General Information

About Us

Violin Artistry is owned and operated by Nikki Routman. There are also two other teachers at the Violin Artistry Studio:

Kacie Unten, Violin
Colin Belisle, Violin & Viola
Click here for their biographies.



Dr. Nikki Routman, Violin

Violinist Dr. Nikki Routman enjoys a distinguished career as a teacher, performer and clinician. She is a member of the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra and World Symphony Orchestra, based in South Korea. Her collaborative chamber music and orchestral performances have taken her all across the globe, from Europe, the USA and Asia.

As an active music educator, she is in large demand -- both as a bilingual violin instructor and also as one of the few remaining to have studied directly with Dr. Shinichi Suzuki, the founder of the Suzuki Method. Prior to moving to Hawaii, Dr. Routman primarily taught at the college level. She served as a lead Graduate Assistant and Instructor at the University of Colorado at Boulder; also on the faculty at Conservatory Music in the Mountains Summer Festival in Durango, Colorado and Chaminade University in Hawaii.

On the orchestra stage, Dr. Routman has held positions in the Austin Symphony, Cheyenne Symphony, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, Fort Collins Symphony, Greeley Philharmonic and Temple Symphony. She has also performed with the Charleston (SC) Symphony, Boulder Philharmonic, Corpus Christi Symphony and Maui Pops Orchestra. She has participated in various summer festivals including Interlochen, the International Music Festival in Portugal, Colorado Music Festival, and was invited to perform at the  2005 Yehudi Menuhin Chamber Music Seminar in San Franscisco as the "Emerging String Quartet" Winner.

Dr. Routman began her musical studies at age one-and-a-half with William Starr in Colorado, observing lessons and practicing on a mini-fake violin made by a carpenter. Upon moving to Japan at age four, she studied with the renown Dr. Shinichi Suzuki and his apprentices at the Suzuki Talent Education Research Institute. Accepted into the Preparatory Division of the Toho Academy of Music in Tokyo by age eight, she was invited to study with violist Sumiko Edo as her youngest-ever pupil. Dr. Routman holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and Pre-Medicine from the University of Texas at Austin. She received her Master in Music and Doctorate in Music Arts (Violin Performance) degrees from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Her primary violin teachers include William Starr, Dr. Shinichi Suzuki, Sumiko Edo, John Arnold, Dr. Eugene Gratovich, Oswald Lehnert and Helen Brunner.

Dr. Routman continues to perform recitals and attend conferences regularly. As a registered instructor with the Suzuki Association of America (SAA), she is pursuing her goal of being a Suzuki Method teacher trainer.
She is an active member of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), the American String Teachers Association (ASTA), the Suzuki Association of Hawaii (SAH), the Suzuki Association of America (SAA), and Sigma Alpha Iota.


Photo by: Duane Padilla





Nikki's Teaching Philosophy

One of my primary objectives in teaching is to promote music as a vehicle for non-verbal and artistic expression. Through music (the voice, movement and especially the violin), I hope that students recognize their strengths, build confidence and feel the joy in music. Learning music should never be a chore so I strive to make it fun and rewarding.

My teaching curriculum is centered around many of my personal childhood learning experiences and hurdles that I had to overcome (and there were many indeed!). I hope to constructively impart this knowledge to my students so that they have the necessary tools to succeed, both artistically and intellectually. It is my duty to act not only as their instructor, but also as their mentor, role model and inspiration. 

In my experience as a teacher, the biggest lesson that I have learned has been that every child is unique, in that the same lesson plan is not suitable for everyone. I adapt my teaching method and lesson plan to fit the personality, learning style and mood (that day) of each and every individual student.
I firmly believe in establishing fundamental violin skills during the early stages of learning, in particular, posture and note-reading, as it is the foundation for technique and mastery of the instrument. Each student has different desires and experiences, so I ensure that lessons are tailored around their immediate and long-term goals. Whether my students are taking lessons to pursue a professional career or doing it as a hobby, I promote body/muscle awareness and proper posture for injury prevention, mental alertness and control.

I encourage students to be active in sports and other genres of music and art forms, and to perform regularly since develops self-expression and further strengthens skills such as memorization, anxiety, concentration, confidence and motivation. I strongly advocate student involvement in chamber music and orchestra at an early age of training because it is a useful tool in developing listening skills, intonation and sight-reading.