Lucinda E. Ali-Landing, (formerly Lucinda Holland) violinist and founder of the Hyde Park Suzuki Institute, began her studies at age six, with her father, James Holland, a violinist/violist. She began with Suzuki studies, which was relatively still new in North America in the early 1970’s. After studying for one year with her father, she then studied with Sarah Deneen and later Donna Ross.

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​Anokyewaa Oppong Wadie is an experienced violinist of almost 12 years. She began her journey in violin studies after being inspired by Grammy-award- winning jazz and classical violinist Regina Carter- about one year later she began her lesson in classical violin. Although Anokyewaa comes from a musical family, especially a pianist, Anokyewaa was the first violinist in her family and was taught classical violin at the age of nine. Specifically the Suzuki method. As the years would go by Anokyewaa grew a deep passion for the violin and began taking lessons from some of the best violinists in the Midwest and in the Chicago area.

Her teachers spanned from Julia Sizer of the University of Chicago Symphony to Lucinda Ali Landing of Chicago Sinfonietta and Suzanne Rickman of Illinois Philharmonic. After all this experience Anokyewaa decided to take violin studies as her major at Northeastern Illinois University where she is currently a senior of violin performance violin/viola teacher, performer, and pedagogue Jaime Gorgojo. As a daughter of first-generation immigrants forms Jamaica and Ghana, Anokyewaa has always felt the importance to work hard, having goals, and most of all achieving milestones in her career.

French born cellist MARTINE BENMANN is a performer and a teacher. After studies at the Strasbourg Conservatoire de Musique, France, with Jean Deplace, the Folkwang Musikhochschule in Essen, Germany, with Maria Kliegel, and the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, Russia, with Natalia Shakhovskaya, she moved to Chicago where she received a Master Degree and an Artist Diploma in Cello Performance from Roosevelt University, in the class of Kim Scholes.

She has served as principal cellist in various symphonic and chamber groups, including the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Lincolnwood Chamber Orchestra, Ars Musica Chicago and Bach and Beyond Ensemble. As a chamber musician Martine has played concerts in France, Germany, Russia and the US. She regularly performs in private and public venues such as in libraries and at universities in Chicago and beyond. Martine is a Landowska Society Artist.

As a teacher, Martine built the Suzuki Cello Program at Sherwood Community Music (1996-2019)where she also created “String Fest”, a festival for string players in the Chicago area. For a decade she was the head of the String Department at Sherwood. Currently she teaches with the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative (CMPI),the Hyde Park Suzuki Institute (HPSI), and also holds private studios in Hyde Park and Albany Park.

Nia-Imara Barberousse, an HPSI Alumni, is a classical cellist and Chicago native. As a child, she was a student of Martine Benman and a member of the Hyde Park Suzuki Scholars Quartet, where they toured through the Chicagoland area. Nia graduated from the Interlochen Arts Academy where she studied with Crispin Campbell. She completed her undergraduate degree in Cello Performance at the University of Toronto under the instruction of Shauna Rolston-Shaw. Now that Nia has returned to Chicago, she greatly enjoys teaching at her childhood music school (HPSI) and performing throughout her hometown of Chicago.

Matea Hernandez is a dedicated violinist and educator with a passion for making classical music more inclusive. She began playing the violin at age six through a Chicago Public Schools music program and grew up in an artistic community surrounded by poets, painters, and musicians. Her early exposure to the arts shaped her commitment to both performance and teaching. She has studied with esteemed violin instructors, including Yang Liu, James Sanders, Hye-Sun Lee, and her longtime mentors Yvonne Davila Cortes and Lucinda Ali-Landing. She has also received chamber music coaching from Jessie Montgomery and members of the Catalyst Quartet. As a performer, Matea has appeared on numerous stages with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Sphinx Performance Academy, including a performance last year in Chicago. She has also had the unique opportunity to perform at Legends with Buddy Guy, who signed her early 20th-century French violin. Matea is currently pursuing a degree in Violin Performance and Pedagogy at VanderCook College of Music, where she was awarded multiple scholarships for her studies. Since 2023, she has been an instructor with One City Strings and Hyde Park Suzuki, working to create an engaging and accessible learning environment. Through both performance and education, she is committed to fostering diversity in classical music and inspiring the next generation of musicians.

Caitlyn Vos has been playing cello since she was eight years old.  Growing up, she studied under Holly Stangland in the Chicago suburbs.  She now performs with the Chicagoland Pops Orchestra under conductor John Apple.  While being classically trained since elementary school, Caitlyn has found a passion in musical theater orchestras.  She is a member of Magical Starlight Theatre (Naperville), Little Mountain Community Theater (Lemont), Aurora Central Catholic High School (Aurora), and Naperville Central High School (Naperville), performing 6 shows to date.  Starting in 2023, Caitlyn began her studies in Architectural Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology and has found a second home minoring in music at VanderCook College of Music, under the leadership of Yvonne Davila Cortes.  It has been incredibly important for her to continue growing her knowledge of the cello, and has also started playing violin, as of January 2025.  She is eager to help foster the community that Hyde Park Suzuki has built and greatly enjoys bringing music to the next generations.