Noted by the Chicago Tribune for being “…especially deft at those dual actor/musician duties,” Suzanne Hannau (née Gillen, she/her) maintains an active career as a freelance performer and teacher in the Chicagoland area. She earned her BM(’11) and MM (’13) in Flute Performance from DePaul University, studying with Mary Stolper and Jennifer Clippert. Suzanne is passionate about combining different performance arts in a production and is always looking for opportunities to combine instrumental doubling with movement, acting, and singing.
In 2017 Suzanne joined Trade Winds Ensemble, a team of teaching artists dedicated to giving workshops and programs that explore music as a tool for social change. With Trade Winds she has given workshops locally in Chicago with RefugeeOne and The People’s Music School and internationally in Cap Haïtien, Haiti with CEMUCHCA Haiti. Most recently, Trade Winds Ensemble partnered with the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit, Michigan.
In addition to working with Trade Winds, Suzanne performs with Choice Music Chicago, 5th Wave Collective and Highland Park Strings. Suzanne has been on stage and in the pit orchestras for various theaters in the Chicago area, most notably in Court Theatre as an actor musician for THE DEAD (“Lily”) and SECRET GARDEN (“Robin”). She recently finished subbing as the flutist in THE MATCHBOX MAGIC FLUTE at The Goodman Theatre. As a singer, Suzanne can be heard at weddings throughout the Chicagoland area. She is the soprano section leader at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Old Town and the Assistant Director of Music at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Lincoln Park, where she directs the St. Vincent Ensemble.
Suzanne is an invigorating, challenging, and encouraging teacher. She teaches at the Music Institute of Chicago and in her private studio in Lincoln Park. She also runs a successful early childhood music program as a certified and licensed Musikgarten teacher. By celebrating individual milestones in student successes, she encourages her students of all ages to enjoy the actual process of learning, rather than to only focus on the results of practice.