Getting to know your instructor:
Nancy Norton, known by his students as Nancy or Ms. Norton. She began her violin studies at age 5 in her mother’s Suzuki Method group class. “I attended many summer Suzuki Institutes growing up. I was a member of the school orchestra from 6th grade through high school. In my high school junior year I joined the youth orchestra. I also played in the Texas All-State orchestra for two years and attended Interlochen Music Camp”.
Ms. Norton knew that music would be a significant part of her life because “I grew up in a family where my mother taught violin and played professionally. All of my siblings played an instrument and I knew many musicians who were friends with my parents. My mother would take me to rehearsals with her and I remember going back stage with her to the San Antonio symphony. We listened to music all the time at home and attended performances. Music was just a natural part of my life. I got to a point where I couldn’t imagine life without listening to music.”
Ms. Norton GRADUATED FROM THE College of Music at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas where she earned a Bachelor of Music degree in violin Performance. While attending UNT she studied violin with Philip Lewis and Igor Borodin and viola with George Pappich. She was the winner of the concerto and Aria Competition at UNT which earned her a solo performance with the UNT symphony orchestra. She also attended SMU Summer Conservatory where she studied violin with Emmanuel Borok and Arkady Fomin. She has been teaching private violin and viola lessons to primary and secondary school students in many of the area communities such as Plano, flower Mound, Allen, Frisco, Garland, Denton and currently, in Rockwall. She uses the Suzuki method to each pre-school aged and other younger student. She enjoys working with students of all ages and levels.
Ms. Norton’s teaching philosophy is “practice a minimum of 5 days a week. Have a good attitude and a willingness to learn. Learning to play the violin well will require time, patience and consistent practice.”
