Michael Potter-Schneider is an active performer and teacher in Northeast Ohio and is equally comfortable on the viola and violin. Potter-Schneider is constantly looking for ways to bring music alive by collaborating with local music organizations, chamber ensembles, and orchestras. He has appeared in concerts throughout the United States, Italy, and Japan. In addition to his live performances, Potter-Schneider can be heard on various recordings including O Emmanuel, by the Fifth House Ensemble, which debuted at number one on the Billboard Top 100 Chart in the Traditional Classical Albums category.

 

Potter-Schneider teaches both viola and violin students at several schools in the NE Ohio area including the Akron Music Institute, the Conservatory of Music at Hudson Montessori School. Utilizing the Suzuki Method, Traditional Classical education, and a diverse musical background, Potter-Schneider’s students develop a strong understanding of all aspects of their instruments. Potter-Schneider formerly taught at Carthage College and the Chicago Center for Music Education, before relocating to Cleveland.  

 

Community Outreach has played a key role in Potter-Schneider’s career. As the Program Director for Sharing Notes, a Chicago based non-profit organization that brought live music to hospitals, Potter-Schneider coordinated nearly one hundred performances a year. He was responsible for training over fifty musicians in the organization, expanding the programming to include five new hospitals, and successfully transitioning all programming to a virtual model in 2020. Potter-Schneider quickly became the public face of the organization during his 7-year tenure. Potter-Schneider is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music and Chicago College of Performing Arts and lives in Pepper Pike, OH with his wife and two Harrier puppies.

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