Our Faculty

Fiddling Faculty: Sherry McKenzie

When eleven years old, Sherry experienced fiddle music for the first time.  “I saw a fiddle player on TV,” she recalls, “and thought it looked really, really fun.  My parents got me an instrument, and I started playing in the sixth grade orchestra in my hometown of Idaho Falls, Idaho and I just fell in love with the music. Sherry essentially learned to play Texas-style completely by ear.  “My parents would get me a record, like Benny Thomasson or Kenny Baker, and I would try to put those licks in the old-time songs I was playing. I met Mike Parsons and Roberta Pearce at a state fiddle contest and began taking lessons from them, learning this exciting style of fiddling, and the next year I got first place in the Junior Junior Division.”  After this first win, Sherry headed of to the national contest in Weiser, a few miles down the road. That year Sherry met Herman along with Benny Thomasson and Dick Barrett.  These three fiddlers would deeply influence her playing over the next few years. After these encounters, Sherry recalls, “I would spend hundreds of hours with a record, slowing it down and listening over and over.  And I spent hours watching great fiddle players, trying to figure out how they bowed certain songs.” Sherry has completed Suzuki Violin Unit 1 at Texas Christian University and has incorporated the pedagogical ideas of the method into her teaching. “I believe there are more similarities than differences with the Suzuki method and a systematic approach to learning traditional fiddling.” Sherry enjoys working with Suzuki students in an Enrichment role to supplement their existing studies and with intermediate level students of all ages. She is a sought after instructor at workshops and institutes across the country.

Fiddling Faculty: Amber Tarpley

Amber Tarpley was born in Pennsylvania but has spent most of her 19 years in Fort Worth, Texas. From an early age, Amber has had a deep love for music and has studied a wide range of musical skills from piano to a cappella, and Suzuki to Texas fiddling. At age 16, she began working with Joey and Sherry McKenzie, who introduced her to Western swing music and Texas style fiddling. She has won several awards for fiddling, including 1st place in the adult division of the Bob Wills Fiddle Festival & Contest. Amber particularly loves playing together with her six siblings (who also fiddle!) and sharing her music with others. When she is not fiddling, Amber enjoys being outdoors, keeping bees, watercolor painting, tennis, and reading. Currently, she is pursuing a bachelor’s honors degree in History with minors in Classics, Russian and English from the University of Texas at Arlington.

Alternative Styles Faculty: Katherine Sullivan

Katherine Sullivan is a professional violinist and educator originally from New York and now based in Houston. She and her husband, Ed Harper, run H-Town Strings, a Suzuki violin and cello studio in central Houston. She started playing the violin at age 4 and went on to study at the Manhattan School of Music pre-college division. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from DePaul University School of Music in Chicago, a Master of Performance degree in Orchestral Performance from the Royal College of Music in London and a Master of Arts in Education from the University of Nottingham.
Katherine has taught internationally at Stamford American International School in Singapore where she specialized in early years education and established a comprehensive Suzuki Strings program for students ages three to five. She also founded Elementary and Secondary Strings orchestras, arranging music for both ensembles and conducting them in performances and showcases. Katherine integrated the Suzuki Philosophy and the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program (IB PYP) Framework and served as Interim Head of Music. The philosophy of the Suzuki method, centered on positive education and inclusivity, forms the basis of Katherine’s teaching methodology. Katherine most enjoys the long term impact and relationship that instrumental study offers the student, and creating a unique program of study to best fulfill the student’s potential.

Suzuki Faculty: Danette Warren

Danette Warren is the Director of Dolce Music Academy, home of Dolce Strings and Dolce Babies, where she teaches violin, viola and Suzuki Early Childhood classes. She also co-directs the Dolce Strings Touring Ensemble. She is an SAA Registered SECE Teacher Trainer. As one of the teachers who taught SECE classes at the 16th World Convention in Japan, she also had the privilege of speaking and presenting the SECE curriculum in depth. She is also the Director of the new Houston Suzuki Institute. A sought-after clinician at institutes, workshops, festivals and schools, she has been teaching for over 40 years, and has held positions such as President of the Houston Area Suzuki Strings Association (now Southeast Texas Suzuki Association), and state board member of Texas Music Teachers Association. She has received the Houston Music Teachers Association President’s “Bravo” award and was also awarded “Teacher of the Year”. She has been published in the American Suzuki Journal, contributed a video to Parents and Partners Online, and has presented at numerous SAA Conferences and Leadership Retreats. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree with honors from Indiana University, where she studied violin with Tadeusz Wronski and Josef Gingold. She has had the great privilege of studying SECE with the creators of the curriculum, Dorothy Jones and Sharon Jones. She also co-directs McKenzie’s Fiddle and Suzuki Workshop, performs with the Möbius Chamber Ensemble and as a freelance violinist and violist in the greater Houston area.

Suzuki Faculty: Teresa Matchett

Teresa L. Matchett earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston, graduating cum laude in cello performance. Her cello studies were with Martha Gerschefski and Hans Jensen, and she did graduate work with Anthony Elliott. She has recently taken additional Suzuki training and cello with Tanya Carey. Her performing positions have included principal cello of the Lake Charles Symphony and assistant principal cello of the Theater Under the Stars orchestra. She was the president of the Houston Area Suzuki Strings Association (now called STXSA), and works actively to organize events for young musicians. She teaches students of all ages starting as young as 3 years old, and her older students are regularly chosen as members of the Texas Junior High and High School (region 9) Region Orchestras, as well as the Texas All State Orchestras. Teresa has completed all of her Suzuki training for cello through level 10, as well as Suzuki Principles in Action, and the Cello Practicum. She also teaches Suzuki Early Childhood Education, and Music Mind Games (music theory for children).