MIC Dean Emeritus and Cello Faculty Gilda Barston Honored
February 2nd, 2015
On January 30, Gilda Barston, MIC Community Music School and Academy cello faculty, MIC Dean Emeritus and CEO of the International Suzuki Association, was presented "Outstanding Studio Teacher" for the state of Illinois by the American String Teachers Association's Illinois Chapter. The award is given to an individual who has demonstrated excellence in the teaching of strings in a private studio, university, or other setting where teaching takes place one-on-one. Emily Abraham, current MIC Dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs as well as the mother of a young aspiring cellist who studies with Gilda commented, "Gilda has an incredible ability to combine playfulness with an unwavering adherence to high standards. I am continually impressed and touched by the thoughtfulness of her approach to teaching. She clearly thinks about my child in between lessons and uses new approaches each week to engage my four-year old. Gilda brings the joy of music to me and my child in a deeply profound way. We are so thankful to have her as our teacher!"
The Music Institute of Chicago's mission has long focused on providing the highest quality music education for students of all ages and levels of ability. Comprised of experienced and dedicated educators and performers, our faculty, nearly 200 in number, hold degrees from some of the world’s finest schools of music. Many Music Institute faculty members perform regionally, nationally and internationally and are featured as guest master class clinicians, panelists and adjudicators. "Gilda Barston has been an elite teacher of the cello for 40 years, said MIC President and CEO Mark George. "She is also a very significant teacher of teachers, whose influence is felt throughout the world. MIC is very blessed to have her on our faculty."
More about Gilda Barston
Cellist Gilda Barston is Dean Emeritus of the Music Institute of Chicago where she continues to teach in both the Community Division and the Academy. She is currently the Artistic Director of the Chicago Suzuki Institute. In addition to her teaching, she is the CEO of the International Suzuki Association and is on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Cello Society. A student of Leonard Rose, Ms. Barston received a B.S. and M.S. degree from the Juilliard School of Music in New York.
An active performer in the Chicago area, Gilda Barston was principal cellist of the Chicago String Ensemble from its founding to 1983. She was in the American Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski, the Mu Phi Epsilon Trio and the Lyric Trio. She has performed as soloist and chamber musician in the United States, Canada, Australia, Israel, and Japan.
In 1998, Ms. Barston received a Distinguished Service Award from the Suzuki Association of the Americas for her work with the SAA Cello Committee. A Registered Teacher Trainer of Suzuki Pedagogy, she has been on the faculty of the American Suzuki Institute since 1976 and was the recipient of the ASI’s 2005 Suzuki Chair Award. She has taught at many other Institutes and workshops throughout the country and in Canada, and is currently on the faculty of the National Cello Institute Advanced Cello Residency Program in Orange County, CA. She was a faculty member and soloist at the International Suzuki Teachers' Conference in Matsumoto, Japan, taught at the World Conference in Edmonton, Canada, the Pan-Pacific Suzuki Conference in Adelaide, Australia, the Melbourne Autumn Festival and at the Korean Suzuki Association Winter Camps. In April of 2006 she was an honored guest and faculty member at the 14th Suzuki Method World Convention in Turin, Italy. In May 2010 she and her daughter, Amy, were the guest master class clinicians at the Suzuki Association National Teachers’ Conference in Minneapolis.