Katie began studying music at the age of 4, with her mother as her very first teacher. Katie’s early positive musical experiences played a large part in her decision to perform and teach for life.

Notable classical instructors have included Stephanie Preucil (Schaumburg, IL); June De Forest (Chicago, IL); and Dr. Kathreen Ryan (Eastern Illinois University.) Katie began teaching under Dr. Ryan at EIU in 1999 while pursuing a degree in violin performance.

Katie also studied briefly with Irish master fiddler Kevin Burke, who helped her to develop her Sligo style on the fiddle.

Katie is also an avid performer, and enjoys playing and recording music in the Chicagoland area. From 2009-2018, she recorded two albums and toured with Chicago’s 9-piece folk/americana/punk band, Elephant Gun. Since then, she has continued writing and recording original string parts for independent artists. Current musical projects include “Tangled Feather,” a moveable trio of light-hearted local folk musicians, and Glammis Hill, a traditional Irish session which meets twice a month at local pubs to keep the Irish tradition going… and raise a general ruckus.

Katie is a pre-OT student at MCC and can often be found with her nose in the books, but during her downtime she enjoys family time with her husband and 4 kids, as well as puttering around barefoot in the garden.

For over 25 years, Katie has been musical guide to students ranging in age from from 1-75. Whether working with the hobbyist or the aspiring professional, Katie’s passion is to teach music at a high level of care and attention to everyone who wants to learn. She firmly believes everyone who wants to play music most certainly can, and that music is for absolutely everyone to enjoy!