WHO WE ARE

If you are an independent music teacher in Chicago, then the Chicago Area Music Teachers Association (CAMTA) is for you!

CAMTA exists to serve the needs of independent music teachers of all instruments, their students, and parents in the Chicagoland area. Our organization aims to promote high standards of teaching, performance, and professionalism in the music community.

CAMTA is a direct descendant of Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), which was founded in 1876. CAMTA is also an affiliate of the Illinois State Music Teachers Association (ISMTA).

We run a private group on Facebook that members are welcome to join. Check it out often for the latest news regarding CAMTA events and other things! Contact an admin to request to join (your CAMTA membership must be current).

Also, we now have a CAMTA Programs YouTube channel where members can rewatch or catch up on presentations. Please stay tuned as an announcement will be made in our Newsletter as well as our Facebook group.

Join us for our members’ meetings, held on the 2nd Friday of every month (September through June). This year, meetings will be held at PianoForte Chicago, except for September, December, January, February, and March, which will be held over Zoom. The Zoom meeting ID number and passcodes are published in the CAMTA Newsletters and on the CAMTA private group on Facebook. We hope to see you there!

 2025 CAMTA MEMBER OF THE YEAR

Aubrey Faith-Slaker

Aubrey Faith-Slaker is a Suzuki Piano Teacher Trainer and Nationally Certified Teacher of Music with over 25 years of experience teaching across the U.S. and Latin America. Based in Chicago and Oaxaca, she offers a holistic, bilingual approach to piano instruction that fosters emotional growth, cross-cultural understanding, and meaningful engagement with the learning process.

Her writing appears in the American Suzuki Journal, and she presents regularly on topics such as motivation, teacher support, and mindfulness in music education. She is actively involved with the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy and her local MTNA chapter, and participates in a small performance group of teachers and musicians focused on learning, connection, and shared artistry.

Aubrey holds a Master’s in Piano Performance and Pedagogy (with Music Therapy studies) from SMU, and dual Bachelor’s degrees in Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Illinois. She continues to explore music’s role in resilience, identity, and connection.

In Memoriam:

Hannah Voigt, August 14, 1937 - March 7, 2025

Laura Voigt, Hannah's daughter, asked me to share this sad news with you.  Hannah was loved by so many and she especially loved CAMTA.  In 2021 she was awarded ISMTA Teacher of the Year.  Here is her bio as it appeared in the 2021 ISMTA conference booklet:

Hannah Voigt, keyboard collaborator, vocal coach, and organist teaches piano in River Forest, Illinois.  She holds a B.S. from Crane and an M.M. from Eastman, subsequently serving on the faculties of both schools upon graduation.  She also spent a summer in France studying with Nadia Boulanger, and Robert and Jean Casadesus.  In Chicago after 1963, Hannah joined the CSO Chorus where she was selected by Margaret Hillis to teach theory to her singers.  At piano pedagogy workshops fellow teachers introduced her to Chicago Area Music Teachers Association, its monthly programs, and its "Syllabus" examinations. She has been a promoter of Syllabus ever since, not only serving for decades as its coordinator for CAMTA but contributing to the replacement of the old "Syllabus" curriculum with the new "Achievement in Music" program.  She created many of the harmonizations in the current curriculum.  Most of her students are graduates of the AIM program.