Dr. Stephen Sims holds a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in performance and pedagogy from the University of Iowa (where he won the 1995 Pelzer Fellowship Award in performance), a Master’s Degree in performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music (where he was awarded the Jerome Gross Memorial Prize in violin and the Alumni Association Valedictory Prize), and a Bachelor’s Degree in performance from the University of Illinois.  He has also attended Meadowmount and ENCORE School for Strings, and participated in the Spoleto festival orchestra.  His principal teachers include Leopold LaFosse, Linda Cerone, David Russell, David Updegraff, Catherine Tait, Sergiu Luca, and Barbara Jackson.  

Sims grew up in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and began his violin studies in fourth grade with Dr. Barbara Jackson, Professor Emeritus at The University of Arkansas, with whom he studied until college.  While in high school, he joined the North Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, serving as Assistant Concertmaster his junior year.  An orchestral musician for many years, Sims served as Concertmaster of the Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra from 1988-94, and as Assistant Principal Violin with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra from 1998-2002.  Sims has performed as soloist with orchestra on concertos and shorter works by Beethoven, Berwald, Dvorak, Saint-Saens, Vivaldi, Mozart, and Bach.  He is also a frequent recitalist, performing throughout the United States and in Ireland.

Sims currently teaches violin at Denison University and at the Cleveland Institute of Music.  He previously held teaching positions at the University of Memphis Community Music School, the Preucil School of Music in Iowa City, and the Cedar Rapids Symphony School of Music.  His students have won concerto competitions, served as concertmasters for All-State and national youth orchestras, and continued on to successful careers in music.