Dr. Valdine Ritchie Mishkin is an accomplished cellist and experienced teacher of all ages and levels. She holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts and a Masters of Music in Cello Performance from the prestigious Shepherd School of Music (Rice University, Houston, TX) as a student of Lynn Harrell and Norman Fischer, a Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance Honors from McGill University (Montreal, Quebec) as a student of Antonio Lysy, and Associate of Royal Conservatory of Toronto (A.R.C.T.) diplomas in Cello Performance and Piano Performance. Dr. Mishkin is a certified teacher in cello and piano by the Royal Conservatory of Toronto as well as a certified Suzuki cello teacher. She has participated in such prestigious festivals as Tanglewood, Orford, Banff Centre for the Arts, and Schleswig-Holstein Orchestra Academy. Before moving to Portland from Houston for her husband's job, Dr. Mishkin was an active teacher and Suzuki clinician. She maintained a large private studio of cello and piano students aged 4 through 68. Many of her students went on to study cello at the university level. She also kept up a busy performing career playing with Mercury Baroque, Houston Grand Opera, Houston Ballet and other ensembles in the Houston area.
Dr. Miriam English Ward is a skilled instructor of viola, violin and chamber music. She holds a Bachelors from the Manhattan School of Music, a Masters from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins, and a Doctorate from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. All her degrees are in Viola Performance. At UW Madison, she also studied theory pedagogy, won the Strelow Graduate Teaching Fellowship with the Pro Arte Quartet and completed a special project in Arts Administration. Having enjoyed the privilege of studies and master classes with many of the world’s best musicians (Kim Kashkashian, Leon Fleisher, Edgar Meyer, Pinchas Zucherman, Cynthia Phelps, Heidi Castleman, Karen Tuttle and the Takács Quartet) she is now focused on sharing that knowledge and passion with musicians and audiences throughout the Northwest. Dr. Ward’s students have successfully prepared for college entry, festival scholarships, and most importantly a rich enjoyment of music both as performers and engaged listeners. As a freelance performer, Dr. Ward plays with the area's finest orchestras and ensembles, including the Oregon Symphony, Portland Opera, Eugene Symphony, Soundwaves Music Festival in Lincoln City and Festival Amadeus in Kalispell, Montana. In addition to Rose City Music Academy, she teaches viola and violin at Lewis & Clark College, and Multnomah University, performs in the eclectic viola-piano duo Nocturna and serves as president of the Oregon Viola Society.
