Our Teachers
Melissa Elizabeth Wright
voice, piano, guitar, ukulele, and songwriting
My name is Melissa Wright and I am a singer, songwriter, performer, and teacher based out of Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia.
I began playing music at age 12 after discovering my parents’ record collection in our attic. I asked for a record player for my 12th birthday and have since been in love with making and listening to music.
I have a passion for working with new musicians who feel that very same spark of inspiration.
My teaching style uses contemporary music to teach the basics and fundamentals of technique and music theory. My main objective is to turn that initial spark into a fire that can last a lifetime.
Learning an instrument is a life-long practice and will be challenging, exciting, and fulfilling.
MELISSA’S AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS:
- Cum Laude graduate of Berklee College of Music
- Recipient of Berklee College of Music’s “World Tour” Scholarship
- Recipient of the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award
- Member of “Mink’s Miracle Medicine”, a touring Americana duo. The duo’s work has been featured on NPR Music, American Songwriter, Noisey/VICE, and more.
- Performed at legendary venues such as The Bluebird Café (Nashville, TN), The Hamilton (DC), Club Passim (Boston), and shared the stage with Alison Krauss, Sierra Hull, and more.
- Written over 100 original songs and recorded more than 10 studio albums with a variety of bands.
- Has worked in music industry in other roles such as marketing, event production, and record label administration.
MELISSA’S STUDENTS’ ACHIEVEMENTS:
- Contestants on American Idol
- Participants of Virginia All-State Chorus
- Leading and supporting roles in school and local plays
- Solo performances in local choruses and choirs
- Semi-finalists at “Apple Blossom’s Got Talent”
- Winners of Bach to Rock “Battle of the Bands”
- Acceptance into arts programs at universities of choice
Annie Stokes
voice, piano, guitar, ukulele, banjo, and songwriting
Annie Stokes is a a writer, performer, and music teacher based in Virginia in the USA. Her work has been featured in the Washington Post, Prism Reviews, Daytime Blue Ridge, and more.
Raised on musical theater and her mom's oldies, Annie began writing poetry and short stories at a young age, and soon after started crafting her own songs to perform at local and regional venues.
Annie connects with all her students and inspires them to write, create, and express themselves on voice and guitar.
Annie's current and former students have formed bands, written their own material, recorded albums, and performed live.
LISTEN to Annie here:
Nina Menezes, Ph.D.
voice, piano
As an award-winning, internationally acclaimed musician, research scholar, and educator, I have had opportunities to collaborate with world-renowned performers, writers, and scholars. I have set and accomplished some of the most audacious goals efficiently and effectively. As an educator and mentor, I have coached thousands of students to excel in what they do and live their best lives. I draw on my life's work and experiences to empower young people to stop living in the shadows of their lives and learn to live extraordinary lives. I have a Ph.D. in Music, M.Mus (Voice Performance), MPhil (Philosophy and religious studies), M.A., and B.A. (English Literature). ATCL and LTCL diplomas (Voice Performance) from Trinity College London. I have more than 20 years of experience as a live and recording artist. For more than two decades I taught at the studio, conservatory, and university level. Some of the courses I have taught include survey music history, world music, music theory, applied voice, and piano lessons. Fun Fact: I've collaborated with A.R. Rahman, the oscar-winning Indian film music composer of Slumdog Millionaire (2008); my voice features on several of his Bollywood and Kollywood (Indian cinema) soundtracks.
Schuyler Press
voice, piano, guitar, ukulele, and songwriting
Schuyler Press is a native New Yorker currently living in Los Angeles to Attend California Institute of the Arts where she is majoring in Music Composition and Performance. She is a songwriter who performs all original sets on the guitar and piano. Schuyler is influenced by a wide variety of performers and music genres from folk to pop to musical theater to punk. Her guitar style features detailed chord progressions along with deft fingerpicking. She has opened for performers such as Ellis Paul and Loudon Wainwright III. Her first music video “Playground Museum” had its premier at the International Film Festival Manhattan and is a winner of the My HERO International Film Festival.
Larry Cook
– piano, guitar, ukulele, bass –
Larry Cook is a Grammy winning bassist and educator currently based in Nashville, TN. He has been an in-demand touring and studio musician for over twenty years on upright bass, electric bass, guitar, and keyboards. His performing career has taken him across the globe (from Sweden to Australia) numerous times, and he has shared the stage with artists such as Tony Trischka, Emmylou Harris, Mavis Staples, Brandi Carlile, and many other legends. His work can be heard on over sixty albums, and his orchestrations have been performed by the Boston Pops, Pittsburgh Symphony, and many others.
Jess Kerber
—voice, piano, guitar, ukulele, and songwriting—
Jess Kerber is a published singer/songwriter, heavily focusing on alternate-tuning guitar accompaniment.
In 2018, Jess was awarded the Berklee/Lollapalooza Full-tuition Scholarship to Boston’s prestigious, Berklee College of Music, where she studied songwriting and music production/engineering.
During her time in Boston, she became entrenched in the burgeoning folk scene, centered around Cambridge’s historic, Club Passim - becoming a frequent performer and employee.
Since moving to Nashville, Jess has toured across the nation, following all coasts; and has embarked on two UK/European tours.
When Jess isn’t writing a song, she can be found walking through a park, telling her cat how much she loves her, or baking something yummy!
Sam Stott
—voice, piano, guitar, drums, clarinet—
Sam Stott is a singer and multi-instrumentalist, including guitar, piano, drums and clarinet. She received her Bachelors in Vocal Performance from The University of West Florida and has her Graduate Degree from Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music in Vocal Performance. Sam also has a band called Lights With Fire, which is an alternative folk rock band that she fronts and composes the music for, and plays in venues all around Florida and the Panhandle. Her passions for music and teaching are evident in every part of her life as she continues to pursue her love of music.
Shanice Aaron
- beginner through advanced piano -
Shanice Aaron graduated at University of California Los Angeles with a Bachelors Arts Degree in Piano for her undergraduate degree. She has won many piano competitions winning her debut at Carnegie Hall.
She got invited to be a soloist playing a concerto with the City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles Orchestra with conductor Charles Dickerson featuring composer Lukas Richman’s Concerto work, “In Truth” at Walt Disney Concert Hall.
Not only solo, but she also has excelled as a chamber musician. Her participation for the past years in chamber music led to her being selected for a concert tour at the Mozarteum Conservatory Salzburg, Austria. With her chamber group, she has performed at many venues such as Santa Monica College Emeritus College, UCLA Schoenberg hall, Colburn School of Music, and LACMA Live Sunday Broadcast.
Also, she participated in many different summer music festivals including Pianofest in the Hamptons, Bowdoin Music Festival, and at the Hawaii Chamber Festival in Hawaii in August 2019.
Her recent activities in 2024, she won second place at the American Protégé Romantic Music Competition, and will perform in Carnegie Hall in June.
Shanice is currently a graduate student at USC and has a passion for teaching all ages. She taught in many different facilities and remotely during the pandemic. Her goal is for her students to love music and enjoy playing the piano.
