Nicolas Sterner

INSTRUCTOR

Nicolas Sterner is a cellist, conductor, educator, and writer. A native of Santa Barbara, California, Nicolas received a B.A. in music from Wheaton College, MA where he won both the college prize in music theory and the college concerto competition. Based in Cambridge, MA, Sterner leads an active career as a freelancer and organizer. When not performing, Nicolas maintains an active teaching studio of cello, violin, viola, and piano students. His contributed writings and music criticism are published in the Boston Musical Intelligencer. He is also the founder and collaborative director of the Chromos Collaborative, with whom he has organized concerts for chamber orchestra and chamber ensemble and currently serves on the Massachusetts Music Teacher Association (MMTA) Board as MAE Chair.

About his teaching: As teacher and student, the emphasis of our work together will be on the technical, physical, artistic, psychological, intellectual, and philosophical aspects of music-making. I care deeply about teaching music and the quality of results-driven learning I provide for all my students. I am a patient, analytical, and Socratic teacher; I pair these strengths alongside a sense of humor so that lessons are varied and never dull. My intention is to actively guide the progress each student will make in their study of music by developing the critical thinking necessary to read and perform classical music, as well as to foster an understanding of theory and foundational technique.