Blake Whatcott
Blake Whatcott is a dynamic multi-instrumentalist active in the Chicago music scene. Proficient on both trombone and piano, he skillfully melds these instruments, utilizing their distinct characteristics to enrich his improvisation and propel his musical journey forward. Under the guidance of esteemed mentors David Nuccio, Charles Morgan, and Rich Moore at Joliet Junior College, Blake hones his craft with dedication.…
Kyle Mesa
Kyle Mesa is a dynamic educator in the northwest suburbs of Chicago; teaching trumpet, trombone and piano. He recently finished his BM in music education with an Instrumental concentration from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. As an educator/performer in Chicago, Kyle works as the Jazz Band Director at West Oak Middle School in Mundelein, Illinois. He also plays with the Shout…
Luke Polipnick
Luke Polipnick is a highly acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, composer and educator based in Chicago. He has released over a dozen recordings ranging from modern jazz, to minimalistic electronica, to free improvisation and extreme metal. He is a virtuoso guitarist, and teaches piano, drum set, voice, and theory/composition at a high level. He holds a BM in composition from university of Nebraska…
Margaret Meierhenry
Emerging soprano Margaret Meierhenry is a Chicago-based performer and educator from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. She has performed many leading roles such as the title roles in Handel’s Alcina, Puccini’s Suor Angelica, Eliza in Dark Sisters, and Blanche in Dialogue of the Carmelites. Recognized for her singing, Meierhenry is an American Prize finalist and Latin Grammy Nominee. She is currently…
Dylan Barnett
Dylan Barnett is a Chicago based guitarist, composer, songwriter, and educator whose eclectic involvement in a variety of genres sets him apart from the average musician. With an extensive background in both jazz and most genres of popular music, Dylan’s musical style refuses to be confined to a single genre, and instead embraces a mixture of all the music that…
Alex Costis
Alex started playing music at five years old, and he has never wanted to do anything else. As he progressed, he explored numerous instruments and genres. He naturally found himself participating in improvised and rehearsed groups, teaching lessons to peers, and honing his sight-reading skills as a church organist. Alex continued his musical growth at the esteemed Berklee College of…
Peter Isaac
Peter is a dynamic low brass specialist (Trombone, Bass Trombone, Tuba), composer/arranger, and educator in the Chicago Music Scene. Born in Rochester NY, Peter was introduced to jazz and improvisation from an early age through the music of Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus and Miles Davis. However, classical music was never far from his studies, and he chose to pursue a…
Adam Kastler
Adam Kastler is a performer and educator from Vernon Hills, Illinois. He is currently studying jazz piano at Depaul University under the instruction of Jim Trompeter after spending his freshman year studying jazz trumpet at Eastman School of Music. Adam started playing piano at age 7, studying classical piano with Sophie Pak-Cheang and eventually working as a music theory instructor…
Matt Wolf
Matt Wolf is a classically trained cellist who collaborates and performs in all genres of music as a soloist and with ensembles. Some of the ensembles include a cultural ambassador orchestra that toured China, the Taro Trio which performed all over Chicago at cultural centers connecting classical and world music, and the Surabhi Ensemble, a world fusion music and dance…
Hannah Novak
Hannah began studying piano at an early age, but she soon switched her focus to the double bass. Upon finishing high school Hannah went to earn a Bachelor of Music degree at the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music where she studied with Lyric Opera bassist Andrew Anderson. During her time at Wheaton, Hannah performed the Koussevitzky double bass concerto with…
Liam Marchant
Liam is a multi-instrumentalist and composer who plays piano, saxophone, guitar, and electric bass. He has been teaching for over 9 years and works to help students reach their creative potential by focusing on material that they want to learn. From Bach to Katy Perry, or Oscar Peterson to Charlie Puth; Liam wants to integrate what you love about music…
Ben Jossi
Ben Jossi is an up and coming composer, performer, and educator based on Chicago’s North Side. Originally from Saint Paul, Minnesota, Ben moved to the city in 2019 to pursue a Bachelors of Music in Composition and Production at Columbia College Chicago where he recently graduated this past spring. As a composer, Ben is active in media projects nationally and…
Martyna Gogolkiewicz
Martyna started taking private piano lessons at the age of 5 and then continued her musical education all the way through High School. Her entire childhood was filled with piano competitions and concerts, as well as exams and practicing; constantly developing and expanding her skills. Martyna is currently a music student at Oakland University and is studying music education/piano performance.…
Kristina Mucha
Kristina Mucha is an honest and compelling clarinetist who grew up in Downers Grove, IL. A recent graduate of Roosevelt University with a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Clarinet Performance, Kristina has had the opportunity to study with some of Chicago’s most renowned clarinetists, her most recent mentors being Todd Levy, John Bruce Yeh, and Teresa Reilly. Although she primarily trained…
Gita Srinivasan
Gita Srinivasan is a native of Maysville, Kentucky and teaches cello, piano and violin with House Call Music. Gita began her cello career at the age of 11 under the tutelage of Coralie Runyon Jones and Dr. Suanne Blair. Today, Gita is pursuing a post- master’s certificate of performance at DePaul University under the tutelage of Stephen Balderston. In the…
Rachel Kye
Rachel Kye is a vocalist and educator from Southern California. She has taken part in many opera productions and has played Orfeo in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, Zia Principessa in Puccini’s Suor Angelica, Mistress Quickly in Verdi’s Falstaff, and more. She was a finalist in the Meistersinger Vocal Competition in Graz, Austria in 2022 and the winner of the Kleinman…
Camiel King
Camiel King graduated from Central Michigan University with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education with a focus in Instrumental/General Music and a minor for Bassoon Performance. She has been teaching private lessons on the bassoon in the St. Clair County Area since 2011 and she is very excited to expand her lessons into the Macomb County Area. She started her…
Andrew Silva
Andrew Silva is an educator, jazz pianist, and composer from Portland, Oregon. His passion is to spread love through music and teaching. His unique blend of modern production styles and jazz background sheds new light on tradition, and tells a rich story as homage to his influences. Through his jazz studies at the University of Oregon and his own, self-taught…
Soojeong Lee
Soojeong Lee is a pianist, composer, and music educator from Seoul, South Korea. She began studying classical piano at the age of five and embarked on the study of pop/jazz piano in high school. Soojeong earned an AA degree in Music Composition in Korea(2012). Later that year she moved to Los Angeles where she continued her studies at the Musicians…
Park Dendy
Park Dendy is an instrumentalist, composer, and teacher currently studying jazz guitar at DePaul University with Bob Palmieri and Scott Hesse. Park’s love for music started in elementary school, singing and playing such classics as The Eagles and Pink Floyd. He played rock shows in early high school, and was eventually introduced to jazz through his school band. From there,…
Sadie Cheslak
Sadie Cheslak is a dramatic mezzo soprano with a voice that’s been described as “velvet warmth” and “rich like chocolate”. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Voice from Concordia College, and a Master of Music degree in Voice Performance and Literature from the U of Illinois Urbana Champaign. She is currently pursuing her Post Masters Certificate in Performance…
William Bennett
William has performed in the Southeast Michigan area since the age of 12 and has been a full time working musician for over 10 years. As a freelance pianist, he has had the honor of sharing the stage with many notable performances including Billy Childs, Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, Liberty Devitto, Jon Hendricks, Paquito D’Rivera, and more. He has performed and…
Octavio Serrano
Octavio taught himself to sing and play guitar, bass, and drums when he was 12 years old. These private studies inspired him to take music courses and join college ensembles when he graduated high school. He soon after received his bachelor’s and graduate’s degree in Music Composition at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, where he learned…
Michael Hudson-Cassanova
Michael Hudson-Casanova is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music educator currently residing in Chicago. He is originally from Sterling Heights, MI and he began his music career playing saxophone in the Detroit Civic Jazz Band under the direction of that city’s most in-demand working jazz musicians. He holds degrees in music education and jazz studies from Western Michigan University and Temple…
Carlysta Tran
Carlysta Tran is an Oklahoma City native and has been involved in music since she was three years old, where she first started taking piano lessons. At the age of 8, she started learning the violin and by the end of that same year, she debuted her first recorded solo violin performance with the Oklahoma City University Symphony. Since then,…
Noe Mina
Noé Mina received his BM from Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Jazz Trumpet Performance on a Presidential Scholarship Award. He grew up studying classical piano under the tutelage of Patryce King and singing in his church choir for five years until discovering his true passion for trumpet in the sixth grade. He derived inspiration for jazz music from his high…
Leo Buczkowski
Native Chicagoan, Leo Buczkowski, is a musician, composer, and educator. Leo is currently a student studying jazz performance at Depaul University. At age 13 he started playing guitar in rock bands before incorporating bass guitar and eventually upright bass. He has a love for teaching and encourages his students to learn what they enjoy and make it fun. Weather you’re…
Joey Chimes
Joey Chimes is a composer, pianist, improviser, and music educator who has lived in Chicago since 2019. He began studying classical piano at the age of seven, and started composing and improvising shortly thereafter. He graduated cum laude with a BA in Music from Kenyon College in 2019, where he was awarded the Gabriel A. Ben-Meir Senior Award in Music…
Joseph Powers
Joe Powers is a pianist, improviser, producer, and songwriter from Chicago. Since being mesmerized at a young age by Muddy Waters’ searing live performance of “Mannish Boy” in “The Last Waltz”, music has been central to Joe’s life. He is active on Chicago’s music scene and performs at local venues including Lincoln Hall, Thalia Hall, Schubas, Martyrs, and J Pritzker…
Jesse Calcat
Detroit native Jesse Calcat is a versatile multi-instrumentalist with over 20 years of professional teaching and performance experience across diverse musical settings. Having begun piano lessons at age 4 and strings in high school, Jesse began his college music studies focusing on both piano and viola performance. During his undergraduate studies, he studied viola with Glenn Mellow and Elizabeth Rowin,…
Sean Rzewnicki
Sean is dedicated performer and music educator. His 10 years of teaching experience have helped him to develop exciting and individualized lesson plans. He understands that all students have diverse goals and will work diligently to help all of his students develop the skills to succeed in any situation. Sean teaches both Electric and Upright bass as well as guitar;…
Hsuan Chen
Hsuan Chen is an emerging violinist based in Chicago, performing both as a chamber musician and an orchestral member. An avid advocate of early music and contemporary sounds, Chen has performed with the Oberlin Baroque Ensemble regularly. Chen has also performed at the Carnegie Hall as the assistant principal with the Oberlin Orchestra. Graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory, Chen is…
Andrew Michor
Daniel Rausch
Daniel Rausch began singing as soon as he could talk and only grew from there, honing his talent at Millikin University and meeting countless people along the way to help inspire his art. Daniel was trained classically in voice and piano and loves to jam on the guitar as well. His goal as an educator is inspiring artists to express their individual voices…
Jack Smith
Jack Smith is a Saxophonist, Composer and Educator from Madison, Wisconsin. Since moving to Chicago in 2017 he has had the privilege of studying with Chicago’s premiere Jazz Artists including Dana Hall, Dennis Carroll, Scott Burns, Sharel Cassity, Mike Allemana, and Jim Trompeter. He has performed with artists such as Nicholas Payton, Ingrid Jenson, and Bob Sheppard. Jack earned his…
Katlyn Iacovino
Katlyn Iacovino, soprano, is a native of Tampa, Florida and currently based out of Chicago, Illinois. Ms. Iacovino is most proud of her recent performances in London as Morgana in Alcina with Ensemble OrQuesta, as well as in Kyiv, Ukraine where she performed with the National Presidential Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. Ms. Iacovino holds a bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance…
Alvin Santner
Alvin is a guitarist, composer, and teacher living and working in the Chicagoland area. He grew up in the North Suburbs of Chicago, first picking up a guitar in eighth grade when he was inspired to learn by the music of legendary British rock band Queen. Alvin spent the next three years immersed in the musical world of blues and…
Casey Dahl
Casey Dahl is a jazz pianist who graduated with honors from DePaul University’s School of Music in 2019 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Jazz Studies and Composition. During that time he studied privately with pianists Ron Perrillo and Jim Trompeter, as well as with composer Christopher Wendell Jones. Throughout his undergraduate studies he played in a variety of ensembles encompassing…
Raquel Navarro
Raquel Navarro has been playing violin since the age of eight and has always loved teaching others to play. She has performed with ensembles such as the Indiana University Philharmonic Orchestra, where she currently plays as concertmaster, and the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra. In 2013, Raquel performed in the Fox Valley Music Festival as concertmaster and was a recipient of…
Julian Merluzzi
Julian Merluzzi is a Chicago based drummer and percussionist who has experience playing in many genres including jazz, funk, rock, folk, and latin. Whatever the musical situation may be, he brings the positively and focus needed to keep the audience dancing. Julian is currently in the jazz studies program at DePaul University under the direction of Professor Dana Hall. Through…
Kim Hasara
Pittsburgh native Kim Hasara embarked on her musical journey when she sang the Star Spangled Banner in her high school for their sporting events. She started taking private voice lessons at the age of 15 and participated in her school’s musical theater productions. Kim holds a Bachelor’s degree from Westminster College and Master’s degree from Duquesne University in Vocal Performance.…
Originally from New Jersey, Evan Salvacion Levine has played music professionally since he was 16 years old. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Oberlin Conservatory and his Master’s in Music and Improvisation from the University of Michigan. He has shared the stage with artists such as Jamey Haddad, Carl Allen, Benny Golson, Tal Cohen, Nicole Yarling and many others. He…
Ben Sullivan
Ben is a Guitarist, Pianist, Composer, and Arranger from Chicago. Ben has received his Bachelor’s degree in Classical Guitar Performance from DePaul University, and is currently in pursuit of his master’s degree at Northwestern. He has studied under Chicago’s leading pedagogues and performers such as Mark Maxwell, Steve Vazquez, Anne Waller, Peter Aglinskas, Denis Azabagic, and Oscar Ghiglia; he has…
Greg Jacks
Greg Jacks is a pianist and singer/songwriter already establishing himself on the local scene. While in D.C., Greg taught a full piano studio and played weekly at the Georgetown Piano Bar. He was also part of a local rock band called American Electric. Before this, he studied jazz piano at Syracuse University under Rick Montalbano. At SU, he played in…
Kevin Kozol
Kevin Kozol is a pianist, composer and educator based in Chicago, IL. He is one the founding members of the jazz fusion trio, Spare Parts, who are currently signed to Ropeadope Records. The trio’s last album, “Warehaus West Sessions, Vol.1,” which received 5/5 stars in UK Vibe, features Fareed Haque, Bill Dickens and Rajiv Halim. Spare Parts has performed major…
Jonah Wei-Haas
Jonah Wei-Haas was born in St. Louis, Missouri, but spent most of his formative years growing up in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At an early age Jonah would sing melodies that he heard which eventually led to singing and performing with choirs and numerous operas productions around the Tulsa area. Jonah began playing the piano at 8 years old, learning mostly from…
Jeff Poindexter
Jeffrey Poindexter is an active music director and pianist in the Chicagoland area, having worked with numerous theatres including FWD Theatre Project, BoHo Theatre, Griffin Theatre, the Performer’s School and Fox Valley Repertory. Jeffrey is an adjunct faculty accompanist at Roosevelt University and frequent collaborator at Columbia College Chicago and College of DuPage. Along with his various theatre work, Jeffrey…
Collin Clauson
Collin Clauson is from Minneapolis, MN and has now become a transplant to the Chicago area. He started playing piano at an early age and later learned how to play the clarinet, saxophone, and guitar. Collin previously studied at Northern Illinois University, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in 2012 in Music Performance. Collin is an in-demand piano player who regularly works…