Wendy Tangen-Foster is a Suzuki violin teacher with over 25 years of experience, based in North Portland, Oregon. She teaches both in-person and remote students from her home studio and is delighted to teach with Suzuki Stumptown, a vibrant NE-Portland Suzuki music program offering weekly group classes and infant and toddler SECE classes (suzukistumptown.com). A dedicated leader in the Suzuki community, Wendy served as president of the Suzuki Association of Minnesota and directed the Education for Happiness Virtual Suzuki Institute from 2020–2024 in partnership Gabe Kitayama-Bolkosky.
Wendy has taught at the Greater Washington, American, Intermountain, and Ozark Suzuki Institutes and has been invited as a guest clinician at events across Oregon, Delaware, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, and Texas. Her students have earned top chairs in youth symphonies and All-State Orchestras, and her graduates have received scholarships to St. Olaf College, Augsburg College, Lawrence University, Luther College, and the University of Minnesota.
She began her Suzuki journey as a five-year-old violinist and started teacher training at 15, taking her first unit with Craig Timmerman. She apprenticed under LeRoy Bauer and Linda Wharton at Giant Steps School in Moscow, Idaho, and taught group classes at Palouse Suzuki Strings, serving families in both Moscow and Pullman, Washington. Wendy has registered training in all 10 Suzuki violin books and has studied with distinguished trainers including Ronda Cole, Edmund Sprunger, Nancy Lokken, Ann Montzka-Smelser, David Strom, Charles Krigbaum, Daina Volodka Staggs, and Allen Lieb. She has completed both Violin Practicum and Suzuki Principles in Action and recently began Suzuki Early Childhood Education (SECE) training with Danette Warren. Wendy is currently working toward Suzuki Teacher Trainer certification.
In parallel with her Suzuki training, Wendy explored other musical traditions that continue to inform her teaching. While attending the Lionel Hampton School of Music, she developed a love of jazz and improvisation, later studying with jazz violinist Randy Sabien and performing with his swing band Rhythm and Bows. She spent nearly a decade performing Argentine tango with Minneapolis-based Rogue Tango and was honored with the Tango Treasure Award from the Tango Society of Minnesota in 2023. She continues to collaborate with Rogue Tango during visits to the Twin Cities and integrates improvisation, jazz, and tango into her Suzuki teaching.
Now based in Portland, Wendy’s days are filled with music, community, and parenting her toddler son Maceo (named after saxophonist Maceo Parker), who is thriving in SECE classes at Stumptown. She loves time outdoors with other families, finding creative ways to support Maceo’s routines, and making music with her partner Django Amerson, a multi-instrumentalist, guitarist, and Irish fiddler.