Katie began studying music at the age of 4, with her mother, Charlotte Bendorf, 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 of Schaumburg, IL, and Kathreen Ryan, of Charleston, Il. Katie began teaching under Ms. 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 a sligo style “Irish accent” on the fiddle.

Katie is also an avid performer, and enjoys playing and recording music in the Chicagoland area. From 2009-2018, she performed and recorded two albums with 9-piece Chicago folk/americana/punk band, Elephant Gun. Katie has continued performing with Elephant Gun’s frontman, Jared Olson, in their acoustic 2-man live act, Chivari Olson Duo. Katie also performs with The Night Sky, an avant-garde atmospheric/experimental trio.

Katie’s passion is to teach music to everyone who wants to learn, regardless of age or perceived musical ability. She firmly believes everyone who wants to play music most certainly can, and that music is for absolutely everyone to enjoy!