We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dr. Ashley Finke a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Ashley, thanks for joining us today. What was one of the most important lessons you learned in school? Why did that lesson stick with you?

I was homeschooled from kindergarten through high school. My mom’s method of teaching was to customize learning for the student. My sister and I learn best via different methods. I preferred reading and writing, and my sister preferred listening and hands-on activities. While we both experienced the different forms of learning via reading and listening exercises and hands-on and writing applications, my mom allowed us to do the majority of our work via our preferred learning styles. The method of teaching my mom used for my sister and me for our schooling influenced how I teach my students. Not every person is the same or learns in the same way. I want each of my students to succeed and experience the best possible learning environment for him/her. As a private music instructor, I tailor my teaching for each student and use different activities, methods, and songs that best fit the student’s learning style and personal interests. I still have certain information, songs, and methods that each of my students learn aside from his/her personal interests and preferred learning styles in order to provide him/her with a well-rounded music learning experience to prepare him/her to be a successful musician.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I decided at 8 years old that I wanted to learn the violin. After 17 years, I have never once stopped playing or pursuing musical endeavors. I began piano lessons at 13 years old and self-learned basic guitar and cello over the years. I performed in many ensembles as a violinist and was considering a career as a performer in addition to teaching. Due to a wrist injury in 2016, I turned my focus to pursing music education and kept performing to a minimum for several years. My sister, Emily, and I established our music studio for private music lessons in 2012 and continue to operate it today. We have taught students from ages 5-adult to play violin, piano, guitar, and cello. I have always enjoyed teaching and have found it to be a very rewarding practice. I currently offer weekly, private lessons for students ages 7-adult for violin, piano, guitar, cello, and viola. On average, lessons are 25 minutes in length, students attend 18 lessons during each fall and spring semester, and each fall and spring semester culminates in a recital where the students perform songs they have learned and mastered during the semester. I feel that a defining factor of my studio is the personalization I provide for each student. Every student has unique capabilities and interests and, while I have basic requirements of information for students to learn in order to become fluent, knowledgeable, and skilled musicians, I want them to enjoy the experience and pursue the areas where they have interest. Though private lessons appear to add more cost, commitment, and time, it is well worth the investment as students will gain quality and valuable learning tailored to them individually.
The individual, educator, and performer I am today is due to many years of education from being homeschooled and earning undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees. While I was homeschooled, I received private music lessons and performed in a youth orchestra, in various ensembles with friends and family, and as a hired musician for events. These experiences allowed me to gain knowledge and skill as a musician and began building my knowledge base for teaching. While I had many performance opportunities and enjoyed performing, I did not envision myself solely being a performer though I was able to graduate in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in Music with a focus in violin performance from Thomas Edison State University.
After a wrist injury in 2016, I felt God calling me to pursue a different direction for my career. In the fall of 2016, I applied for and was accepted to Liberty University’s online degree for a Master of Arts in Music Education. For the next 2 years, my time was devoted to my studies while I also maintained a small number of students in my studio and occasionally performed in my area. I graduated in May of 2018 with my Master of Arts degree. In the summer of 2020, I felt God calling me again to pursue higher education. One week before the start of classes, I applied to and was accepted to Liberty University’s online degree for Doctor of Music Education. For the next year and a half, I devoted more time to my studies in addition to teaching my students and performing occasionally. I graduated with my Doctor of Music Eduction degree in May of 2022.
From my work during classes for the doctorate program, I began discovering a new area of interest in writing. In addition to teaching, I am pursing writing of academic literature and curricula for various levels of music learning. Through my own learning experiences, I have seen areas of music that tend to be overlooked in music education. I want to positively influence music learning for all individuals by bringing back into circulation those areas that have been overlooked in recent years. Whether teaching or writing, music education continues to be the center of my work.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

My pursuits have always been a result of God working in my life. Only when following His guidance have I been successful and able to meet the challenges presented to me. The most recent and trying situation occurred while pursuing my doctorate. One year after starting the doctorate program to the time I finished, I dealt with life threatening health issues. I had many doctor and emergency room visits and time in the hospital on top of keeping up with my studies. This time proved to be the hardest time in my life physically, mentally, and emotionally. I got through it all by God’s grace and the support and work of my family, especially my mom who helped me during this time when I was unable to do anything for myself including writing, at times. Even during this time, I never saw quitting as an option. Despite the difficulties, I feel that God rewarded my trust and faith in Him as I graduated in May of 2022 with a 4.0 GPA with my Doctor of Music Education degree.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Until 2016, I envisioned myself balancing a career of violin performance as part of an orchestra and teaching at my private studio. In 2016, I injured my wrist and was unable to play any instrument or perform every day activities with the injured hand for about 3 months. It was around this time that I reevaluated what I wanted to do as a career. For the next 2 years, I was unable to practice or perform at the level I had been prior to my injury. Any performing done was selective and was not very intense. Due to my injury and other circumstances at the time, I saw the uncertainties as God calling me down a different career path in music education. I had decided to pursue a graduate degree and was in search of the right institution and degree. In 2016, I applied and was accepted into Liberty University’s Master of Arts in Music Education program and graduated in May of 2018. This opportunity helped strengthen me as a music educator and gave me the opportunity to enhance the learning opportunities for my students while also setting me on a new career path. Since that time, performing has been kept to a minimum and has allowed me to focus my attention on teaching and writing in the form of academic literature and curricula.    

Contact Info:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SisterViolins
• Email: [email protected]

Image Credits
GradImages Amy Finke Emily Finke