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Music Faculty
Leah Berry, Volunteer
Piano
Leah started playing piano when she was 6, stopped taking lessons at 12 to switch over to the drums, and started back up again when she moved with my family to an apartment in Tokyo, where a piano was a much more neighborly instrument. She taught at Sitar Arts Center in 2008-9 and is glad to be back after living overseas in Ethiopia and the Dominican Republic for a few years. Things that she likes to do in addition to playing the piano are biking and hiking, making bread, watching British murder mysteries, eating crisp apples, and being outside in the fresh air and sunshine if at all possible (ideally in the mountains somewhere).
Chidi Blyden, Volunteer
Piano
Chidi Blyden currently serves the Africa Center for Strategic Studies where she works with senior faculty to develop academic programs that focus on US-African security relations. Prior to this position, she served as the Program Coordinator at the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts where she supported arts advocacy efforts through the development of children’s programs using the performing arts. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University in Sociology and is completing a Master’s degree in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University. Ms. Blyden’s has a background in performing and visual arts and studied classical piano and vocal performance for 13 years. She has played the violin, performed in plays and musicals.
Herman Burney, DC Jazz Festival
Jazzin’ at Sitar
Herman performs regularly in the DC area with his own group which ranges from duo to quartet. He traveled all over the world to establish his impressive list of performance credentials as bassist with Nnenna Freelon, Marcus Roberts, Freddy Cole, Wynton Marsalis and others, and has has played at many jazz venues including the Blue Note, the Village Vanguard, Yoshi’s, Sweet Basil, Iridium, Smoke, Birdland and many more. A true student and fan of jazz music, Herman often gives his time and effort to the support of future jazz musicians.
Meredith Cabelka, Volunteer
Music Theory
Meredith began studying piano at the age of five and started assisting her mother, a music educator, in teaching music theory at a young age. Meredith also participated in band and choir throughout middle school and high school. She began volunteering at Sitar Arts Center in 2010 in order to share her love for music with children in the DC area. Meredith earned a BA in International Relations and Business Administration from Baylor University and currently works for a federal government agency that focuses on international development
Jefferson Cole, Volunteer
Bass
Jefferson has been playing the double bass for 20 years. In high school, he learned to play electric bass in the school's jazz band. His music studies brought him to the University of Michigan's School of Music, where he received a degree in double bass performance. He began teaching bass at Sitar Arts Center in the spring of 2008, and has since been trying to keep a step ahead of their quick progress. When not teaching bass at Sitar, Jefferson spends his time playing bass with a local orchestra, as well as working on his two other hobbies: photography and cooking.
Anne-Lise Cossart, Volunteer
Piano
Anne-Lise has been playing piano since she was seven and is excited to join Sitar this semester as a piano instructor. She's always been involved with different facets of music - she's played the flute since childhood, sang in the Cornell University Chorus and its sub-set a cappella group while a student, and is currently learning to play the guitar. Other hobbies in addition to music include hiking in the great outdoors, cycling, traveling, and cooking.
Carley DeFranco, Volunteer
Voice
Carley DeFranco is currently a student at American University studying Vocal Performance and Conducting. She is originally from Rochester, NY. Carley studies voice with Stacey Mastrian, D.M.A. Carley is a member of the AU Chamber Singers and Chorus and is a soloist, section leader and rehearsal conductor within the ensembles. She also has much interest in new music performance and has participated in many premieres of new works in both D.C. and Glasgow. Carley spent the Fall of 2011 abroad at the University of Glasgow, specifically studying Scottish music performance. Carley is also the assistant director for the Youth Chorus at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop. Carley has been volunteering at Sitar Arts Center since 2009.
Libby Dorot, Volunteer
Music Theory
Aaron Fernstrom, Volunteer
Intermediate Guitar
Brian Gorman, Programs and Administrative Associate
Piano, Music Theory
Click here for staff bio.
Elizabeth Hochberg, Volunteer
Piano
Beth has maintained a private piano studio for seven years. She joined the Sitar Arts Center volunteer faculty in 2005. Beth earned her Master of Music in piano performance and pedagogy from Kansas State University, studying under Virginia Houser and Dennis Wilson.
Derrick Johnson, Volunteer
Music Theory
Derrick Johnson is an active musician in DC’s Different Drummers as drum major, a percussionist, flute player, and Vice President of their Board of Directors. He also serves as the intermediate instructor in music theory with Sitar Arts Center. Derrick received his B.A. in Music Education from the University of Florida, where he studied flute with Dr. Kristen Stoner, was head Drum Major of the Gator Band for three years, student taught at all three major school levels, and was very active in the school’s music ensembles. Derrick currently works for the National Association for Gifted Children as their Director of Meetings and Professional Development.
Young Sook Joung, Volunteer
Piano
Rachel Kriss, Volunteer
Piano
Rachel has been playing the piano for more than twenty years and teaching at Sitar since 2008. She loves sharing music with kids, helping them develop as musicians, and watching their confidence grow.
Matt Ladd, Volunteer
Guitar
Jillian Larson, Volunteer
Music Theory
Jillian started teaching at Sitar in January of 2011. She has studied piano for twenty years and completed Levels I-IV of the Minnesota Music Teacher's Association music theory exams. She studied violin for nine years and played with the Greater Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra in North Dakota. She has also studied pipe organ, voice, and oboe and has dabbled in the ukulele. She earned her BA in history from Carleton College in Minnesota. In Washington, she lives in Adams Morgan and works for the Pew Research Center.
Allison Lince-Bentley, Volunteer
Flute
Allison has been playing flute since 6th grade and, although she wanted to quit after the first year, she credits her success and continued love for the flute to a kind and enthusiastic private lesson teacher. She has taken her flute with her on travels all over the world and continues to play in community chamber groups and orchestras. Allison began teaching private lessons at Sitar Arts Center in 2004 and enjoys learning new things every day from her terrific students.
Joe Link, Music Programs Associate
Percussion Ensemble, Drums, The Saints Band, Music Theory
Click here for staff bio.
Allie Martin, Volunteer
Violin
Stephanie McKeel, Volunteer
Beginning Band
Sam Miller, Volunteer
Opera: Writing Studio
Katie Murchison, Volunteer
Piano
Katie has been playing the piano for twenty years. She earned a BA in English from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, where she studied voice and piano and sang in the choir. Katie has taught music, writing, English, and athletics in various settings, from a summer camp in rural Pennsylvania to a high school in Tanzania, East Africa. A new volunteer at Sitar in 2011, she is excited to share her love of music and the arts with kids in DC. When Katie is not working or making music, she can be found reading, writing, cooking, or enjoying the great outdoors.
Jana Nelhybel, Volunteer
Violin
A lifelong avid amateur violinist, Jana began teaching at Sitar in 2000. She has played in chamber groups, community and university orchestras, as well as in Sitar Arts Center’s pit orchestra for several musicals and she looks forward to playing in this summer’s musical. Jana is the Marketing and Development Director at an arts nonprofit organization.
Michael Nilsson, Board Member
Saxophone
Mike has been playing saxophone for longer than he would care to admit. For the last ten years, he has performed with dance and variety bands in the Washington, D.C. area, including Bittersweet, Off the Record, and Kaleidoscope. He began teaching at Sitar Arts Center in 2007, and has learned far more from his students than he has taught them. During the day, he works as a regulatory lawyer. Curiously, most people find the saxophone much more interesting.
Megan Nortrup, Volunteer
Saxophone
Megan has been playing the saxophone for more than twenty years. She began volunteering at Sitar Arts Center in 2007 as a way to give back to her neighborhood. She is also an avid gardener and loves the great outdoors. She earned a B.F.A. in music at the University of Illinois, studying with saxophonists Ron Bridgewater and Debra Richtmeyer.
Jarrett B. Perlow, Volunteer
Trombone, Summer Musical
Abigail Poyser, Volunteer
Piano, Cello
Abby began studying the piano at an early age, and continued with the cello in elementary school. Originally from Indiana, she has played with the Indianapolis Philharmonic Orchestra and was principal cellist of the DePauw University Symphony Orchestra. Abby received her clinical doctorate in audiology from Indiana University, and is a consultant for the VA and Military hospital audiolgy clinics across the country. When not traveling on business, Abby enjoys cooking, reading and exploring the city.
Aaron Pratts, Volunteer
Music Theory, Trumpet
Aaron is a native of Southern California and has been playing trumpet since he was 9 years old. During his formative years throughout school in the Los Angeles area there were virtually no bands that he did not play in – symphonic, marching, orchestra, and jazz and wind ensembles. In 1999, Aaron was awarded the John Phillips Sousa Band Award for musical excellence and Brass Instrumentalist of the Years 1997 and 1998. In San Diego Aaron played with San Diego State University Jazz Ensembles for over 4 years. He earned his BA degree double major in Communication and International Security and Conflict Resolution. Aaron also taught music to secondary school students while on a Fulbright Fellowship in Malaysia. Aaron began volunteering at the Sitar Arts Center in the fall 2010 semester. He also enjoys photography, scuba diving, and cycling.
Megan Redmond, Volunteer
Music Theory
Ashley Reinhart, Volunteer
Violin and Viola
Ashley has been playing viola for twenty years and has been teaching at the Sitar since Fall 2009. In addition to teaching at Sitar, Ashley performs with the Washington Sinfonietta and Quartet Aria. Ashley graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a bachelor’s degree in Music and Psychology.
Olivia Reyes-Becerra, Volunteer
Piano
Olivia has been playing the piano for about nine years, first studying with Carl Matthes in Los Angeles, California, and then Barbara Wing in Maryland. She began volunteering at Sitar Arts Center in the fall of 2009. She is an enthusiastic reader and loves to cook. Olivia is a sophomore at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School.
Betsy Small, Volunteer
Guitar
Betsy Small taught folk guitar at the Western Pa School for Blind Children during college, and later studied classical guitar and lute with John Marlow at American University. From 1979-1997 she was director and lutenist of the Washington Camerata and currently teaches guitar and lute in her home studio and sings with Collegium Cantorum, a chamber choir specializing in Medieval and Renaissance sacred music. She has BA in Creative Writing from Carnegie-Mellon University, and has written and performed folktales with Renaissance and Medieval music for children (as director of Story Minstrels --1992-2005), stories for piano and narrator with her husband, (pianist/composer and Sitar volunteer Haskell Small), and a full-length musical for young audiences, Crystal’s Journey (1990). As a yoga instructor Ms. Small is certified to teach Hatha Yoga, and LifeForce Yoga® for anxiety and depression, and Radiant Child Yoga.
Haskell Small, Volunteer
Piano, Go!
An accomplished composer and pianist, Haskell Small has concertized worldwide with repertoire as diverse as Bach’s Goldberg Variations and his own Renoir’s Feast. Recently, his Lullaby of War was premiered in New York and Berlin and recorded for Naxos. He is Piano Department chair of the Washington Conservatory of Music and also has a passionate interest in the game of Go!
Rob Smith, Director of Students & Outreach
Percussion Ensemble, Music Production, Drums
Click here for staff bio.
Chris Stacey, Board Member
Piano
Chris began playing piano at age seven and has a background in both classical and jazz piano. She has been teaching piano to beginners for six years. Chris also has extensive singing experience and has toured Europe and Asia with singing groups. She continues to take inspiration from and learn alongside her piano students.
Jeremy Stembler, Volunteer
Guitar, Music Composition
Jeremy has been playing guitar for 20 years, primarily focusing on classical guitar. He studied music composition at Florida State University. He has been teaching at Sitar since 2007. When not at Sitar, he spends his time cooking, hiking, dining out, listening to his ever-growing classical, jazz, and indie rock music collection, or sitting behind a computer at work wishing he was doing one of those other things listed.
Eve Tang, Volunteer
Piano
Trisha Taylor, Programs Manager
Beginning Band
Click here for staff bio.
Joelle Thomas, Volunteer
Voice, Piano
Maris Wicker, Volunteer
Voice, Open Mic Performance Workshop
Maris has been singing all of her life, and her repertoire ranges from oratorio and art songs to the American Song Book. Over the past five years, she has developed and performed solo and duo cabaret shows in the DC and Baltimore areas, including at DCArts Center, Sitar Arts Center, ArtSpace Falls Church, Gallery Neptune (Bethesda), Germano's in Baltimore, and in the 2010 Capital Fringe Festival. She was one of the original teachers for MusicKids (the Bethesda-based early childhood music program), wrote and directed a musical review for Sidwell Friends School, and regularly brings her singing and piano skills to patients at DC's St. Elizabeth's Hospital. She holds a B.Music from the University of Richmond, where she was a piano performance major as well as active accompanist and singer, and did post-graduate studies at New England Conservatory. Maris also has a JD from Univ. of Richmond. She has studied voice with Susan Dash (Philadelphia) for the past 15 years. She lives in Bethesda with her husband and 2 very spoiled dogs. Her son, who also is a musician, is a student at NYU. Maris is an avid year-round lap swimmer, reader, and always hopeful gardener.
Andrea Wilson, Volunteer
Piano
Chris Wingert, Volunteer
Piano, Summer Musical
Ben Young, Volunteer
Beginning Band
Ben Young has been playing guitar for 20 years and received his bachelor of music (cum laude) from Berklee College of Music in 2007. He has performed in genres ranging from jazz, to classical, to rock and R&B at venues including Blues Alley, the Black Cat, Twins Jazz, Columbia Station and DC9. He has been teaching guitar since 2000, privately and at the Guitar Shop and Bach 2 Rock Music School. He is currently in his final semester at Catholic University in their music teacher certification program, with a focus on band and orchestra.
Sylvia Zwi, Head Early Childhood Teacher
Early Childhood Music, Exploring Music, Community Choir
Click here for staff bio.