Faculty

Erika Atchley began studying Suzuki violin with her mother at age four and continued her studies with Tyrone Grieve at the University of Wisconsin Madison at age eleven. She furthered her studies in High School and College with Elaine Richey at the North Carolina School of the Arts where she was the recipient of the Osborne Scholarship. After NCSA, Ms. Atchley received her Masters in Music from the Manhattan School of Music where she was a student of Mitchell Stern. She has also studied with Burton Kaplan and Joey Corpus.

After graduating, Ms. Atchley stayed in New York City to pursue teaching, chamber music and orchestral opportunities in the New York area.

Erika has held teaching positions at the Lucy Moses School of Music in New York City, the Queensborough College Suzuki Program in New York City, and the Huntington Suzuki Program on Long Island. She has also been a regular clinician at the Meredith College Suzuki Program. Erika has been a featured concerto soloist with the Park Avenue Chamber Orchestra and the Bar Harbor Festival Chamber Orchestra. She is also a former member of the first violin section of both the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra and the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra.

Ms. Atchley has performed as a chamber musician throughout Europe and the United States. She has recorded on the Koch, Newport Classics, Relix and Atlantic labels. Currently Ms. Atchley is Principle Second violin of the Bar Harbor Festival Chamber Orchestra in New York City and Maine, and is a regular extra player with the North Carolina Symphony.

Erika also has an alter ego as a rock and roll violinist. She has performed and recorded with several bands including Modern English, Clutch, Illuminate, The New Creatures, Violet, singers Jimmie Earl Perry, Barry White and Harry Connick Jr, as well as guitarist Rick Dufay. She has also collaborated with music producer Jack Douglas.

Georgia Schmidt was a Suzuki kid, taking lessons from Kyoko Fuller in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. She received her teacher-training, books 1A through book 8, at the American Suzuki Institute in Wisconsin. She also has taken and registered the Suzuki overview, books 1 through 4, with Ronda Cole. She taught Suzuki violin while getting her degree at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, under Everett Goodwin. After getting her BME, she went on to develop her own program in Grand Forks, North Dakota, where she taught 60 students. She is currently a Suzuki mom and teacher, teaching her own two children, as well as a small studio with students ranging from 4 years of age to 17.

Wilinda began teaching piano lessons at the age of 13, continuing through college and into graduate school, when she began teaching violin lessons. However, having been taught in the traditional method of that era, her passion for reaching every child and teaching to and for each child began with her introduction into Shinichi Suzuki’s philosophy of teaching. That beginning was in 1975 while teaching her own children, and continuous training at workshops and seminars has increased her ability and solidified her teaching skills. She has been a master teacher at numerous workshops in the United States (Wisconsin, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida) and has been on the faculty of the Greater Washington Suzuki Institute in DC for many years. Previous to founding T.A.S.T.E. with Joey O’Donnell and Georgia Schmidt, Wilinda had a private Suzuki studio in Madison, WI, and was at Meredith College from 1987-2011, leading the Suzuki program 1989-2011. Many of her students have become outstanding professional musicians and all are outstanding human beings, excelling in their chosen professions and leading in their communities.

The Classical Voice of North Carolina described violist Kirsten Swanson as a “stunning musician with flawless technique combined with that unique ‘viola’ sound that can melt your soul.” Feeling equally at ease with “new” and “old” music, in an orchestra or solo, she enjoys a diverse career that takes her all over the world.

A committed teacher, Kirsten works with students of all ages and levels. She has taught middle and high school orchestra and served as the Coordinator for the Pre-k through 5th grade Group Suzuki Program at the Oakwood School in Greenville, NC and the Friendship Day School in Charlotte, NC. She has studied Suzuki violin and viola pedagogy with master teachers such as Joanne Martin, Betsy Stuen-Walker, and Joanne Bath and holds a Graduate Certificate in Suzuki Pedagogy from East Carolina University.

Dr. Kirsten Swanson has played full time with the Charlotte and North Carolina Symphonies and has been Adjunct Professor of viola, violin, and chamber music at University of North Carolina at Charlotte since 2011. She has been the visiting Professor of violin and viola at Wake Forest University and frequently works with college students across the state. Dr. Swanson holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, the Longy School, and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.