as a children's librarian, a field in which I hope to use my teaching skills to affect a broader community of children and their families. I earned a Masters of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University and spent a few years working in school and public libraries. I loved it. Then 2020 sent everything in a strange direction. My family moved to Evanston, IL and I found myself in a wonderful place - a children's book shop called Booked. That's where you'll find me today.      Stay tuned as always....
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I grew up in a ranch house in Indiana surrounded by forests and meadows. The land was flat so I could see right off the edge of the horizon. When the sun rose, it filled the sky and melted the landscape.


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I wanted to be a children's book illustrator. I self-published many books like this one but I did not become a professional children's book illustrator.
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After college, I decided to move to San Francisco and try new types of music. I played in my first band. We had an excellent weekly gig playing in a cafe-laundromat. We got to do our laundry for free.

I have since played with many inspiring musicians in all types of venues. Fancy places are exciting but I love small, comfortable spaces where the audience is close and the beer is free.

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I worked many years as a freelance musician and taught for a while at a community college. But I am most proud of my violin studio, in which I've worked closely with students ages 4 - 19, collaborated with inspiring teachers, and led countless classes and performances. My students have enriched my experience in music and life.
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About half way down this page, I started playing music with Eric Perney. We are still playing music and are now raising three energetic kids who love to sing together, each to their own tune and tempo.

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