TMA149 Members

Kailey Richards is an active performer and teacher in Toronto who specializes in historical performance practice. She holds a Doctorate in violin performance from the University of Toronto where she was a SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship recipient and studied under the tutelage of Julia Wedman and Jeanne Lamon. She is a graduate of the Master of Historical Performance Program at the University of Toronto and of the Bachelor of Music Program at Indiana University where she studied with Stanley Ritchie, was the recipient of a Premier Young Artist Award, and was named an Indiana University Founders Scholar.

She has performed with many ensembles including the Theatre of Early Music, Talisker Players, and Rezonance Baroque Ensemble, which released their debut album: James Oswald: Airs for the Seasons in May 2023 on the Leaf Music Label.

Kailey is extremely passionate about education and outreach. During her studies at Indiana University, she worked with Dr. Brenda Brenner and Mimi Zweig in the Indiana University String Academy (where Joshua Bell began his studies). She has combined what she has learned working in the string academy with the teaching philosophies of the Suzuki Institute and the El Sistema programs into her own teaching approach.

“Even into his 80s, my teacher, Stanley Ritchie, always said that the key to his success was his curiosity that propelled him to discover what new possibilities exist on the violin. Even Yo-Yo Ma has said: “I’m a curious kid, always going to the edge.” My goal as a teacher is to encourage this curiosity for knowledge and to give students the tools and techniques to find their own answers and voices on this beautiful instrument.” -Kailey