Originally from Dallas, TX, Karen Huffman began her music training on the piano with Cathy Hargrave (student of Dr Shinichi Suzuki and Dr Haruko Kataoka). She continued studying piano through high school and college where she minored in Piano Performance. She went on to obtain her Masters in Music Education - Piano Pedagogy from Southern Methodist University while apprenticing in Suzuki Teacher Training with her childhood teacher, Cathy Hargrave. Her training now also includes study with noted Suzuki Teacher Trainers Rae Kate Shen and Gail Lange. She has raveled three times to Matsumoto, Japan to train at Dr Suzuki's Talent Education School.
Karen Huffman ran a full piano studio in Dallas, TX for 6 years. She has also been on the faculty of the Las Vegas Suzuki Institute, the Suzuki Piano Resource Group's 5 Piano and Chamber Workshop, Music Together Dallas and Oregon Suzuki Institute. After 6 years of teaching in Dallas, TX, Mrs. Huffman moved to Portland, OR in 2014 and opened up a new piano studio. She brings extensive Suzuki training and experience to her teaching.
In an effort to extend her teaching in the Suzuki method to students of ALL ages, Ms. Huffman has now completed extensive training in Suzuki Early Childhood Education (SECE) with founders Dorothy and Sharon Jones and friend and mentor Danette Schuh. She has now been teaching SECE classes for 8 years.
Mrs. Huffman is an active member of the Oregon Suzuki Association, Suzuki Associations of the Americas and the Oregon Music Teacher's Association.