Andrea Priester Houde

About Andrea

Andrea Priester Houde is an American violist whose genuine love and dedication to her craft can be seen in performances around the world and in the unique environment of her teaching studio. Houde is Associate Professor of Viola and String Area Coordinator at West Virginia University. She serves on the artist faculty of the Interlochen Arts Camp and is a board member of the American Viola Society.

Houde has performed as soloist, chamber musician, and in orchestras in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia. She has recorded for the Delos, Parma, and Albany record labels. Her solo album, The American Viola, features early to contemporary American works for the viola, including the historic world premiere of the first American viola composition.

Houde has a zeal for teaching and pedagogy that equals that of her performances. She has served on the faculties of the University of Delaware, Orfeo Music Festival (Italy), Endless Mountain Music Festival, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and the Master Players Festival. She has given performances, presentations, and masterclasses on five continents at International Viola Congresses, American Viola Society Festivals, American String Teachers Association National Conferences, and at many universities across the US and around the world. She has adjudicated both nationally and internationally, including national MTNA and AVS competitions, the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival Competition, and as a first-round judge for the International Primrose Viola Competition.

Studies were at the University of Memphis with Leonard Schranze and at the Peabody Conservatory with Victoria Chiang. Other teachers include Heidi Castleman, Jeffrey Irvine, Mark Jackobs, and David Holland. Houde lives in Morgantown, West Virginia, with her horn-playing husband Albert and their four children.

Students accomplish the highest successes when they feel safe enough to, first, make mistakes. I work to create supportive environments where we will face the biggest challenges together step-by-step.