Violin & Viola Faculty
Courtney Clark
Courtney Clark holds a Bachelor of Music degree in violin performance from the State University of New York at Fredonia, and a Master of Music degree in violin performance from Bowling Green State University, where she was a violinist in the Graduate String Quartet. She has also studied violin performance, chamber music, and string pedagogy in several music festivals and professional development workshops, including the International Music Festival of Leipzig, the National Orchestral Institute at the University of Maryland, Indiana University’s Intensive Violin Pedagogy Retreat under the direction of Mimi Zweig, and the Music Educator and Teaching Artist (META) Fellowship through the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Courtney has been teaching violin and viola for over 12 years. Before moving to Cleveland, she was the Artistic Director of Kids 4 Harmony, a program of the social service agency 18 Degrees. Kids 4 Harmony is an El Sistema-inspired music program with a social justice mission. Ms. Clark is also a Violin and Viola Teaching Artist for the Sistema Side by Side Program of the Longy School of Music of Bard College. Courtney also loves playing in orchestras, some of which include the Snowbelt Symphony, Southern Tier Symphony, and the Western New York Chamber Orchestra. Ms. Clark has also performed as a pit musician for Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield, MA for several seasons.
Clara Engen
Clara Engen is a graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory with a bachelor’s degree in violin performance. She earned her master’s as an orchestral fellow with The Orchestra Now at Bard College.
Clara is in her 10th year of teaching. She has taught and performed with the National Concert Association of Panamá, served as a teaching artist with Cuerdas Para Cali, a Bard College residency in Colombia, and was a Teaching Fellow with MusAid Organization in Belize. In the U.S., she has worked with students ages 4 through adults, at all levels in a variety of settings—private lessons, group classes, and chamber music ensembles. Clara is a Suzuki-certified teacher. She employs traditional teaching methods for older children and adults.
Besides teaching and performing, Clara also works as the Head of Operations for ENCORE Chamber Music Institute, a summer music festival in Gates Mills, Ohio. She is a strong believer in the benefits of musical education to foster curiosity and courage in students of all ages.
Ryan Detwiler
Ryan received his bachelor’s in violin performance from Baldwin Wallace University and his master’s in string performance from the University of Akron. During his graduate studies, Ryan held the Graduate Teaching Assistantship for the string department with an emphasis on solo performance, as well as pedagogy for all ages. He served as Concertmaster in both the Baldwin Wallace Symphony and the University of Akron Symphony Orchestra.
Uniquely versatile, Ryan performs professionally in a wide array of genres—musical pit ensembles, formal events, and classic orchestras. A few northeastern Ohio musical venues include the Beck Center for the Arts, Western Reserve Playhouse, and Blank Canvas Theatre. Ryan has performed in master classes with Rachel Shapiro of the Aeolus Quartet, Ross Winter, Grace Park, Takako Masame, and Domenic Salerni among others.
Shayna Rhodes
Shayna earned her master’s degree in violin performance at Cleveland State University and her bachelor’s (cum laude) in violin performance from West Virginia University. She has an Associates degree in Early Childhood Education from the Cuyahoga Community College, and is certified in Musikgarten, an early childhood music education system.
Shayna has taught violin and viola for over 30 years and is a certified Suzuki instructor. She has held a range of music teaching positions, including Director of the Suzuki Strings Program at Cornerstone Music Conservatory in Los Angeles, instructor of string players in the Mentor High School Orchestra Program, and instructor of Musicianship and Music Appreciation classes at Cleveland State University. Shayna also has extensive experience in early childhood education in preschools and Montessori schools, which come together to shape her expertise as a music educator for young children. Every year she is a judge for the Music Educators National Conference and the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs.
Shayna began performing with orchestras at the age of 15 with the Gainesville Chamber Orchestra, Central Florida Symphony Orchestra, and Central Florida Philharmonic Orchestra. While in college she performed with the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Youngstown Symphony, Canton and Akron Symphony Orchestras, Ohio Valley Symphony, and Wheeling Symphony to name a few. While living in England she continued her performing career as a violinist and violist with the Cambridge Orchestra, K239 Chamber Orchestra, Peterborough Symphony, and Ely Sinfonia. She continues to perform as a violinist with Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestra.