Grace McKenzie
About
Grace McKenzie is an accomplished baroque violinist and versatile artist, recognized for her expertise in performance, pedagogy, and interdisciplinary collaboration. She holds a Performer Diploma in Baroque Violin and a Master of Music in Violin from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, as well as a Bachelor of Music with First-Class Honors from the University of Auckland. Grace has performed with renowned ensembles, including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Paducah Symphony, and Evansville Philharmonic. She has also held leadership roles as Associate Principal Second Violin with the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic and as a soloist with the IU Baroque Orchestra. Her chamber music experience includes performances with the Brandon Chamber Players, the IU Sonata Seminar, and international touring with the Felice Duo as a ROSL Arts Scholarship recipient.
In addition to her performance career, Grace is passionate about education and community engagement. She has worked with the Cheerful Heart Distance Teaching Lab and the Fairview Violin Project, bringing music education to underserved communities. Her dedication extends to arts administration, media production, and interdisciplinary projects, including commissioning new works and collaborating with artists across genres. She has participated in prestigious festivals such as Early Music America, the British Isles Music Festival, and Festival Del Lago in Mexico. With a disciplined yet creative approach, Grace continues to push artistic boundaries while remaining committed to both historical and contemporary performance, striving to connect audiences with music in meaningful and innovative ways.
Teaching Style
As an educator, my experience is hugely varied: teaching private lessons to students aged 6-60at the Lewis Eady Music School in Auckland, and serving as piano, violin and chamber music instructor at Rongatai High School in Wellington. Further afield in the United States, I have taught in classroom settings at Fairview Elementary School in Indiana, and online for the Cheerful Heart Mission, teaching students in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The demand of these experiences has created a teaching philosophy which is flexible and student-goal oriented.
I meet my students where they are at, and prioritize creating a curriculum and goals that most engage and benefit them. A productive lesson is one in which my student is excited by what they are learning, and feel comfortable being curious and asking questions.
Curriculum
- Suzuki Method: I began learning the violin at age 3 through the Suzuki method so am well acquainted! This method nurtures learning music through an aural lens, and follows a structure of technique and execution that has produced successful musicians for over a century.
- El Sistema: Internationally recognised, with 140 member organisations, and centred around the accessibility of music education. Further to this is a focus on the social and community impact of music making, welcoming students into a universal community of creative and resilient individuals.
- Other resources I commonly use: Mimi Zweig methodology, The Sassmannhaus Tradition, Christopher Norton Micro-Jazz series, and Royal Conservatory Violin Syllabus.
Credentials & Affiliations
EDUCATION
Indiana University Jacobs School of Music: Performer Diploma, Baroque Violin
- Ingrid Matthews
2024 -
IU Jacobs School of Music: Master of Music, Violin
- Grigory Kalinovsky
2022-2024
University of Auckland: Bachelor of Music with First Class Honors
- Stephen Larsen
2017-2020
PERFORMANCE
Professional freelance
Paducah Symphony, KY
Bach Cantata Project, Bloomington
Owensboro Symphony, IN
Richmond Symphony, IN
Evansville Philharmonic, IN
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra
Orchestra Wellington
Christchurch Symphony Orchestra
Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
Chamber Music
Brandon Chamber Players
- Guest Artist
Indiana University Sonata Seminar
- Bloomington IN, Brandon MB
ROSL Arts Scholarship NZ
- UK tour with Felice Duo
New Zealand String Quartet Fellowship ’Troubador’ Quartet
Professional contract
Columbus Indiana Philharmonic
- Associate Principal 2nd Violin
Louisville Master Chorale, KY
Training/tertiary
Orchestra de La Francophonie, Montréal
- Associate Concertmaster & Principal 2
Indiana University Baroque Orchestra
- Soloist, Concerto Competition winner
NZSO NYO, Co-concertmaster, Associate Concertmaster & section positions
Interdisciplinary Projects
Commissioned Daixuan Ai’s Ceremony for Earth at Bloomington Arts Alliance
Carrie Newcomer A Great Wild Mercy tour
APRA Silver Scroll Awards: Deva Mahal singing Troy Kingi’s All Ships Have Sailed
‘Pre-Show’ performance at Pussy Riot concert, Auckland NZ
Tim Bray Theatre Company performance of Vivaldi's Four Seasons
Festivals
Early Music America, Cleveland OH
British Isles Music Festival, UK
Festival Del Lago, Mexico
Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Scotland
Castleman Quartet Programme, New York
Adams Chamber Music Festival, New Zealand
‘Konzertbeitswochen’ Festival, Goslar Germany
International Akaroa Music Festival
Masterclasses
Sergey Malov
Rohan DeSilva
Stanley Ritchie
György Pauk
Anthony Marwood
Ioana Cristina Goicea
Ilya Gringolts
Elisabeth Kufferath
TEACHING
Cheerful Heart Distance Teaching and Learning Lab IU
- Music Education Mission: Loma de Cabrera, Dominican Republic
Fairview Violin Project, Bloomington, IN
Itinerant Violin, Piano and Chamber Music tutor at Rongatai College, Wellington
Lewis Eady Music School, Auckland (violin and piano private lessons)
Assistant Manager of Raroa Music Academy, Wellington
ARTS ADMINISTRATION
IU Jacobs String Academy Day Counsellor
African American Arts Institute IU
- Photographer, videographer and media assistant
JSOM Setup/Stage
Assistant at The Stringed Instrument Company, Auckland
COMPETITIONS AND AWARDS
Community Impact Grant, OECD
Joseph Nathan Garton Memorial Scholarship Award
IU Vivaldi Concerto Competition winner
University of Auckland Blues Award
Gisborne International Music Competition, Semi FInalist
UoA Concerto Competition Finalist
The Kate Edgar Educational Charitable Trust Award
Other Skills/Experience
Viola performance
Harpsichord tuning
- Pythagorean, well temperament, and quarter-comma meantone
Outward Bound Classic Course
- Anakiwa New Zealand
Round the Bays Half Marathon, Wellington
SwimWell Instructor for Wellington City Council
Wellington High School Introduction to Mirrorless Photography, Wellington
Cognitive and Social Psychology courses at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University, Wellington