Margaret Lou Rehder is a native of Winston-Salem, NC. Her early studies with the violin were with her mother, Minnie Lou Raper, and with Mr. Eugene Jacobowsky. She graduated R.J. Reynolds High School and after attending Butler University in Indiana, and Salem College in Winston-Salem, she completed her undergraduate work at Meredith College in Raleigh where she earned a Bachelor of Music degree in violin performance. In 1979, Margaret was selected by audition to become a member of the Winston-Salem/Piedmont Triad Symphony where she has served as a second violinist, a first violinist, and currently is the assistant principal second violinist. Margaret earned the necessary college credits at UNCG to obtain her NC teaching license and taught full time with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County schools as a strings teacher from 1984 until her retirement in 2020. Her orchestras have consistently won excellent and superior ratings at NC State Orchestra Contests and regional competitions. She has served as orchestra director at many WSFCS middle and high schools, spending the last half of her career at Wiley Middle School and R.J. Reynolds High School. She has directed the WS Youth Philharmonic since 1998. She taught violin and orchestra at Salem college. Margaret has developed a teaching aid for the violin called “FingerTips.” In 1995, Margaret completed graduate work at the North Carolina School of the Arts and received a Masters degree in violin performance. Margaret was chosen to be the “Teacher of the Year” at Wiley Middle School for the 2002-2003 school year. She has been an active member of American Strings Teachers Association and the NC Music Educator’s conference. She has been chosen by her peers to be the WSFC orchestra teacher of the year twice and the Western Region Repertory Orchestra Director for 2005. In 2011, Margaret established the Winston-Salem Civic Orchestra, a community orchestra originally based at Reynolds High School.

Margaret was awarded the Winston-Salem Symphony director’s award by Robert Moody for the year of 2017-2018. Margaret has twice met the requirements to be a National Board-Certified Orchestra Teacher. In November of 2022, Margaret was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the North Carolina Music Educators Association.