2022 NFMTA Teacher of the Year
Congratulations Debra Dickensheets!
Debra Ramsey Dickensheets was North Fulton Music Teachers Association’s 2020-2022 President. Under her leadership, with the assistance of her wondeful board members and committees, NFMTA was awarded “Chapter of the Year” at the 2021 State Conference at Piedmont University. NFMTA maintained a membership of over 80 teachers during the Covid- 19 pandemic and Deb hosted monthly Zoom meetings when meeting in person was not possible. Thinking outside the box, one meeting was even held outdoors. Fall Festival, Celebrate with Music and Local Audition events continued during her presidency, overcoming the challenges of Covid-19.
Georgia Music Teachers Association appointed Debra as Wellness Chairman for the state. She accepted this position, knowing that she would receive good advice from her husband, David, who is Medical Epidemiologist for the Northside Hospital. It turned out Deb would be diagnosed with breast cancer, receive treatment to become a survivor, and is now a strong advocate for early cancer screening.
Debra has a private teaching studio of approximately 20 students mostly of piano, but also of organ, harpsichord and digital keyboards. She received Top Music Teacher Award in 2020 and 2021 from Steinway Piano Galleries of Atlanta. She is the chairman of Alpharetta/Steinway Center for Piano Guild for which she is a member of the Hall of Fame and adjudicator. She is also co chairman of the Ocee chapter of the National Federation of Music Clubs.
Debra has been Director of Music/Organist since 2014 at Lutheran Church of the Ascension in Atlanta where she oversees a fine chamber music program. Her composition “Jubilate” for 9 handbells, written during the pandemic for socially distanced ringers, won 3rd place in a MuseScore competition.
A concert organist, Debra recently played on the historic house pipe organ in the Renaissance Room at Viscaya Museum in Miami. June 2022 she played on the L’Organo series at Piccolo Spoleto in Charleston that featured music of Florence Price, Suzanne Van Soldt and Atlanta based composer and cellist, Zac Lavender.
Debra’s career as a professional musician began at the age of 15 when she was hired by the US Marine Corps to be the organist and choir director for 3rd Recruit Training Battalion at the Protestant Chapel at Parris Island, SC. Groups of 1000 soldiers came in waves, 6 weeks at a time, for boot camp. These 18 year old men sang hymns from the Arm Forces Hymnal as well as some popular music of the day. On special occasions she would play the Hammond organ in the chapel with the Marine Corps Brass Band.
Debra’s piano teaching career began as an undergraduate student at Converse College in South Carolina. As a student she took piano pedagogy classes and taught in the precollege division of the music department. She has been teaching keyboards ever since. Organ pedagogy classes at Florida State University followed where she earned a master’s degree in organ performance. After graduation she worked briefly at Fox House of Music in Charleston, South Carolina as a piano and organ teacher before accepting a position as Director of Music and Organist at First Presbyterian Church of Hilton Head Island. There she built a private piano and organ teaching studio while training many choristers and handbell ringers of all ages in a full time position at the church.
After marriage to her physician husband David Dickensheets, MD, and moving to Rhode Island for him to continue his medical training at Brown University, she continued her education at the New England Conservatory simultaneously teaching in her private studio. She studied organ with Yuko Hayashi and improvisation with Bill Porter. At that time she also worked in Providence at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Grace Episcopal Church, Temple Emanuel (conservative Jewish congregation) and at Rhode Island College, directing choirs, solo playing and accompanying on the piano and organ.
In 1988 Debra and her husband moved to Gainesville, Florida where she continued her career as a teacher, accompanist and church musician. During this time she founded and was harpsichordist for the Alachua Consort, a chamber ensemble specializing in the music of the Baroque along with violinist, Annemieke Pronker-Coron and oboist, John Netardus. Alachua Consort was coached by Annemieke’s teacher, Jaap Schroeder, highly esteemed violinist from Amsterdam who was Concert Master of Christopher Hogwood’s Academy of Ancient Music. Deb accompanied the Willis Bodine Chorale with Orchestra and their Florida Tour with brass ensemble as organist. Deb also served on the board of directors for the Gainesville Symphony Orchestra.
Relocating to Alpharetta in 1998, Deb started her current studio in Kimball Farms and joined NFMTA. She has served as interim musician at Roswell Presbyterian Church, Johns Creek UMC, First Church of Christ Scientist Atlanta, and Saint Brigid Catholic Church. She was a piano accompanist for 7 years for grammy winning Gwinnett Young Singers while daughter, Caroline was a singer. In addition to teaching, Deb has enjoyed working in the Atlanta area as a freelance musician and tennis mom. Now an empty nester, she is happy to devote more time to her musical career and is honored to be nominated for NFMTA teacher of the year.
