Laura Knight founded Knight Music Academy with the goal of providing the best quality music instruction in a relaxed and fun atmosphere. Laura has taught classical guitar to children and adults for more than 30 years and has over 20 years of fine arts management experience. She holds a B.M from DePaul University, and a M.M. from Northwestern University, she has completed all 9 levels of Suzuki guitar teacher training, and she is certified in the Orff music instruction method. Ms. Knight was the Guitar Area Coordinator for the 2006 Suzuki Association of the Americas Conference, and the Guitar Area Assistant Coordinator in the 2004 Conference. Laura regularly serves as a guest clinician at guitar workshops across the country, and produces annual guitar workshops for students in the Chicagoland area. In addition to teaching, Laura currently serves on the Board of the Chicago Classical Guitar Society and has performed as a professional classical guitarist for more than 30 years. Laura currently performs both as a classical guitar soloist and as a member of the Pedretti-Knight Duo. Her music is proudly featured on the instructional yoga CD Heart Offerings, and Parisian Reflections, a CD showcasing flute, guitar, and piano compositions by French composers.
Favorite solo pieces (classical guitar):
Adagio from Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquin Rodrigo- makes me cry every time I hear it
Usher Waltz by Nikita Koshkin
Asturias (Leyenda) by Isaac Albeniz
Favorite Recording artist for instrument (classical guitar):
Manuel Barrueco
Marcin Dylla
David Russell
Favorite orchestral works:
Symphony Nos. 7 & 9 by Ludwig van Beethoven
Finlandia by Jean Sibelius
Scheherazade by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Favorite pieces of music not for my instrument:
Violin Concerto by Samuel Barber
Lakmé (Flower Duet) by Leo Delibes
Au fond du temple saint (The Pearl Fisher’s Duet) by Georges Bizet
Music for Bedtime:
Clair de Lune by Claude Debussy
Julia Florida by Agustín Barrios
Canción de Cuna by Leo Brouwer