Elena Ryck
Elena Ryck is a violinist, music educator, and chamber musician from Fairport, NY. She is currently in her 15th year as a high school orchestra director and strings teacher, with past teaching experiences in the Greece and Victor Central School Districts. Presently, she is in her 6th year teaching orchestra at her alma mater, Fairport High School.
Elena began her violin studies at the age of 6 as a Suzuki student and then attended the Eastman Community Music School, where she earned a 6 year Preparatory Diploma in Violin and Music Theory. Elena, alongside her siblings, Stephen Ryck (cello) and Angela Ryck (violin), formed “The Ryck Trio.” Together they received formal chamber music coaching at ECMS and performed in numerous master classes and community events, including radio shows and local films.
Elena earned a Bachelor’s of Music Education Degree from Nazareth College of Rochester, where she was a member of the Nazareth College Symphony Orchestra. She was the 2007 Concerto Competition Winner and performed the first movement of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor. During her time at Nazareth College, Elena was manager and violinist in an honors string quartet, performing for collegiate events and local organizations. Nearly twenty years later, she is happily still performing with those very same string quartet members and dear friends, as a manager and violinist in “The Delmonico String Quartet.”
As a very proud alum of the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, Elena had her first international performances abroad in the RPYO’s Tour of Italy in 2004. Since then, she has been able to perform abroad in collaborative chamber music concerts and events in The Bahamas, Sweden, Ireland, as well as cities across the United States. Elena is currently a violinist in The Greater Rochester Women’s Philharmonic, The Center Stage Pops Orchestra, and has been a part of many local bands in Rochester. She is also active in the music ministry at St. Joseph’s Church in Penfield, NY.
Elena received a Master of Arts Degree in Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City in 2015. Since 2020, she has worked towards her Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Music Education at Boston University, College of Fine Arts, and is researching and writing her dissertation with a focus on the importance of personal connections made through orchestral experiences. Elena is honored to be a part of the ECMS Community again!