Mary Ann Hughes recently moved to the Tampa area. She is playing cello with the Tampa Bay symphony. Before moving to the Tampa area, Mary was the principal cellist for the Virginia Beach Symphony Orchestra and played with various chamber groups. Before moving to Virginia Beach in 1996, Mary performed with orchestras and chamber groups in the Central Ohio area.
Mary received a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education and a Master’s degree in String Pedagogy from The Ohio State University. She served as the adjunct cello professor at Otterbein and Kenyon colleges in Ohio, as well as Tidewater Community College in Virginia.
Mary taught orchestra and strings in Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS) for 25 years and retired in June 2021. Since retiring, she served as the String Specialist for Norfolk Parks & Recreation’s Lakewood Center for Dance & Music; she was an interim orchestra teacher for Norfolk and Virginia Beach Schools; she started a new orchestra program for Norfolk Christian Schools; and, she had a large private lesson studio.
While at VBCPS, Mary elevated the orchestra program at Princess Anne H.S. and contributed to the growth of string education in VBCPS through curriculum writing and providing professional development for string teachers. She has led Music Workshops for the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program, IB Mid-Atlantic and the Midwest String Teachers Workshop at OSU. She is a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) and has scored assessments for NBCT, worked on revisions to NBCT music assessments and mentored NBCT candidates. In 2015, she was the Virginia ASTA’s Orchestra Director of the Year.
As the founder and director of MultiCelli, Strings on Fire, Virginia Beach Fiddlers and a regular faculty member for VBCPS Summer Strings program, Mary believes that young musicians should be exposed to exceptional music experiences and all genres of music. She has guest conducted and served as an adjudicator for orchestra events.
To inquire about cello lessons in Mary’s studio schedule, please CLICK HERE.