About Nancy Helene Ackerman

Music has been an important part of Nancy’s life from her early childhood. Growing up in a musical family, her mother played flute, her father was a percussionist, and many of her brothers and sisters studied piano or played a variety of other instruments. When she wanted to learn to play the flute like her mom, the school told her parents there were “too many” flutes that year and they encouraged her to start the clarinet. Though a bit reluctant at first, she soon fell in love with the clarinet. In high school she had the opportunity to start lessons on both the flute and the saxophone, and she has been playing and teaching all three instruments ever since.

She received her B.S. degree in Music Education at Nazareth College of Rochester, where she studied with Stanley Gaulke and during her junior year abroad in Rennes, France, she studied with Charles Rouault. Following her graduation, she began teaching private clarinet, flute, and saxophone lessons at the Finger Lakes Community College.  And with a group of fellow clarinetists, she helped form the Clarinet Collection, a clarinet ensemble that is still performing together in the Rochester area.

Moving to Boston, Nancy did her graduate work at Boston University where she studied clarinet with Michael Webster and earned her M.M. degree in Woodwind Performance.

As a performer, Nancy enjoys collaborating with her fellow musicians especially in chamber music settings.

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