SUZUKI ACADEMY - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Treasurer of the ISA Board of Directors

Job Titles:

• Member of the ISA Board of Directors
• President / Principal Cellist, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra

Job Titles:

• Instructor of Violin and Viola

After a twenty-four year career as a full-time orchestra musician, including positions as Associate Concertmaster of the Omaha Symphony and Assistant Concertmaster of the Tulsa Philharmonic, Candida Wiley moved to Indianapolis in 2002 to dedicate herself to teaching. Fascinated with the pedagogy of the violin, she has studied and taught Alexander Technique, which teaches the least forceful use of the body, and which has decisively shaped her approach to playing and teaching. She also pursued training in Suzuki Institutes for many years, and has completed Suzuki Violin Training Units 1-8. In Indianapolis she maintains a busy private violin studio, and taught violin actively at Broad Ripple Magnet High School for the Performing Arts, Avon schools and Brownsburg Schools. She is a graduate of Butler University and Indiana University and performs actively with Carmel Symphony Orchestra.

Job Titles:

• Eli Lilly, Director, Contract Development, Retired

Job Titles:

• Instructor of Cello

Eliza Bracken is an Indianapolis native who began her cello studies at the age of ten with Ingrid Bellman, retired cellist of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. From 2012-2014, she studied with Peter Stumpf, former principal of the LA Philharmonic and faculty member of the IU Jacobs School of Music. Eliza graduated with honors in 2018 with a degree in Cello Performance from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Her cello professor there was Brandon Vamos, renowned cellist of the two-time Grammy Award-winning Pacifica Quartet. During her cello studies in high school and college, Eliza participated in many chamber music festivals, such as the ENCORE String Quartet Intensive (2017), where she fell in love with musical collaboration. Since 2017, Eliza has been an avid freelance musician playing with orchestras and smaller ensembles in central Indiana. Passionate about teaching and learning, Eliza has experience working with children in education both in music and in language. She spent a year and a half, (July 2019 - October 2020), living and working in Busan, South Korea teaching English as a Foreign Language to kindergartners and elementary-aged students. Eliza brings the lessons learned from this intensive teaching experience to her teaching approach, placing patience and flexibility as paramount to a positive and effective learning experience. Eliza will be receiving training in Suzuki Book 1 in June of 2022 with Tanya Carey. She plans to receive further training in each of the Suzuki books within the coming months.

Job Titles:

• Administrative Assistant

Erin is an Indianapolis native who now resides in Westfield, IN with her family of four. She graduated from IUPUI in 2007 with a degree in Tourism, Conventions, and Event management. Her experience includes hospitality, event planning, marketing, and sales. She also began learning to play violin at the age of 5 under a Suzuki instructor and continues to play today. She is active in her church and community and values music education.

Job Titles:

• Instructor of Violin

Karen Walls has been teaching with the Indianapolis Suzuki Academy for the past 6 years, after having a private Suzuki studio on her own for 13 years in Indianapolis. A long time resident of Indianapolis, Mrs. Walls has completed her Suzuki Violin Teacher Training in Books 1-4 with Moshe Neumann, Mary Cay Neal, Roger Steig and Ann Montzka-Smelser. She has studied violin with Carol Frohlich and Raye Pankratz of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, as well as with Candida Wiley. In addition to violin training, Mrs. Walls has obtained level 3 (of 5) training for Suzuki Early Childhood education and has been teaching the ISA Suzuki Steps early childhood class for the past 6 years. Music Mind Games theory instruction is one of her favorite ways to teach music theory to children and has acquired Levels 1 and 2 of training for this curriculum. With a Bachelor's Degree from Ball State University and a Master's Degree from Indiana University in Bloomington, studying Special Education and Early Childhood Special Education, Mrs. Walls has extensive experience working with young children and sees her gift as connecting with children of all ages, particularly pre-schoolers and new beginners.

Job Titles:

• Director of Piano & Piano Accompanying / Instructor of Piano

Kyoko Tanno brings a rich history of Suzuki education to her role as Director / Instructor of Piano at the Indianapolis Suzuki Academy. Born in Yokohama, Japan, she began violin lessons at the age of 2 with Mr. Hachiro Hirose, a student of Dr. Suzuki. Then, at the age of 6, Ms. Kyoko began piano lessons with Mrs. Yuko Hirose, a Suzuki Teacher Trainer in Japan. After coming to the United States in 1990, she went to Bloomington, IN to study music at the renowned Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. As a graduate of IU, Ms. Kyoko holds both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Piano Performance with a minor in Violin. Her primary teachers were Edward Auer (piano), and Henryk Kowalski and Stephen Boe (violin). Ms. Kyoko has been a private piano and violin teacher for more than 20 years, incorporating both traditional and Suzuki methods. She has completed Piano Teacher Training in Books 1-3 with Mrs. Rita Houck, and plans to continue training in both piano and violin in the near future. Sharing her Suzuki experience with ISA families and students is what she is most looking forward to. She has extensive teaching experience with children ages 3 and up, and loves helping her students discover the joy of music.

Job Titles:

• Instructor of Trumpet

Larry first began with piano in 1976, starting trumpet in 1978. In 1982 as a high school junior, he began private instruction with Vincent DiMartino, continuing with Vince from 1984 to 1986 at the University of Kentucky. Other significant instructors include Marvin Perry, Dan Gosling, Bobby Shew, and Roger Ingram. After leaving college early in 1987 Larry enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and served as an Administration Specialist at Headquarters USAF at the Pentagon. Completing his enlistment with USAF Achievement Medal and an Honorable Discharge he settled in Indiana, where he finished his Bachelor of Science degree in K-12 All Area Music Education at the University of Indianapolis, and later earning a Master of Music in Trumpet Performance from Butler University. Since arriving in Indiana in 1990 he established himself as a top-tier utility trumpet player working with the Indianapolis Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, South Bend Symphony, and the Evansville Philharmonic. Larry currently serves as Principal Trumpet with the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra, the Marion Philharmonic Orchestra, the Anderson Symphony Orchestra, and the Muncie Symphony Orchestra. In 2007 he began teaching at the University of Indianapolis as Adjunct Professor of Trumpet. There, he teaches applied trumpet, brass masterclass, coaches the UIndy Trumpet Ensemble, and performs with the UIndy Faculty Brass. In 2019 Larry was invited to be a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. There, he taught the undergraduate and graduate trumpet students, and lead the masterclass. Larry chairs the Indiana chapter of the International Trumpet Guild Conference. He organized and hosted the 2017, 2018, and 2019 Indiana Trumpet Guild/University of Indianapolis Trumpet Conferences. His guest artists and clinicians have great artists such as Doc Severinsen, Rex Richardson, and Ronald Romm. He is the creator and host of the studioHFL podcast and WICR radio show, featuring interviews with legendary musicians and legends in the making. In 2021 Larry received certification as a Suzuki Trumpet Teacher for Books 1 & 2 through the Suzuki Association of the Americas. Larry is also an active clinician and performing artist for both the Eastman Music Company, and S.E. Shires.

Job Titles:

• Member of the ISA Board of Directors
• Vice President / Controller, Three Sixty Group

Job Titles:

• Eli Lilly, Director, Contract Development, Retired

Job Titles:

• Member of the ISA Board of Directors

Job Titles:

• Instructor of Violin and Viola

Rachel Gries grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and started playing the violin in a Suzuki program when she was just four years old. She holds both Bachelor's and Master's Degrees from Indiana University in Music Performance. While at IU, she studied Violin Pedagogy with Mimi Zweig. She started Suzuki training in 2010 and is registered in Violin Books 1-5 and Viola Books 1-3 and Book 6. While she has worked with many wonderful teacher trainers, she is especially thankful for the time she has spent with Linda and Roger Steig and Bill and Doris Preucil. Rachel has performed with many regional orchestras in Indiana and early music groups throughout the Midwest. She currently serves as Principal Violist for both the Carmel Symphony Orchestra and the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra. She serves on the boards for the Suzuki Association of Indiana and the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra. A life-long learner, Rachel continues to take courses and attend workshops and conferences through SAA and other organizations such as the American String Teacher Association. Additionally, she has two children who were Suzuki violin and cello students.

Job Titles:

• Executive Director / Instructor of Violin

Rachel Osterhouse has been teaching in the Indianapolis area since 2011 and with the Indianapolis Suzuki Academy since 2016. Originally from Twin Cities, she completed her Bachelor's in Music Performance at University of Minnesota where she studied with Mark Bjork. While at U of MN, Rachel completed Suzuki teacher training books 1-4 with Mark Bjork and has continued her Suzuki training since then with Ann Montzka Smelser (books 5 and 7) and Alice Joy Lewis (book 6).

Job Titles:

• Director of Harp / Instructor of Harp

Stephanie Newberry Hall received a Master of Music Degree in Harp Performance in 2006 from, the University of Houston Moores School of Music, where she studied with Houston Symphony principal harpist, Paula Page. She received her Bachelor of Music Degree in Musical Arts from Vanderbilt University in 2004, where she studied with Marian Shaffer, principal harpist of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, she is an alumnus of the Salzedo School in Camden, Maine, where she studied with Alice Chalifoux, retired principal harpist of the Cleveland Orchestra. Stephanie has performed in Masterclasses with harpists such as Yolanda Kondonassis, Isabelle Moretti, and Sunita Stanislow, and participated in the Texas Music Festival, Rome Festival, and Sewanee Summer Music Festivals. Located in Indianapolis, Stephanie actively performs as a freelance harpist, and is fluent in classical, sacred, and popular music styles, performing in solo, chamber and orchestral settings. A native Texan, Stephanie began studying at the age of 10 with Patricia Furley, a former student of legendary harpist and composer Carlos Salzedo and principal harpist of the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra. Stephanie has been performing professionally in Central and South Texas since 2004 and acted as principal harpist of the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra for the 2006-2007 season. She has also performed as a guest principal harpist with various orchestras in Texas, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Stephanie teaches harp to students of all ages and abilities, on both pedal and lever harp. From 2001-2004, Stephanie taught private harp lessons and harp ensemble for elementary through adult students at Allegro School of Music in Nashville, Tennessee. From 2004-2005, she was the private harp instructor for 6th-8th grade students at Garcia Middle School in Houston, Texas, including coaching for solo and ensemble competition and orchestral studies, as wells as arranging harp parts for orchestral repertoire. Since 2005, she has taught both pedal and lever harp in her own private studio, and joined the faculty of the Indianapolis Suzuki Academy in 2015. Stephanie had the opportunity to receive Book 1, 2, and 3 Training from Mary Kay Waddington and Delaine Fedson. She teaches in the Zionsville/Carmel area and in Indianapolis.

Job Titles:

• Member of the ISA Board of Directors
• Secretary / Franciscan Health System and Cancer Center, Physician and Director of Gynecologic Oncology