MUSIC
PIANO, GUITAR, VOICE, DRUMS, STRINGS, WINDS
Students of all ages and levels are placed with our excellent faculty. We will match students’ needs with an appropriate teacher and assign the lesson day and time. Students can register at any time during the year. Lessons are either 30 min, 45 min or an hour. Pricing and policies can be found on our registration page. Please call so we can place you with a teacher who meets your learning style and goals.
UNIVERSITY TRAINED INSTRUCTORS
Our instructors are highly qualified, most holding their masters degree in music and many have extensive performance experience. Most importantly our instructors strive to relate their teaching to each individual student’s learning style.
INVITING MUSIC STUDIOS & WAITING AREA
Our schools have large windows with natural light, providing a great environment for learning. State of the art professional dance floor reduces injury and fatigue. Parents can relax in our comfortable waiting area, which includes free Wi-Fi internet access.
“Where words fail, music speaks.”
Hans Christian Andersen
PIANO
INSTRUCTORS: BREANNE BATTEY, DRUINN JOHNSTON, RACHEL FELDER
GUITAR
INSTRUCTORS: TRAVIS SHELBY
VOICE
INSTRUCTORS: DRUINN JOHNSTON, JESSI RIGORDAEVA
STRINGS
INSTRUCTORS: SKYE DARLING
WINDS
INSTRUCTORS: ANDREW EMANUEL
DRUMS
INSTRUCTORS: LILLIE CAVANAUGH
BRASS
INSTRUCTORS: DEVIN DIBERNARDO
MUSIC FACULTY
ANDREW EMANUEL
CLARINET, SAXOPHONE, & FLUTE
Andrew is a recent graduate of the University of New Hampshire with a B.M. in Music Education. While at UNH, Andrew was fortunate enough to share the stage with notable artists such as Chris Potter, Allen Vizzutti, Dave Pietro, Steve Wilson, and Marshall Gilkes, and these experiences have also helped shape him as a musician. Andrew's teaching style is greatly influenced by all of the teachers he studied with at UNH, including Nathan Jorgensen, Elizabeth Gunlogson, Peggy Vagts, Janet Polk, and Ryan Parker. In addition to teaching private lessons, he keeps an active gig schedule throughout NH with The Wicked Smart Horn Band, as well as his own band, Clandestine. Andrew offers lessons on Clarinet, Saxophone, and Flute. He also offers improvisation lessons on any instrument.
BREANNE BATTEY
PIANO
Breanne has been teaching at Musical Arts since 2018. She loves the challenge of meeting each student where they are, no matter their age, experience level, or whatever style of music they are interested in playing on the piano. Drawing from over a decade of experience in musical theatre, vocal and ballet accompaniment, and solo classical piano, Breanne loves playing all styles of music and sharing that passion with her students. She also has a keen sense for technique, a wealth of tricks for sight reading, and a good foundation in music theory to help students really understand what we are doing at the piano and why, to go beyond just rote memorization of songs.
LILLIE CAVANAUGH
DRUMS
Lillie is a professional drummer in the Seacoast New Hampshire area whose experience ranges from musical theatre to jazz and other contemporary styles. Drawing influence from Marcus Gilmore and Mark Guiliana, Lillie can be seen playing with singer/songwriter Kate Possi, video game cover band HitBox, and for Seacoast Repertory Theatre. Lillie first started playing drums at their local church, learning under the instruction of Steve Michaud at the age of nine. Lillie hopes to help students expand their knowledge and vocabulary on the drums through both understanding their personal goals and introducing new ideas.
DRUINN JOHNSTON
GUITAR, VOICE & BEGINNER PIANO
Mezzo-soprano Druinn Johnston began classical vocal training at age thirteen, and has studied at the Boston Conservatory and the University of New Hampshire. She has performed with Melissa Manseau’s Youth Opera Workshop in productions of Die Zauberflote, Cosi fan tutte (W. A. Mozart), Die Fledermaus (J. Strauss), Hansel and Gretel (E. Humperdinck), and various scene productions. She has also performed in scene productions with the Boston Conservatory Opera Workshop and the UNH Opera Workshop, as an ensemble member with Granite State Opera, and as a soloist with the Boston Conservatory Women’s Chorus and the UNH Wind Symphony. Druinn is also a singer/songwriter and accompanies herself on acoustic guitar and piano. She is extremely passionate about all types of music and loves to help aspiring musicians develop their natural talents and hone their skills.
JESSI RIGORDAEVA
VOICE
Jessi is a an experienced vocalist and private voice instructor, having graduated from Berklee College of Music in Boston, M.A in 2019. She is originally from Kensington, N.H. and started her first music lessons here at MusicalArts when she was six years old. Jessi is a regularly performing vocalist in a Pop-focused acoustic duo as well as a Roots/Rock band called Gnarly Darling. Jessi found her love for music here at MusicalArts and it has shaped her entire education and career path. She would not be where she was today without the help of her mentors from MusicalArts, and strives to be that for her students as well.
MILES BURNS
VOICE & BEGINNER PIANO
Miles is a vocal and piano instructor at MusicalArts. Miles studied vocal performance at UNH. With an emphasis on classical and musical theatre, he has been a vocal instructor for well over a decade. As a composer and musician, he has collaborated on over 30 original musicals to which he is credited the book, music and/or lyrics. His writing and compositions have been performed on stage in a number of elementary and middle schools in addition to being produced at Emerson College, Musical Arts in Exeter, The Players Ring, The Seacoast Repertory Theatre, Patrick Dorow Productions and Weathervane Theatre.
RACHEL FELDER
PIANO
Rachel Felder has loved music all her life. She started piano lessons at age six and continued her studies through college, graduating from Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with a bachelor’s degree in Music and in Animal Behavior. Inspired by her own teacher, whom she considers a dear friend, she started to teach piano in college. After working with animals for some time, she returned to teaching in recent years. Rachel’s biggest goal is to foster a love for music that will stay with her students throughout their lives, regardless of where they end up. She provides a rounded education, teaching history, theory, and technique alongside classical pieces. But the learning doesn’t stop there. Rachel encourages her students to explore other genres and learn music from their favorite artists, movies, games, and more. It is immensely satisfying to conquer a difficult, classical piece, but learning to play music that you’ve heard and love is fulfilling and fun. Rachel believes music is its own language, one that feeds the soul, and above all else, she wants her students to enjoy creating music and learn how to express themselves with it.
SKYE DARLING
STRINGS
Skye Darling is a young professional violinist and singer-songwriter based in Cambridge, Massachusetts with a passion for improvisation and exploring new ideas. Currently, Skye is freelancing, recording her own album, studying jazz, and teaching private lessons. Skye wrote, performed, and recorded violin and vocals with bands around the East Coast such as Sneaky Miles, xander., Nick Rolser, and Ben Laine. Skye is also a professional dancer and she is currently in her second year as a company member with Safe Haven Ballet. She performed with the UNH Symphony and UNH Chamber Ensembles. and danced with the UNH Ballet Company, UNH Aerial, and Safe Haven Ballet. Skye has appeared as a musician and dancer in the Be Brave Gala, Breathe Life Gala, Lila Dance Festival, multiple benefit concerts for the Freedom Cafe, and on NH Chronicle. She completed her student teaching 5th-12th Grade orchestra in the Oyster River School District and coached the UNH Youth Symphony Orchestra. She received her Bachelor of Music in Music Education with a Dance Minor from the University of New Hampshire where she studied under Karl Orvik and Hannah Reitz. Skye is pursuing her Masters in Violin Performance at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee studying with Katie Lansdale.
TRAVIS SHELBY
GUITAR, BASS & UKULELE
Travis was born and raised in NH. Having enjoyed listening to music his whole childhood, he started playing guitar in middle school in 2002. Initially inspired by bands like Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins, he was soon exposed to other forms of American music like blues and jazz. After playing all through high school and taking lessons with great local musicians like George Westbay and Art Matthews, Travis enrolled in Berklee College of Music in 2008. While at Berklee, Travis was fortunate to study with some of the college’s best teachers. These included David Newsam, John Baboian and Brett Wilmott. In his final year of Berklee, Travis began studying under world class virtuoso jazz guitarist Richie Hart. Richie taught Travis the fundamentals of what shape’s his teaching philosophy today…. Learning to use your ears, developing a good rhythm feel and playing with other people as much as possible. The profound impact of these lessons on Travis is on going to this day. Travis graduated with honors from Berklee in 2011. After graduation, Travis started teaching and performing professionally all throughout NH. He has taught all ages and all abilities at this point. Travis has taught private lessons, group lessons and coached numerous ensembles. Travis has taught at academic institutions such as Rivier University, NHTI and the Manchester school district. Travis also teaches at various music schools throughout southern NH. When he is not teaching, Travis can be found performing with his own band, Queen City Soul or playing in various sideman gigs. Travis also enjoys collecting vinyl and CD’s.