Nora Willauer

Nora Willauer, D.M.A., is a Cleveland-based cellist and educator. She completed her doctoral studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music with Dr. Melissa Kraut and Mark Kosower. Nora’s culminating lecture recital explored the relationship between groove and classical cello pedagogy, and her work was awarded the Kaplow prize for uncommon creativity. Nora is a passionate teacher and has served on faculty at the University of Akron and at Interlochen Center for the Arts. Most recently, she has been building up her private teaching studio in Shaker Heights and Beachwood. Her new partnership with Agnew Performance Academy (a space curated by Cleveland Orchestra cellist Martha Baldwin) allows her to run weekly group classes and performance hours for young local cellists. Nora’s teaching focuses on developing excellent foundational cello technique through joyful, play-based learning. Nora also runs a virtual coaching program for advanced cellists looking for a health-oriented space to reinsure their playing. This program is called Resonance. When she’s not teaching, Nora performs with the Cleveland Pops, Canton Symphony Orchestra, and Trio BKW, a piano trio making its professional debut in 2026 at the Buffalo Chamber Music Society. Nora has worked as a teaching artist for DocSong for over ten years. Her favorite DocSong project was “Songs of #MeToo,” a project where she wrote songs with domestic violence survivors.