Biography
Sophia Hsiao
Owner, Instructor
I graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and studied with Simin Ganatra of the Pacifica Quartet. Other musical influences include Jeri-Lou Zike and Joan Kwuon during my time at the Bowdoin International Music Festival. I have performed in a variety of settings including orchestral and chamber ensembles, weddings and engagement parties, and church events and conferences. My husband and I enjoy playing together for weddings as a violin and guitar duo. In 2012, I played on the Worship Team for the Urbana Student Missions Conference in St. Louis where 18,000 people were in attendance.
From 2009-2014, I worked for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship where I mentored college students who were majoring in music, art, theater, and film. I loved my time working with music students and journeying with them in their artistic pursuits. This began to fuel my desire to teach so that I could equip the next generation of student musicians.
In 2013, I began my private violin studio in Glenview then relocated to Arlington Heights in 2015 where I currently teach in my home minutes way from Mount Prospect, Elk Grove Village, and Schaumburg. I was a violin instructor at the Des Plaines School of Music from 2014-2017 where I taught over 40 students. I taught at Christian Liberty Academy from 2016-2018 and was a member of the Fox Valley Orchestra from 2017-2020. I am a member of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) and the Northwest Suburban Music Teachers Association (NWSMTA).
My husband and I have been married for twelve years and our daughter is three years old. In my spare time, I enjoy finding new activities to do with my daughter, going on bike rides, and baking desserts.
“Every student can learn how to play music when they are given sound instruction and a nurturing environment”
— Sophia Hsiao