Xue Ding was selected as a presenter at the American Viola Society’s second annual Mid-Winter Teacher Potluck, a curated professional gathering that took place Sunday, February 15, via Zoom. This event brought together an elite roster of viola pedagogues from leading conservatories, universities, and professional orchestras across the United States and internationally.

Ding was selected alongside a distinguished lineup of presenters, including renowned performers and educators from institutions such as The Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, Baylor University, University of Florida, Virginia Commonwealth University, Liberty University, and major symphony orchestras including the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Alabama Symphony, and others. The 90-minute event, organized by the AVS Education Committee, exemplifies the Society’s commitment to advancing viola pedagogy through high-level professional exchange.

A Distinguished Lineup of Presenters

The roster of the presenters reflects the breadth and excellence of the viola teaching profession:

• Steven Tenenbom – Violist of the Orion String Quartet (1987–2024); Faculty, The Juilliard School and Curtis Institute of Music. Tenenbom has performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, collaborating with artists including Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma, and Emanuel Ax. His recordings have garnered multiple Grammy nominations.
• Dr. Braunwin Sheldrick – Associate Professor of Viola at Baylor University. Her career spans solo, chamber, and orchestral performance across Canada, the United States, Colombia, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and England. A dedicated advocate for Latin American repertoire, she has recorded multiple albums with pianist Andrés Gómez Bravo. She holds degrees from McGill University, Temple University, London’s Royal Academy of Music, and the Eastman School of Music.
• Lauren Burns Hodges – Associate Professor of Viola at the University of Florida. Described by American Record Guide as “a distinguished violist with a refined, mellow tone,” Hodges has performed and given masterclasses throughout the United States and abroad in Italy, Austria, France, and China. She has presented at national American Viola Society Festivals and the Primrose International Viola Competition.
• Helen Tuckey – Member of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra since 1982. A student of William Primrose, Tuckey completed postgraduate studies with Lillian Fuchs at the Manhattan School of Music. She has served as National President of the Australian Strings Association (AUSTA) and as an Australian Music Examinations Board examiner, authoring the Series 2 Viola Technical Book.
• Lucina Horner Cosby – Member of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra since 1998. A graduate of The Juilliard School, she studied with Robert Vernon at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Her orchestral career includes ten years with the Phoenix Symphony and performances with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, including two international tours.
• Dr. Luca Trombetta – Coordinator of String Studies and Professor of Viola at Liberty University. A native of Italy, he studied at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome and with Bruno Giuranna in Lugano. He has performed under conductors Riccardo Muti, Yuri Temirkanov, and Ennio Morricone, and collaborated with Yo-Yo Ma and Andrea Bocelli.
• Susanna Klein – Associate Professor of Music at Virginia Commonwealth University and Editor of The American Viola Society Journal. A noted innovator in technology-assisted practice, she is the author of the Practizma Practice Journal and creator of the iOS app Clipza. She previously served as principal second violin of the Richmond Symphony.

About Xue Ding

Xue Ding is a violist, scholar, and educator currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Stony Brook University, where she studies with Lawrence Dutton of the Emerson String Quartet and Matthew Lipman. She holds a Master of Music in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music, a Master of Music from the New England Conservatory, and a Bachelor of Music from Mannes College. Her principal teachers have included Karen Dreyfus, Craig Mumm, Patinka Kopec, Shmuel Katz, Dimitri Murrath, and Daniel Panner.

An award-winning scholar, Ding received second prize in the American Viola Society’s Dalton Research Paper Competition in 2023. Her research has been published in the Journal of the American Viola Society, including her award-winning paper “The French Influence in Charles Loeffler’s Two Rhapsodies for Mezzo-Soprano, Viola, and Piano” (Fall 2024) and “A Mirror of the Soul: The Viola in Arvo Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel” (Summer 2025). Her critical editions of the Stamitz Viola Concerto and the Telemann Viola Concerto—featuring her own cadenzas, embellishments, and lead-ins—have been published on Musicaneo, with accompanying research papers under peer review.

As a performer, Ding has appeared as soloist at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Le Frak Hall, and the Mozarteum Summer Academy in Salzburg. Her orchestral experience includes principal positions with the Stony Brook University Symphony Orchestra and Manhattan School of Music orchestras, as well as performances with the Aspen Festival Orchestra and Boston Civic Orchestra. She has participated in prestigious summer festivals including the Aspen Music Festival, Sarasota Music Festival, Mozarteum Summer Master Classes, Heifetz Summer Music Institute, and Bowdoin Music Festival.

Ding’s numerous competition accolades include first prize in the Claude Debussy Competition Paris, the International Shining Stars Competition, and the New York Classical Music Competition; gold prizes in the International Virtuoso Competition, Erik Satie International Music Competition, and European Classical Music Awards; and absolute first prize in the Vivaldi International Music Competition’s Category of Innovative Writing.

An experienced educator, Ding has served as Teaching Assistant for the Stony Brook University undergraduate orchestra and chamber music coach for outreach programs. She is currently on faculty at the Long Island Music Conservatory and previously taught at The Long Island Violin Shop. In summer 2024, she served on the viola, violin, and orchestra faculty at the Usdan Summer Camp for the Arts.

Ding has performed in masterclasses for an extraordinary roster of artists, including Karen Dreyfus, Thomas Riebl, Hariolf Schlichtig, Steve Tenenbom, Samuel Rhodes, Geraldine Walther, Carol Rodland, Jeffery Irvine, Martha Katz, Atar Arad, Ralph Kirshbaum, Veronika Hagen, Heidi Castleman, Victoria Chiang, Misha Amory, Robert Vernon, and members of the Emerson, Orion, and Juilliard String Quartets.

Xue Ding’s Presentation

Ding’s presentation, “Teaching Classical Cadenzas: A Historically-Informed Approach,” offered colleagues practical guidance on guiding students through the composition and execution of cadenzas in core Classical-period repertoire. Drawing from rigorous primary-source research—including Johann Joachim Quantz’s 1752 treatise On Playing the Flute and Mozart’s own piano concerto cadenzas—Ding demonstrated how teachers can help students build stylistically appropriate cadenzas using thematic material, sequences, and period-specific conventions.

“I was honored to present alongside such esteemed colleagues and to contribute to the ongoing conversation about historically-informed teaching,” Ding said following the event. “The level of discourse at this gathering reflects the AVS’s commitment to pedagogical excellence.”

Recording Now Available for AVS Members

For those unable to attend the live event, the complete session recording—including Ding’s presentation and all other teaching tips—is now available exclusively to American Viola Society members. AVS members can access the recording by logging in to the member area of the American Viola Society website.

Active AVS membership provides access to a comprehensive archive of professional resources, including recordings of past events, scholarly publications, and networking opportunities with the global viola community.

About the American Viola Society

Founded in 1971, the American Viola Society serves viola enthusiasts worldwide through publications, events, educational programs, and community building initiatives. The AVS is dedicated to promoting the viola and its repertoire, supporting viola research and pedagogy, and fostering connections among violists at all career stages.

Access the Recording

AVS members can access the Mid-Winter Teacher Potluck recording by visiting www.americanviolasociety.org and logging in to the member area.