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We are pleased to announce the selection of Mrs. Mallory Matson as the new Orchestra Director for NCSSM-Durham. Mrs. Matson is a passionate violist and string educator who is very excited to return to NCSSM-Durham as a faculty member. Since her graduation from NCSSM-Durham in 2014, she pursued her undergraduate studies at Emory University from 2014 to 2018 (BA Music Performance with Highest Honors; BA Chinese Language and Literature) and her graduate studies at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music from 2018 to 2021 (Master of Music in Viola Performance; Performer Diploma in Orchestral Studies). While at Emory University, she researched and defended her undergraduate thesis entitled “Creating New Spaces: Constructing and Performing Gender in Mandarin-Language Popular Music of the People’s Republic of China, Post 1997.” She also undertook a significant research project looking into German Lutheran hymnody, including traveling to Germany to investigate primary source hymnals from as early as the 16th century, and presenting her research to the Society for Christian Scholarship in Music. Mrs. Matson's current research interests include performance psychology, effective musical practice habits, and string pedagogy for students who deal with perfectionism. Most recently, she served as the string orchestra teacher at Saint Vincent Pallotti High School in Laurel, Maryland, where she also acted as a substitute violist with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and York Symphony Orchestra (York, PA). During her time in Maryland, she served as interim president of the Washington Archdiocesan Music Teachers’ Council, organizing the annual Honor Band and Honor Orchestra auditions and festival in 2024-25. She also taught as an adjunct faculty member at Howard Community College’s Music Institute, organizing and co-directing the first Dragons Strings summer camp for 8-17 year old string musicians. As a performer, Mrs. Matson enjoys performing in symphony orchestra settings, as well as her unique chamber music focuses. She has pursued extensive study of repertoire for viola and clarinet duet and viola, clarinet, and piano trio. With her husband, an organist, she is exploring the world of viola and organ repertoire and hopes to expand the field by commissioning new works for this duet. Outside of her teaching and performing careers, she enjoys spending time with her family and her pet bunny, watching Harry Potter movies, reading John Green’s books, and traveling. She has now visited approximately 30 countries and recently led educational student travel experiences in Japan in summer 2025 and in New York City with a performing arts focus in winter 2026.
We are pleased to announce the selection of Mrs. Mallory Matson as the new Orchestra Director for NCSSM-Durham. Mrs. Matson is a passionate violist and string educator who is very excited to return to NCSSM-Durham as a faculty member. Since her graduation from NCSSM-Durham in 2014, she pursued her undergraduate studies at Emory University from 2014 to 2018 (BA Music Performance with Highest Honors; BA Chinese Language and Literature) and her graduate studies at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music from 2018 to 2021 (Master of Music in Viola Performance; Performer Diploma in Orchestral Studies). While at Emory University, she researched and defended her undergraduate thesis entitled “Creating New Spaces: Constructing and Performing Gender in Mandarin-Language Popular Music of the People’s Republic of China, Post 1997.” She also undertook a significant research project looking into German Lutheran hymnody, including traveling to Germany to investigate primary source hymnals from as early as the 16th century, and presenting her research to the Society for Christian Scholarship in Music. Mrs. Matson's current research interests include performance psychology, effective musical practice habits, and string pedagogy for students who deal with perfectionism. Most recently, she served as the string orchestra teacher at Saint Vincent Pallotti High School in Laurel, Maryland, where she also acted as a substitute violist with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and York Symphony Orchestra (York, PA). During her time in Maryland, she served as interim president of the Washington Archdiocesan Music Teachers’ Council, organizing the annual Honor Band and Honor Orchestra auditions and festival in 2024-25. She also taught as an adjunct faculty member at Howard Community College’s Music Institute, organizing and co-directing the first Dragons Strings summer camp for 8-17 year old string musicians. As a performer, Mrs. Matson enjoys performing in symphony orchestra settings, as well as her unique chamber music focuses. She has pursued extensive study of repertoire for viola and clarinet duet and viola, clarinet, and piano trio. With her husband, an organist, she is exploring the world of viola and organ repertoire and hopes to expand the field by commissioning new works for this duet. Outside of her teaching and performing careers, she enjoys spending time with her family and her pet bunny, watching Harry Potter movies, reading John Green’s books, and traveling. She has now visited approximately 30 countries and recently led educational student travel experiences in Japan in summer 2025 and in New York City with a performing arts focus in winter 2026.
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