Piano Faculty Bobby Avey Jazz Piano See Bio Victor Dizon Traditional and Suzuki Piano See Bio Christina Ford Traditional and Suzuki Piano See Bio Ming-Fung Fung Traditional and Suzuki Piano See Bio Matthew Graybil Piano See Bio Peggy Lee Piano See Bio Pablo Mayor Latin Jazz and Saturday Music Project Faculty See Bio Lyuba Mayzus Piano See Bio Zach Mo Piano See Bio Angelica Olstad Piano See Bio Bruce Potterton Piano See Bio Dina Pruzhansky Piano See Bio Milagros Ramos Piano See Bio Bob Rodriguez Jazz Piano See Bio Laura Sharpe Piano See Bio Christine Yoon Piano See Bio Theory Department Pablo Mayor Music Theory and Composition See Bio Bruce Potterton Theory See Bio Bob Rodriguez Jazz Theory See Bio Matt Silberman Music Theory See Bio David Steinberg Music Technology See Bio Diane Taublieb Theory and Music History See Bio

Strings Faculty Hilary Castle Suzuki/Traditional Violin See Bio Isabel Fairbanks Traditional and Suzuki Cello See Bio Ashley Jackson Harp See Bio Whitney Lee Traditional and Suzuki Violin See Bio Andrea Lee Cello; Saturday Music Project Faculty See Bio   Sean Satin Guitar See Bio Corinne Ramey Group Violin; Saturday Music Project Faculty See Bio Kerrick Sasaki Traditional and Suzuki Violin and Viola See Bio Joanna Sirlin Smulakowski Traditional and Suzuki Violin and Viola See Bio Abigail Wilensky Traditional and Suzuki Violin See Bio   Voice Faculty Alison Davy Director, Turtle Bay Music School Community Chorus and Teen Vocal Worshop See Bio Renee Heitmann Voice See Bio Laura Kay Soprano See Bio Sy Johnson Director of TBMS' "The American Song Book" Class See Bio Gene Rohrer Vocal Accompanist and Accompanist for TBMS Community Chorus See Bio Matt Tully Voice See Bio Kathleen Weber Soprano See Bio Steven Caldicott Wilson Tenor See Bio

Winds, Brass, and Percussion Faculty Nick Birmelin Brazilian Percussion, Beginning Drumset, Tuneful Sequence, World of Music and Percussion See Bio Matthew Silberman Group Clarinet/Saxophone; Saturday Music Project Faculty See Bio Jeffrey Missal Trumpet See Bio Matt Garrity Jazz Drums See Bio Jai-Yi He Harmonica (Chromatic & Diatonic) See Bio Javier Oviedo Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet, Oboe, Recorder See Bio Anna Povich de Mayor Flute See Bio Diane Taublieb Flute See Bio Early Childhood Department Faculty Deborah Auer Tuneful/ Orff Schulwerk Instruction See Bio Nick Birmelin Brazilian Percussion, Beginning Drumset, Tuneful Sequence, World of Music and Percussion See Bio Terry Cade Tuneful/Orff Schulwerk Instruction See Bio Lyuba Mayzus Tuneful/ Orff Schulwerk Instruction See Bio Patti Onorato Tuneful/ Orff Schulwerk Instruction, Early Childhood Coordinator See Bio   Movement Faculty Melinda Logan Dance See Bio Jillian MacNamara Yoga See Bio

To register for all instruments and voice:

Katie Mazzari (212) 753-8811, x 21 or katie@tbms.org

To register for our Early Childhood Music Programs:

Patti Onorato (212) 753-8811, x 14or patti@tbms.org

Piano Faculty

Bobby Avey, Jazz Piano

Praised by The New Yorker as, “A young pianist of invention and refinement,” Bobby Avey has established himself as an emerging star in the jazz community.  Avey recently won the 2011 Thelonious Monk Competition for composition.  Additionally he was awarded the 2011 Chamber Music America New Jazz Works: Commissioning and Ensemble Development grant, funded through the generosity of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.  A New Face, Avey’s 2010 debut record as a leader, has received wide acclaim, lauded by the NY Times as “A promising debut.”  Avey graduated summa cum laude from Purchase Conservatory of Music in 2007. (Back to top)

Victor Dizon, Traditional and Suzuki Piano

Victor received a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of the Philippines and a Master of Music degree from CUNY-Hunter. He has studies with Herminia Hernandez, Carmencita Guanzon Arambulo, President of the Philippine Suzuki Association, and Edna Golandsky. Victor received his Suzuki Certification from the University of Wisconsin under the instruction of teacher-trainer Yasuko Joichi. (Back to top)

Christina Ford, Traditional and Suzuki Piano

Christina received her Bachelor of Music degree from Michigan State University. She has studied with Dai-Uk Lee, Yong-hi Moon and Deborah Moriarty. Christina has served as an accompanist at Adrian College, Michigan, Michigan State University, and Queens Community College, NY. She performs locally with a NYC violinist and recently composed music for Disney Talking Books. Armena Marderosian trained Christina in the Suzuki method in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She completed additional studies with Edna Golandsky at The Taubman Institute. (Back to top)

Peggy Lee, Piano

Miss Peggy Lee, a recent graduate from Manhattan School of Music with a Masters degree in Piano Performance, is honored to join the faculty at Turtle Bay Music School. A native from Taiwan, also a citizen of Canada, and now residing in New York City, Miss Lee is grateful for all the cultural influences that she has received from moving to different places over the years. She differentiates herself from other classically trained pianists by performing a wide range of styles, including tangos, jazz tune arrangements, and world modern music. She is also an advocate for being a ‘pianist for all occasions’. She focuses her energy on developing her students to have the confidence, skill, and repertoire to perform at family gatherings, holiday occasions, and special celebrations in addition to formal performing opportunities. She encourages her students to make playing piano as real, as wonderful, and as practical, as it can be. (Back to top)

Ming-Fung Fung, Traditional and Suzuki Piano

Ming-Fung received her Bachelor's of Music and her Masters of Music from the Manhattan School of Music. She has studied piano with Zenon Fishbein, Raymond Lewenthal, and German Diez. She holds a Suzuki certification from School for Strings and is a faculty member at the Hoff-Barthelson School for Strings. (Back to top)

Matthew Graybil, Piano

Praised by the Southampton Press as "hypnotic and compelling," American pianist Matthew Graybil has performed as a recitalist, concert soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States, Canada and France. He made his orchestral debut at age 14 with Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 and has subsequently performed with the Fort Worth Symphony and the National Chamber Players.

Highlights of Graybil’s solo career include recitals in many of the world’s music capitals, including Baltimore, New York, Paris, Philadelphia, Toronto and Washington DC in venues such as Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center and Lincoln Center. In addition, Graybil is also an avid chamber musician, with over 100 performances to his credit. He has appeared on radio and television, including Vermont Public Radio, Connecticut Public Radio, WNYC, WQXR’s “Young Artist Showcase”, the Discovery Channel and PBS, where he was featured in the documentary entitled “Beyond the Practice Room”.

He has been a prize-winner in national and international competitions including the MTNA/Yamaha National Piano Competition, the New York Piano Competition, the National Foundation for the advancement of the Arts, the Juilliard Gina Bachauer Competition and the Missouri Southern International Piano Competition, in which he was the only American to reach the finals.

Mr. Graybil has performed in master classes for Claude Frank, Pamela Frank, Robert Levin,  Roger Muraro, Menaham Pressler, Susan Starr and Arie Vardi and has been invited to festivals including the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Pianofest in the Hamptons, the Sarasota Music Festival and the American Academy in Fontainebleau, France.

Graybil began his piano studies at age 6 and presented his first recital the following year. He was a pupil of Harvey Wedeen for six years and in 2009, received a Bachelor of Music Degree from the Juilliard School under the tutelage of Jerome Lowenthal.  Recently, he completed the Masters program at Juilliard where he continued to work with Mr. Lowenthal as well as Matti Raekallio.

Born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1987, Matthew Graybil resides in New York City. (Back to top)

Pablo Mayor, Latin Jazz, Music Theory and Composition, Saturday Music Project Faculty

Coming Soon! (Back to top)

Lyuba Mayzus, Piano

Lyuba received a Bachelor's of Music Degree from CUNY Queens College and a Master's Degree from Teachers College, Columbia University. She completed one year of Suzuki teacher training with Sheila Keats at The School for Strings. Lyuba also studied with Danai Gagne at Trevor Day School completing Orff Schulwerk Level 1. (Back to top)

Zach Mo, Piano

Pianist Zach Mo has had a wide-ranging variety of performing and teaching experiences around the globe.  His performance engagements have taken him to Europe, Asia, as well as the United States, as a solo recitalist, a chamber musician, a choral accompanist, and an orchestral pianist.  An avid collaborator, Zach regularly performs with all types of musicians and ensembles including singers, choirs, and instrumentalists.  He is also the pianist and co-founder of the Caspian Piano Trio.

As a teacher, Zach Mo has instructed students of all ages and skill levels, from pupils of age three becoming newly acquainted with music to advanced pianists preparing for auditions and competitions.  He has been invited to China as a guest instructor at the Piano Arts School in his home province of Hunan, teaching students and presenting recitals in the Yueyang city's new and only music school.  Zach has been teaching over seven years and considers education the greatest gift a person can give.  He helps students discover and decode the magic and mystery in music while approaching it logically by developing solid practice habits, theoretical understanding, and musical creativity.

Mr. Mo received his Master’s of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music in 2008 under the tutelage of Daniel Epstein.  He has also studied at Northwestern University, the Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg State Conservatory, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he was the recipient of the Lucille Kimball Scholarship.  Furthermore, he has had the privilege of participating in master classes with such great pianists as Yefim Bronfman, Murray Perahia, and Barry Snyder. (Back to top)

Angelica Olstad, Piano

Angelica Olstad received her M.M. in piano pedagogy from the University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana) and a B.M. in piano performance from the University of Northern Colorado. As a performer and as a teacher, she has received numerous distinctions and awards. She is the founder of Saltimbique, a multi arts collaborative group that uses media and classical music in live performances. In addition, she is a yoga instructor, and teaches mind-body awareness to artists and musicians alike. (Back to top)

Bruce Potterton, Piano

Bruce studied piano with Sascha Gordonitzki, and before that, with Murray Present at Montclair State College. He coached piano with Leonard Eisner. Since 1965, Bruce has been a solo and chamber recitalist. A long-time faculty member of the Henry Street Settlement Music School (since 1970) and TBMS (since 1984), Bruce also taught at the Amherst Summer Music Centre from 1971 to 1979. An active leader in the cultural community of Lubec, Maine, he founded SummerKeys, a music vacation center for adults, in 1996, and in 1994 he created The Mary Potterton Memorial Concerts, a free, weekly summer-long series; he is currently the director of both. (Back to top)

Dina Pruzhansky, Piano

An alumna from Mannes College for Music and a Masters (Summa cum Laude) in Piano Performance from the Tel-Aviv Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, Dina has appeared in solo and chamber music recitals throughout the United States, Russia, Israel, Belgium and Germany. Classical and musical theater compositions written by Dina have been performed at major halls and in 2009, she was nominated for the prestigious Fred Ebb Award for Musical Theater. She is a composer at the BMI Lehman Engel Advanced Musical Theater Workshop, where she is currently developing projects. (Back to top)

Milagros Ramos, Piano

Milagros earned her Master of Arts degree in Piano Performance and a post-graduate diploma from Mannes College of Music. She studied piano with Jacob Lateiner. She has appeared in recital as a soloist and in ensemble performance in New York and Venezuela. She has also played for radio and television. Recent NYC performances include an engagement at Steinway Hall and a two piano recital in Em Lee Concert Hall at Turtle Bay Music School. Milagros also has been a faculty member of Brooklyn Conservatory of Music and of Greenwich House Music School, where she taught piano and music skills. (Back to top)

Bob Rodriguez, Jazz Piano; Jazz Theory

Bob studied music at Ohio University and Akron University. He has studied piano with Richie Beirach and Pat Pace, and composition with Loris Chobonium. Bob has appeared as a guest in concerts and tours with Carla Bley, Billy Hart, Steve Swallow, and Kenny Wheeler. Bob is a featured composer and pianist on recordings with The Tina Marsh Orchestra. (Back to top)

Laura Sharpe, Piano

Laura is a graduate of the Martini Conservatory in Bologna, Italy. She did advanced studies at the Academia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Italy, the New England Conservatory of Music, and in NYC with Irma Wolpe. She has had solo, orchestral, and chamber appearances in Italy and the U.S. She is a former faculty member at the McPhail Center for the Performing Arts, University of Minnesota, and the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. (Back to top)

 

Christine Yoon, Piano

Christine Yoon; Piano, B.M., M.M., Peabody Conservatory of Music of Johns Hopkins University; Currently faculty at Lucy moses school at Kaufman Center, Spence school; Former faculty at Concordia College Preparatory, Third Street Music School, Henry Street Music School, YM-YWHA and numerous summer festivals; Former studies include at Mozarteum Academy of music in Salzburg;Served on board and as a chairman for Young pianist's honor Competition for Piano Teacher's Congress,1996-2003, and as a juror for numerous competitions in NY metropolitan area. (Back to top)

 

Theory Department

David Steinberg, Music Technology; Saturday Music Project Faculty

David Steinberg is an in-demand composer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist living and working in New York City. He keeps a busy performance schedule playing saxophone, clarinet, flute, guitar, bass, and keyboards with many established and up-and-coming musicians and bands. David also works as a sound engineer and producer on projects spanning from singer-songwriter records to feature films.

David attended New York University where he received a Bachelor of Music from the Department of Music and Performing Arts. After graduating Magna Cum Laude from NYU, David continued his study of composition with renowned composer, orchestrator, and pianist, Kirk Nurock.

His work as a composer, arranger, and sound engineer can be heard on film, television, radio and the Internet. As a performer, he can be heard on countless recordings and in clubs and concert halls worldwide with artists such as Josh Ritter, Rufus Wainwright, Teddy Thompson, Otis Clay, The Revelations Featuring Tre Williams, Cormega, Swamp Dogg, Latimore, Akoya Afrobeat Ensemble, Jenni Muldaur, Marit Bergman, The Teenage Prayers, and many, many others. (Back to top)

 

Strings Faculty

Hilary Castle, Suzuki/Traditional Violin

Having quickly established herself as a sought-after performer and teacher, violinist Hilary Castle leads an active recital career in and around the New York City area.  She appears frequently with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, and has served as concertmaster of the Mannes Opera Orchestra under the direction of Metropolitan Opera Conductor Joseph Colaneri for three consecutive seasons. Hilary also served as one of the Mannes Symphony Orchestra’s co-concertmasters and as principal second violin under the baton of David Hayes, music director of the Curtis Contemporary Ensemble and Philadelphia Singers. Hilary has performed nationally and internationally and has been called on to collaborate with luminaries such as Bernard Haitink, Joel Smirnoff, Joanne Falletta, Pamela Frank, Ani Kavafian and Mark O’Connor. 

An avid chamber musician, Hilary performs as a core musician in Tertulia, a chamber music series hosting concerts in boutique venues throughout New York City. In May 2011, Hilary performed in a residency at Pianos (NYC) as a member of Project 60/40, a group of conservatory trained musicians experimenting with unique instrumentation, escaping the formalities of a concert hall and fusing classical music with pop, folk, world, electronic and other genres. 

Hilary is a graduate of Boston University College of Fine Arts (B.M. ’06), and has studied at the Royal College of Music in London and Mannes College of Music (M.M. ’08, P.S.D. ’10). In addition to her own studies, Hilary is a member of the strings faculty at Turtle Bay Music School in New York City. Currently based in New York City, Hilary plays on an 1815 Giovanni Baptista Ceruti violin which has been generously loaned to her by a benefactor. (Back to top)

Isabel Fairbanks, Traditional and Suzuki Cello

Cellist Isabel Fairbanks is active in New York City as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, and teacher. She has degrees in cello performance from the Manhattan School of Music and Boston University, and her primary teachers include David Geber, George Neikrug, Andres Diaz, and David Soyer. Isabel has performed in recitals and concerts throughout the United States and China. Festival appearances include the Roundtop Music Festival and the Bowdoin International Music Festival. She has also performed in concerts at Merkin Concert Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Carnegie Hall, and at the NABI Gallery. Isabel spent several years attending the Suzuki program at the Hartt School of Music Preparatory School where she gained an excellent foundation for future performing and teaching. Isabel plays an Italian cello, made in 1910 by Carlo Carletti. (Back to top)

Ashley Jackson, Harp

Coming Soon! (Back to top)

Whitney Lee, Traditional and Suzuki Violin

Whitney Lee, born and raised in San Francisco, California, began studying the violin at the age of two. His first teacher, Cathryn S. Lee, is a Suzuki Teacher Trainer and graduate of Dr. Shinichi Suzuki’s Talent Education Institute in Matsumoto. Mr. Lee then studied for four years with concert artist Dame Camilla Wicks. Mr. Lee received his Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University under the direction of Almita Vamos, and his Masters degree at New York University under the direction of the Tokyo String Quartet’s first violinist Martin Beaver.

Mr. Lee has performed solos throughout the United States, at the 1999 Suzuki World Convention in Japan and in New Zealand. He toured Russia, Ireland and Lithuania with the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and held the titled chair position of Associate Principal. Mr. Lee also toured Italy as Concertmaster of the SMS/SF Chamber Orchestra.

Mr. Lee is a devoted teacher, currently serving as faculty at Suzuki on The Island. He has also taught extensively for the Suzuki Music Studio of San Francisco and the Musicorda community outreach program in Mount Holyoke, Massachusetts. He is a member of the Suzuki Association of America. (Back to top)

Andrea Lee, Cello; Saturday Music Project Faculty

Cellist Andrea Lee, who has been praised for her "elegant solo work" (New York Times) and "sublime" playing (Times Union), enjoys a busy freelance and teaching career in New York City. She is a founding member of two critically-acclaimed ensembles, Lunatics at Large and Build, and also makes regular appearances with A Far Cry, The Knights, and East Coast Chamber Orchestra. She has participated in many festivals in the U.S. and Europe, including Taos School of Music, Spoleto Festival USA, IMS Prussia Cove, Holland Music Sessions, and Banff. Her love for chamber music has led her to work closely with members of the Tokyo, Takacs, Guarneri, Brentano, and Cleveland quartets, as well as collaborate in performance with members of the Borromeo, Jupiter, and Miami Quartets. As a devoted teacher, Ms. Lee is a New York Philharmonic Teaching Artist, serves on the faculty of the Turtle Bay Music School, and maintains a private studio. Her principal teachers include Richard Aaron, Yeesun Kim, and Timothy Eddy, and in masterclasses, she has received further guidance from Janos Starker, Anner Bylsma, and Ralph Kirshbaum. She holds a BA in history with distinction from Yale University and graduate degrees in cello performance from New England Conservatory and Mannes College. Additionally, she recently completed a yearlong course with Frans Helmerson at the School of Music in Piteå, Sweden. Apart from her more traditional music activities, she has performed live with Sufjan Stevens and recorded for the band Vampire Weekend.
. (Back to top)

Sean Satin, Guitar

Sean Satin began formal training under Jorge Morel. Shortly after, he was accepted into the Manhattan School of Music where he earned a B.M. in Classical Guitar Performance. While there, he studied with Oren Fader and Mark Delpriora. He also played in master classes for Eliot Fisk, Eduardo Fernandez, David Starobin, and James Smith. Mr. Satin later went on to earn an M.A. from Teachers College, Columbia University, where he is pursuing post-graduate studies.

Mr. Satin has performed extensively throughout New York including a performance at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. Mr. Satin performs extensively in a wide variety of musical styles from classical to rock. Mr. Satin also brings with him over a decade of teaching experience. Mr. Satin has taught applied guitar at Columbia University, and has been a teaching artist for Midori and Friends.

He is currently on faculty at Turtle Bay Music School, Brooklyn College Preparatory Center for the Performing Arts, Music Beans, Bergen Academy of Music and Musica Lessons, as well as having an extensive private studio. Mr. Satin believes that the guitar is unique because it can function in such a wide variety of musical styles. Any style can be explored with the intent of reinforcing competent and sound musicianship.

(Back to top)

Corinne Ramey, Group Violin; Saturday Music Project Faculty

Violist Corinne Ramey has performed around the world, from New York's Carnegie, Avery Fisher and Alice Tully halls to the Midwest, Europe and China. She has recently appeared with orchestras including the Norwalk Symphony, Garden State Philharmonic, Distinguished Concert Artists International New York, and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas. She played on the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas bicentennial recording of Mexican music, which was released in summer 2010 by Sony Classical, and toured with the orchestra in Mexico in September 2010.

Cory also teaches violin, viola, piano and chamber music at the Larchmont Music Academy, and regularly writes for music publications, including Strings and Strad magazines. She holds degrees from Oberlin College and Conservatory and Columbia University, and is a registered Suzuki teacher through the Pennsylvania Suzuki Institute. (Back to top)

Kerrick Sasaki, Traditional and Suzuki Violin and Viola

Kerrick Sasaki served as the Brooklyn Philharmonic’s Coordinator of Education and Community Programs. Also a professional violist, Mr. Sasaki earned a BM from the University of Washington, a Master of Music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and an Advanced Certificate in Education and Viola Performance from NYU. His diverse performing career has taken him to venues such as the Hollywood Bowl and the stage of Carnegie Hall. Kerrick’s music education work began in college, where as a member of the groundbreaking BRATS mentoring program he visited public schools in the Seattle area to help nurture young violists. Since then, Mr. Sasaki has served as Adjunct Instructor of violin and viola at NYU, Teaching Artist for the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and Community Service Program Mentor for the San Francisco Conservatory. He directed the String Program and Orchestra at Bellevue Community College (Seattle) and was the Viola Specialist for the Seattle Youth Symphony’s Endangered Instruments Program.(Back to top)

Joanna Sirlin Smulakowski, Traditional and Suzuki Violin and Viola

Joanna Sirlin Smulakowski, a native of New Rochelle, New York, has established herself as a highly sought-after teacher and performer in the New York City area. She has a Bachelor's and a Master's of Music in Viola Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and completed long-term Suzuki Teacher Training with Kimberley Meier-Sims. Joanna performs frequently as a violist with chamber and orchestral groups such as the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra, Dicapo Opera, Westchester Symphony Orchestra, the Radio City Music Spectacular Orchestra, and the Atlantic Classical Orchestra. She has also collaborated with artists such as Barry Manilow and Kanye West. Her teachers include Stanley Konopka and Lynne Ramsey of the Cleveland Orchestra and pedagogue Jeffrey Irvine.

Mrs. Smulakowski believes in teaching violin and viola based on the Suzuki Philosophy and encourages technical and artistic growth in her students in a positive manner. A devoted teacher, she is on the faculty of Turtle Bay Music School, the Town School, and New England Music Camp. She also serves as Suzuki Faculty Advisor at Turtle Bay Music School.(Back to top)

Abigail Wilensky , Traditional and Suzuki Violin

Abigail Wilensky, a product of the Suzuki Method herself, recently graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Music with a Master's Degree in Violin Performance and Suzuki Pedagogy. While there, she collaborated with the Sato Center for Suzuki Studies to complete her study and practicum in the Suzuki Method with revered pedagogue Kimberly Meier-Sims. She also studied the method while at Vanderbilt University with Carol Smith. Since beginning the violin with her mother, Pamela Wilensky, she has studied with Kimberly Meier-Sims, Stephen Sims, Christian Teal, David Russell and Joan Kwuon. Abigail enjoys performing many genres and styles of music. In the 2010-11 season, she premiered two pieces by contemporary New York composers, Mohammed Fairouz and Samuel Crawford.  She frequently lends her classical training to the realm of rock and roll; in 2008, she performed with the Foo Fighters and John Paul Jones at the 50th Grammy Awards, as a result of the YouTube-sponsored My Grammy Moment contest. She has collaborated with local artists Howard Fishman, Snuffalufagus, and tours and performs regularly in Brooklyn-based gyspy folk rock group, Timatim Fitfit. (Back to top)

 

Voice Faculty

Alison Davy, Director of TBMS Community Chorus and Teen Vocal Worshop

Lyric coloratura soprano Alison Davy has appeared in opera and oratorio nationally and internationally. Praised recently by Opera Orchestra of New York conductor Eve Queler for her "beautiful expression and style," Ms. Davy has performed as a soloist with The Washington Opera, Handel Choir of Baltimore, Centro Musica Antica in Italy, Parma Symphony Orchestra, Newark-Granville Symphony, New York City’s Downtown Symphony Orchestra and the Choral Arts Society of Washington, D.C. outreach program. Her opera roles include Pamina, Susanna, Musetta, Manon and Baby Doe. Her concert repertoire includes Knoxville: Summer of 1915, Messiah, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor and the Brahms Requiem.

Ms. Davy has appeared as a featured soloist in the Holders International Music Festival in Barbados, at the Mann Center in Philadelphia and has participated in the Caramoor Festival with Maestro William Crutchfield. Among her awards are finalist in the Vera Scammon Competition and New Jersey Alliance for Performing Artists Competition, semi-finalist in the Oratorio Society of New York Competition and recipient of the Todd Duncan Award from the Annapolis Opera and the George Woodhead Prize from Peabody Conservatory. Ms. Davy has been heard on Southern Oregon Public Radio. (Back to top)

Renee Heitmann, Voice

Renee Heitmann, soprano, is a regular performer of musical theater and classical music alike.  She was most recently praised for her interpretation of Vaughn Williams’ A Sea Symphony with the Mid-Columbia Orchestra for her “bright and shining soprano” that “soared effortlessly over the 180-plus singers and players”.  She is a regular performer with various theatrical and opera companies in New York City and has worked closely with the Center for Contemporary Opera in NYC both as a performer and their company manager.  She has had the privilege to collaborate with artists such as the late composer Jack Beeson, conductor Joseph Flummerfelt and director/choreographer Jeff Whiting.  

Renee holds a BM in Voice Performance from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ and an MM in Voice Performance from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA.  While at Westminster, she studied with world- renowned soprano Sharon Sweet.  Renee was a voice faculty member at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, NY from 2006-2008 and has been teaching at Turtle Bay since July 2011.  She currently resides in New York City and is a voice student of Claudia Catania. (Back to top)

Laura Kay, Soprano

Laura Kay hails from Florence, New Jersey. She received her Bachelor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance and Contemporary American Literature from the Pennsylvania State University in 2005, and completed her Master of Music in Voice at the Cleveland Institute of Music in 2008. Roles and scene work include Queen of the Night (Die Zauberflöte), Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Countess (Le Nozze di Figaro), Giulietta (I Capuleti e i Montecchi), Antonia (Les contes d’Hoffmann), and Musetta (La bohème), Mama Rose (Gypsy) and the Queen (Once Upon a Mattress). During her undergraduate work, she created the roles of the Grandmother in Bond’s Mrs. Satan and Maggie in Chavèz’s Overtones. A strong advocate of education through music public schools, Ms. Kay has participated in numerous outreach programs and Children’s Opera Festivals, performing such roles as Super Singing Sally Sue (Sid the Serpent Who Wanted to Sing), Mother/Grandmother (Little Red Riding Hood) and Gretel (Hansel und Gretel). In Cleveland, she created the American Voices concert series to promote new American singers and composers, debuting the series at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Cleveland Heights. She has worked as soloist for the Baptist and Bretheren Church of State College and Fairmount Presbyterian Church, as well as appearing as a featured soloist in Fairmount’s Cabaret Concert Series. She has appeared with various ensembles in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Texas, Hawaii and Germany. In addition to her performing, she enjoys teaching all vocal styles of music, and has seen many of her students rise to success on the stage and in the recording studio; she most recently celebrated a student’s first album release. She has taught group and individual classes from first graders through adults, and has taught seminars in audition prep.(Back to top)

Sy Johnson, Director of TBMS' American Songbook Class

Jazz studies at UCLA and composition at the Juilliard School and Eastman School of Music; Collaborated with Quincy Jones, Herbie Mann, Sarah Vaughn, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Costello (just to name a few); Nominated for two Tony awards. (Back to top)

Gene Rohrer, Vocal Accompanist; Accompanist for TBMS Community Chorus

Eugene Rohrer is a graduate of The Manhattan School of Music, New York, NY, and Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA.  He was most recently seen, both in New York City and Chicago, as an actor/singer/pianist in the role of Galileo in ‘The Top Ten People Of The Millennium Sing Their Favorite Schubert Lieder’ by Alec Duffy.  He sang tons of G&S with The Light Opera of Manhattan when it was NYC’s main source for operetta.  He toured as pianist with, among others, baritones Saverio Barbieri (‘If I Were a Rich Man’ in Italian) and James Billings of the NYCO (ask him about Myrtle Beach), the Festival of Song Quartet (playing all four hands of the Liebeslieder Waltzes) and the Gregg Smith Singers (you haven’t lived until you’ve recorded a Christmas album with the Texas Handbell Choir).  He frequently plays for Jeannette LoVetri, Lani Misenas, Chuck Muckle and Molly Watson, not necessarily in that order, and lives and teaches in NYC. (Back to top)

Matt Tully, Voice

Coming Soon! (Back to top)

Kathleen Weber, soprano

Kathleen received her Bachelor of Music Education degree and a Master of Music degree from Wichita State University in Kansas. She continued studies at The University of Texas at Austin, where she was a student of Elizabeth Mannion, and was granted her Doctor of Musical Arts in Voice. Dr. Weber is a former faculty member of Hollins College in Roanoke, Virginia, The University of South Dakota in Vermillion, South Dakota, Southwestern College in Georgetown, Texas, The American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York, and Nassau Community College, Garden City, New York. She is an active member of the New York Singing Teachers Association and The National Association of Teachers of Singing. Dr. Weber has served as the South Dakota Governor of NATS and was the registrar for summer workshops both in South Dakota and NYC. She has served as treasurer of the New York Chapter of NATS for eight years and was recently elected to be corresponding-secretary. Dr. Weber has appeared extensively in recital, opera, and oratorio concerts throughout the U.S. (Back to top)

Steven Caldicott Wilson, Tenor

Praised as "a rare singer who melds vocal technique with a sense of characterization and compelling personality" by the The Louisville Courier-Journal, and "excellent, giving strong accounts of individual lines" by the New York Times, tenor Steven Caldicott Wilson is increasingly in demand as an interpreter of both early music and contemporary song. He made his Carnegie Hall solo debut in December 2010 performing Handel's Messiah with Andrew Megill and The Masterwork Chorus. In the 2010-2011 season, Mr. Wilson performed solos in five productions of Monteverdi's Vespers for ensembles in NYC (Green Mountain, Saint Thomas Church, Saint Luke in the Fields); at the Carmel Bach Festival; and in Calgary, Alberta. He sang the title role in Handel's Joshua with the Louisville Bach Society and will sing Judas Maccabaeus with the Clarion Music Society in NYC; he will also sing the arias and ensemble parts in an 8-singer performance of Bach's Saint John Passion of 1725 with Chatham Baroque in Pittsburgh. In April 2011, he will sing the Evangelist in C.P.E. Bach's St. Matthew Passion at the church of St. Luke in the Fields NYC, and he will sing the aria Geduld in a performance of J.S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine NYC.

Steven is currently in his fourth season as a gentleman of the Choir of Men and Boys at Saint Thomas Church NYC; he will sing arias and ensemble parts in Bach's B Minor Mass there in February 2011. An avid supporter of new music, Mr. Wilson recently premiered the solos in James Blachly's Nunc Per Speculum in Aenigmate at Trinity Church Wall Street, and has performed the work of Petr Kotík in Prague, Berlin, and Manhattan. Since the fall of 2008, he has been on the voice faculty of the Turtle Bay Music School in Manhattan. Steven is a graduate of the Yale University Voice Masters program in early music, where he was a student of James Taylor, and he completed his undergraduate degree at Ithaca College as a student of David Parks. From 2001-2005, Mr. Wilson was an enlisted member of the United States Air Force Band Singing Sergeants. An accomplished pianist and coach, he was seen in 2008 at the Duplex in NYC. He lives in Astoria, Queens. (Back to top)

Winds, Brass, and Percussion Faculty

Nick Birmelin, Brazilian Percussion, Beginning Drumset, Tuneful Sequence, World of Music and Percussion

Nick Birmelin is a New York based percussionist and music instructor whose main focus and inspiration comes from Music and percussion of Brazil. Nick Birmelin is the Musical Director of Grupo Ribeiro, a company that specializes in the various forms of Samba and Afro Brazilian dance.He also serves as Musical Director for brazilian dance classes at Alvin Ailey Extension in NYC. As an instructor he conducts classes, workshops and residencies with children and teens throughout the 5 boroughs. (Back to top)

Matthew Silberman, Group Clarinet/Saxophone; Saturday Music Project Faculty; Music Theory

Matthew Silberman has been around music his entire life, attending his mother's opera performances while in utero. He began his formal musical training with the piano and later the clarinet, eventually falling in love with the saxophone at age 13. Silberman grew up in Los Angeles, CA., and attended the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, as well as playing in the L.A. Multi-School Jazz Band. He then attended the New School University Jazz and Contemporary Music Program in New York City, and currently resides in Brooklyn. Matthew has performed with Billy Higgins, Nancy Wilson, Roy Hargrove, Robert Hurst, Gregory Tardy, the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Patrice Rushen, Bobby Sanabria, and contemporaries such as Logan Richardson, Tommy Crane, Greg Ruggiero, Frank LoCrasto, Chris Tordini, Jonathan Finlayson, Tyshawn Sorey, Mike Pinto, Becca Stevens, Nir Felder, and Alan Hampton among many others. Silberman has also recorded with Elizabeth & the Catapult, Warren Cuccurullo, Krystle Warren, and Fisticuffs Productions, whom he also composed with for Miguel, among many others. He recently collaborated in composing and recording music for the 2011 BET Honors Awards with Fisticuffs as well. Matthew leads his own band, Press Play, and is a member of Merry Poppins, The Prigs, Brian Bonz & the Major Crimes, and Krystle Warren & the Faculty. (Back to top)

Jeffrey Missal, Trumpet, Theory and Composition

Jeffrey Missal enjoys a diverse and dynamic musical career as a freelance trumpeter in New York City. Mr. Missal holds a masterʼs degree from the Juilliard School and a bachelorʼs degree from Oklahoma State University, with additional studies pursued at the Manhattan School of Music and Columbia University. Mr. Missal has participated in many music festivals, including the Music Academy of the West, the Aspen Music Festival, Lewes Chamber Music Festival, the Kingston Chamber Music Festival and the Bang on a Can Music Marathon. Recent performances include appearances with the Signal Ensemble, the Talea Ensemble, the American Contemporary Music Ensemble, the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra and the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Missalʼs principal teachers were Mark Gould, Ray Mase and Tim McFadden. Mr. Missal comes from a family of teachers and has always valued the importance of education. He joined the faculty at Turtle Bay in the spring of 2011.(Back to top)

Matt Garrity, Jazz Drums

Drummer, Matt Garrity has been on the New York City jazz scene for thirteen years. He has performed with some of the best in the business, including Vincent Herring, Teri Thornton, David Williams, Ben Monder, Joel Forrester, Ron McClure and Jerome Richardson, among others. Matt has performed all over New York in such notable venues as The Blue Note, Birdland, Smalls, Smoke and The Up Over Jazz Cafe. In addition to his work as a sideman, Garrity leads his own group, ACTUAL TRIO. The group has toured throughout the U.S. and recently recorded their debut album, ACTUAL TRIO LIVE. (Back to top)

Jai-Yi He, Harmonica (Chromatic & Diatonic)

Jia-Yi He, world-class harmonica virtuoso, has received numerous awards in the International Harmonica Competition and Festivals in Great Britain, Germany, Israel, Japan, and the United States. He has served as a member of the judging committees in the Asia-Pacific Harmonica competition in Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Hangzhou and Singapore. Jia-Yi has appeared as a soloist with the China National Symphony Orchestra, The National Ballet of China Symphony Orchestra, The Nassau Pops Symphony Orchestra, and numerous others. In the USA, he has appeared on ABC, NBC, News 12 Long Island, Queens Public Television and Sino Television. Jia-Yi has recorded harmonica music for multiple movies, radio stations and CDs. Mel Bay Publications, Inc published his book Recital Pieces for Chromatic Harmonica. Jia-Yi performed the pre-game show for the New York Mets at Shea Stadium. He also performed a solo performance at General Assembly Hall for the United Nations. (Back to top)

Javier Oviedo, Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet, Oboe, Recorder

Acclaimed for his lustrous tone and formidable technique, New York-based Javier Oviedo has traveled across The United States and to three continents, bringing the significant but underplayed classical saxophone repertoire to new and appreciative audiences. His engagements with orchestras such as the New Jersey Symphony, The Louisiana Philharmonic, and L'Orchestre Pasdeloup were great crowd-pleasers and have garnered invitations to play from around the world. He has a special affinity for France and its history with the saxophone, and his musicological detective work has unearthed some forgotten gems of music for solo saxophone and orchestra. His impassioned performances of this repertoire have led to his highly successful orchestral debut in Paris, and to this recording with members of L'Orchestre Pasdeloup. As both a soloist and a chamber musician, Mr. Oviedo has performed in many of New York's most prestigious locations such as Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, Steinway Hall, Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, (where he made a highly successful solo debut) and the Dag Hammerskjöld Auditorium at The United Nations. He is a charter member of The F.R.E.D. Chamber Players and plays on all their concerts, and he was an original member of the Elision Saxophone Quartet and can be heard on the latter's LIVE Through the Years. In the spring 2008 Mr. Oviedo released his first solo CD recorded in France entitled The Classical Saxophone: A French love story released by MSR Classics. (Back to top)

Anna Povich de Mayor, Flute

Anna holds both and MM and a DMA in flute performance from SUNY Stony Brook where she studied with Carol Wincenc. She also holds a BM from the University of North Texas, where she studied with Mary Karen Clardy. Anna freelances throughout the New York City area as soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. She can be heard with her harp-viola-flute trio Iluminada that is dedicated to performing works of contemporary and living composers. Anna was a 2003 concerto competition winner at SUNY Sony Brook, where she will perform with orchestra next season, and has been the winner of numerous competitions in Washington and Texas. In addition to performer, she is an active teacher. (Back to top)

Diane Taublieb, Flute

D.M.A., The Graduate Center of CUNY; M.M., SUNY Stony Brook; studied with Samuel Baron, Trudy Kane, Julius Baker and Thomas Nyfenger; faculty, Hunter College, The Special Music School (PS 859), and The Lucy Moses School. She is a classically trained flutist with extensive experience freelancing in New York City and teaching at every level. (Back to top)

 

Early Childhood Department Faculty

Deborah Auer, Tuneful/ Orff Schulwerk Instruction

Deborah Auer has been an Orff teacher for 12 years, having received her certification after studying with, among others, the maestro, Danai Gagné . Deborah is an active performer in downtown theaters; most recently in the production of La Vie Noir at LaMaMa, E.T.C. She sings in jazz bars and most enjoys participating in and organizing live performances. Her training has been with Stella Adler, theater; Barry Harris, jazz; Hunter College, music theory; Cornell University, B.A. in European history. (Back to top)

Terry Cade, Tuneful/Orff Schulwerk Instruction

Jazz Studies, York University; Certified specialist in Orff and Kodàly pedagogies; Performs as a professional jazz vocalist. (Back to top)

Lyuba Mayzus, Tuneful/ Orff Schulwerk Instruction

Lyuba received a Bachelor's of Music Degree from CUNY Queens College and a Master's Degree from Teachers College, Columbia University. She completed one year of Suzuki teacher training with Sheila Keats at The School for Strings. Lyuba also studied with Danai Gagne at Trevor Day School completing Orff Schulwerk Level 1. (Back to top)

Patti Onorato, Tuneful/ Orff Schulwerk Instruction, Early Childhood Coordinator

Patti Onorato earned her Bachelor of Music from the Manhattan School of Music. She has sung, acted and played various instruments in the U.S. and overseas with composers, performing artists, poets, visual and dance artists and rock bands. With these collaborations she has worked on new music and new music theatre and opera pieces, often premiering the new works. Notable artists she has worked with include; Baba Olatunji, Vanessa Redgrave and Meredith Monk. Other performance projects include; soloist for The Old Moscow Circus in Japan as well as music director and composer for an all-woman cast of "Julius Caesar” (“Juli Caesar”).

Ms. Onorato has been an instructor for the Tuneful Sequence and Orff Ensemble program at Turtle Bay Music School since 1997 and Administrative Coordinator since 2001. She has also worked as a music education specialist for P.S. 59 and P.S. 72 in Manhattan, and P.S. 34, P.S. 295, Most Precious Blood and P.S. 29 in Brooklyn. She received her Orff Schulwerk training at the Bloomingdale House of Music in New York City and continues her Orff studies at Brooklyn Conservatory and through Trevor Day School workshops on a regular basis. Ms. Onorato was awarded a grant in 2008 and 2009 to go to Florida and participate in West African drumming and dance with Gordy Ryan, a prodigy of Babatunde “Baba” Olatunji. She also received a grant to participate in The Womyn's Drumming and Percussion workshops in upstate New York and studied with Mali drum master Mamadou McKane at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music and the drum set with Brazilian Percussionist Nick Birmelin at Turtle Bay Music School.

Patti, along with her colleague, Deborah Auer, created an interactive concert program “What Is Orff?” and has presented it at Turtle Bay Music School, the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza and Solar One.

In 2010, She commissioned a Suite of pieces for Orff instruments from composer Patrick Grant for her advanced Orff Ensemble called “Turtle Tunes Suite”. The premiere of the pieces in May of 2010 was a great success. (Back to top)

 

Movement Faculty

Melinda Logan, Dance

Born and raised in Harrisburg, PA, Melinda studied ballet, tap, jazz, modern,
acrobatics, baton, and musical theatre. Having been a teacher in NYC for over
ten years, Melinda has taught at the Children’s Athletic Training School (C.A.T.S.),
Marymount School, P.S. 290 Manhattan New School, Big Apple Pre-School, and
several Jewish Community Centers around the city. Melinda is a creative and
energetic teacher who encourages young dancers to find their love of dance in a
structured and fun environment. Melinda is also a classically trained pianist and
a singer/songwriter, performing regularly around New York City. She is currently
studying Arts in Culture at SUNY Empire State College. (Back to top)

Jillian MacNamara, Yoga

Jillian MacNamara, CYI 200, is a dedicated teacher and student who leads yoga classes for adults and children in the Hatha tradition. Primarily trained in Hatha yoga, she also enjoys studying different styles of yoga and incorporates these various influences into her classes. Her teaching is rooted in her experience of yoga on and off the mat as well as her commitment to sharing the discipline of practice with her students. Jillian loves teaching yoga, and her enthusiasm and passion are apparent in each class that she offers. Jillian also works on the staff of TBMS as  the Marketing Associate. (Back to top)