Mrs. Lisa M. Deakins

Violin Teacher

Lisa Deakins

SAA Member

Contact

Mount Pleasant, SC
[javascript protected email address]
www.lisadeakins.com

Lisa Deakins is a violinist, fiddler, and registered Suzuki violin teacher living in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. She began playing the violin with the Suzuki method as a young child and is a versatile musician who enjoys performing and teaching across the United States. Lisa has earned the Certificate of Achievement from the Suzuki Association of the Americas, an award given to teachers that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to lifelong learning and excellence in their teaching. Her music has taken her to renowned stages including the Grand Ole Opry, the Crook & Chase television show, and Song of the Mountains.

Lisa’s love for music began at the age of four when she started Suzuki violin lessons with Carole Shoaf in Burlington, NC. She continued her music education at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, where she received a Bachelor of Music degree in Commercial Music Performance. Lisa also holds a Master of Music degree in Suzuki Violin Pedagogy and Music Education from East Carolina University.

While living in Nashville, Lisa worked professionally as a fiddle player and background vocalist for country music artists Pam Tillis and Whisperin’ Bill Anderson. She is very fortunate to have grown up in the Suzuki method as Nashville is largely a “play-by-ear” town! She has appeared in venues throughout the United States and Canada, including frequent performances on the Grand Ole Opry. Lisa has also performed with Charlie Daniels, Bobby Osborne, Chris Young, Little Jimmy Dickens, Marty Raybon, Jamey Johnson, and The Daughters of Bluegrass. Additionally, after moving to Mount Pleasant, Lisa founded the Gravel Road Acoustic Trio, whose unique blend of vocal harmony precision and creative song selection make them a popular choice for entertainment throughout the southeast. She is also a country/folk musician on staff at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL.

Lisa’s professional recordings include “Double Fiddle Time,” “Gravel Road,” and “Where We Belong,” with the Gravel Road Acoustic Trio. She can also be heard on the Daughters of Bluegrass CD titled “Bluegrass Bouquet,” for which she received an International Bluegrass Music Association Award for “Recorded Event of the Year.” Lisa holds the title of Fiddle Champion of the Coastal Carolina Fair Fiddling Contest and has placed multiple times in contests in various states.

Lisa is registered in the Suzuki Violin Method of teaching and is the owner of
Deakins Suzuki Strings. She enjoys teaching children of all ages in her home studio in Mount Pleasant, where they participate in weekly private lessons and group lessons. Lisa is a frequent guest clinician for fiddle and violin and has taught at Suzuki institutes and workshops across the country, including Stevens Point, WI, Los Angeles, CA, Orlando, St. Petersburg, and Miami, FL, Chicago, IL, Salt Lake City, UT, Augusta, GA, and Granville, OH.  Lisa is an active member of the Suzuki Association of the Americas and you may have seen her articles published in the American Suzuki Journal. She has also taken additional Suzuki coursework including “Musicality from the Beginning” and “Expecting Excellence at All Levels In the Suzuki Violin Student.”

Lisa’s students also study alternative fiddling styles as well as classical playing. She has compiled, arranged, and edited a series of music books for Suzuki students called “Fiddlin’ Favorites,” licensed by the International Suzuki Association. Lisa’s students have won fiddling scholarships and contests and have a passion for many genres of music. More information on Lisa’s books can be found by clicking here.

Lisa lives in Mt Pleasant with her husband, who is also a musician, and her young son. She is excited to embrace all three points of the Suzuki triangle: student, teacher, and now parent!

Click here to go to Lisa’s website.