Jeremy has an MA in Music and a BA in Psychology from Azusa Pacific University.  As a performer, Jeremy I active in several local church worship bands, both arranging music and playing.  He is an established guitarist in the Los Angeles area who performs solo at a number of venues and is recognized by a variety of professional and academic organizations for his high-quality musicianship and dedication to the musical arts.  Jeremy teaches piano, guitar, cello, and bass, sharing his joy of music both as an artist and an educator.
Jeremy Berk
Angie Engelbart

With a MA in Music from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and a BA in Music from the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, Minnesota, Angie is originally from Iowa and has allowed her musical talents to lead her all over the country.  She has an impressive musical theater and opera background, which includes performing as a soprano with the Kansas City Lyric Opera in lead roles such as Papagena in its 2008 production of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute).  When she’s not tackling new musical endeavors, she loves teaching voice and piano lessons to students of all ages.
 
Jana Evans

Jana earned a BA in Music from Cal State University, Northridge and has specialized training in Education.  With a professional background in higher education, the music industry, and event planning, she knows how to bring out the best in her students and works with them to produce great performance results.  Jana has years of experience teaching piano and music theory as well as working with young recording artists at companies such as Rebirth and Interscope Records.  She thoroughly enjoys turning each one of her students into a musical star.
 
Summer Ferrante<

Summer earned her BS from Azusa Pacific University in Sociology and specializes in teaching children to make each one feel special, empowered, and valued.  She has been singing and writing music since she was four years old with her most recent CD project “Favorite Fantasy” available both online and at the JFMA.  Raised in a musical family, Summer has a long history of performing in bands and choirs.  She is currently the Manager of Client Services at JFMA and both teaches and runs our Pre-K program.  Summer is always studying new methods to inspire even the youngest of students to fall in love with music.
 
Rebecca Haddad
Rebecca has trained in the performing arts her whole life, having graduated from the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy, earned a BM at the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music, and then going on to earn a degree in theater from the Los Angeles City College Theatre Academy.  She is a fluent Spanish speaker and was the youngest member in history of the El Paso Symphony Orchestra in Texas.  Rebecca teaches clarinet, flute, saxophone, piano, voice, music theory, Spanish language, and math and loves bringing out the very best in her students.
 
Maggie Hasspacher
Earned a MA in Music from the University of Southern California specializing in Double Bass Performance, and a BA in Music from the University of Michigan.  Maggie shares her passion for music and all it can do for a person’s confidence and self-expression, not only with her JFMA students, but also with underprivileged young people in her community.  She has held leadership positions and taught music with the USC Music Outreach program, the Detroit Partnership Afterschool Tutoring Project, and the Detroit Civic Youth Ensemble.  She is an active performer in Los Angeles, singing at local jazz clubs and with recording groups, and thoroughly enjoys sharing her love of music with her students.
 Jennifer Heren

Jennifer Heren holds both her Bachelor's and Master’s degrees of Music in Vocal Performance from California State University, Northridge.  Jennifer has appeared in many musical theater productions and operas.  She has performed roles in Italian, French, German, and Spanish, both in school and with such companies as Center Stage Opera, the Merola Opera Institute, and Opera Pasadena.  She is currently a member of Opera a la Carte, a nationally touring operetta company.

Jennifer has taught voice and piano for over five years, and her students cover a wide range of ages and experience.  In voice, she emphasizes a natural, healthy vocal technique, and teaches vocal styles ranging from pop to classical.  With both her piano and voice students, Jennifer believes it is most import to instill a love of music and a deep emotional connection to music through performance.
 
Mandi Kitchen

Mandi graduated with a BM in Professional Music from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she was a member of the Berklee Society of Composers, Film Scoring Club, and Music Business Club.  Her love of music has inspired her to explore how music can strengthen and expand our mental, social, emotional, and even physical capabilities.  Mandi has developed music therapy programs and has worked with underprivileged children in after-school programs.  With a professional background in music recording and technology, Mandi teaches piano, voice, and guitar to students of all ages.

 
Daniel Levin

Dan graduated from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with his MA and BA in Composition, where he also performed in their premiere jazz ensemble.  He has received numerous awards such as the San Francisco Song Festival’s American Art Song Competition for Composers and the Turner Classic Movies Young Film Composers Competition.  In addition to working as professional film composer and orchestrator, Dan teaches classical and jazz piano, saxophone, clarinet, musical theory, composition and song writing.  He is especially gifted at encouraging students who are timid at first, and always manages to explain complex concepts in an accessible way, developing each student’s confidence.

 
Melissa Malavasi

Melissa attended the Los Angeles Music Academy for Vocal Artist Development and graduated with her BA in Product and Graphic Design fro Veritas University in San Jose, Costa Rica.  She has professional experience in music education, art education, and architecture and design. She has developed musical artists to tour internationally and in addition to being a production engineer she has provided background vocals and choreography on several musical productions. Melissa teaches her students to think through their challenges independently and creatively so that they can handle anything they encounter in their musical futures.

 
Sasha Manukian

Sasha has a BA in Piano Performance from Cal State University Los Angeles and over twelve years of musical education experience.  She is fluent in Armenian and Russian and has won several awards for music performance, music composition, and original poetry.  Sasha comes from a family of music educators and has an arsenal of pedagogical techniques and educational materials at her disposal.  She demonstrates remarkable enthusiasm for teaching piano, voice, and guitar and is passionate about raising her students’ confidence levels from being able to perform just for their teacher to performing for an audience of hundreds.

Viri Marchena
Viri graduated from Azusa Pacific University with a BS in Music Education.  She has her California teaching Certificate and is currently pursuing a MA in Education.  She began her own musical studies at age eleven and has since then relished every musical challenge that comes her way, such as performing in marching bands, wind ensembles, symphonic bands, jazz bands, orchestras, a saxophone quartet, and percussion ensemble.  Her musical performance tours have taken her to Thailand, Brazil, and Mexico.  Viri is fluent in Spanish and is incredibly knowledgeable in a wide array of techniques to encourage and motivate each one of her students.
Susan Muljana
Susan earned a BM in Music from Biola University, her Teaching Credential from Cal State Polytechnic University, and is currently pursuing a MA in Speech Pathology from Cal State University, Fullerton.  She has worked with students of diverse cultural backgrounds with all different musical and academic objectives, including such challenges as autism, visual processing disorders, phonological disorders, and ADHD.  Susan is fluent in Mandarin Chinese and enjoys leading students in jazz band, parade band, and orchestra, and teaches piano, voice, violin, and flute.  She enjoys developing each student’s intellect through the study of musical expression.
 
Candace Murphy
Candace received her MA in Violin Performance from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee and her BA in Music from Centre College in Danville, Kentucky.  She is a certified Suzuki violin teacher and uses both Suzuki and European traditional approaches to teaching both violin and piano, emphasizing technique, theory, and performance skills.  In addition to teaching, Candace performs freelance at weddings and private events and has been a member of several professional orchestras such as the La Jolla Symphony.    Her passion for music education is evident in her personal commitment to each and every one of her students.
 
Erin Rametta

Erin has a MA in Music from Cal State University with emphases in piano, voice, and music theory, and a BM in Music from Columbia College for Women.  Erin has many years of musical education experience and her repertoire as an artist encompasses a wide variety of musical genres including jazz, rock, classical, and Spanish guitar.  Erin creatively presents difficult musical concepts to her students, customizing each lesson plan to suit students’ individual learning styles.  She teaches piano, voice, guitar, dulcimer, Pre-K classes, English, and Math.  Erin’s cheerful attitude is infectious and her passion for music and learning shines in each one of her lessons.
 
Morgan Roberts

Morgan earned his BM in classical and jazz violin at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, under the tutelage of Dr. Stanley Chepaitis.  He was a member of his university’s symphony orchestra, chamber orchestra, and string quartet.  He is an active composer, arranger, technical advisor, and musician for film and television, and he has performed with several jazz bands.  Morgan has taught violin, viola, and music theory for over fifteen years.  He enjoys watching his students develop their self-expression and confidence through musical education.
 
Jordan Roepke

Jordan studied jazz guitar performance at the University of Wisconsin in addition to studying rock, metal, jazz, blues, fusion, country, bluegrass, pop, and classical styles.  He started playing guitar at the age of fifteen studying with such guitarists as Don Linke, Steve Peplin, and Jack Grassel.  Before moving to Los Angeles, Jordan taught guitar and bass at the Family Music Center in Milwaukee making sure that each one of his students not only improved their musical skills, but had a deep understanding of why those skills matter, making them informed leaders of their own musical development.  He teaches students of all levels and is always eager to introduce his passion for guitar to others.
 
Steve Sandy
Steve earned his BA in Music Education from Cal State University Fullerton with an emphasis in choir.  He has won numerous awards and university scholarships for his participation in choral competitions and musical theater.  Steve has been a professional vocal and jazz trombone performer in addition to being a member of his alma matter’s “University Singers,” performing at the Irvine Amphitheater with the Pacific Symphony, the Staples Center with Andrea Bocelli, the Hollywood Bowl, and the Chiesa di San Paolo a Ripa D’Arno in Pisa, Italy for the United Nations (UNESCO).  Steve loves directing budding students of piano, voice, and guitar, and teaching them to develop not only their musical ears, but also their undiscovered musical talents.
 
Adam Scherer
Adam completed his MA of Music in Studio and Jazz Guitar from the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California, and he double majored in Psychology and Music at Rutgers University in New Jersey.  He is not only an active musician and instructor, but he is passionate about making music accessible to all members of the community.  Adam has served as Music Director for Arts Festivals, a mentor with Outreach programs for Middle School children in Los Angeles, and a USC Music instructor for both Music majors and non-majors.  He teaches guitar, banjo, and ukulele and is comfortable with a wide variety of musical styles.  Adam’s objective is for each of his students to learn to love music, no matter the genre they start with.
 
Sharon Stricker BIO COMING SOON
 
Josh Weekley
Josh earned his BA in Music Education from the University of Alabama, Birmingham.  He is an accomplished bass guitar player with skills on both the drums and piano, allowing him unique insight as to how the guitar collaborates with other instruments in a variety of styles including rock, jazz, blues, country, and pop.  Josh has extensive teaching experience and his easy style, approachable personality only enhance his skills as a communicator of complex musical concepts and an educator.  Josh is an active performing and recording artist in the grater Los Angeles area, and loves modeling performance techniques to all of his students to bring out the inner rock star in everyone.
 
Mike Wendland

Mike has a BA in Political Science from the University of California Los Angeles which complements both his teaching and professional experience as a communicator of how organizational systems interact with and affect each other, a critical component of music.  He has served as a camp counselor and youth mentor, teaching the performing arts to underprivileged elementary school students to celebrate their accomplishments at a variety of public events.  Additionally, he has musical studio experience as a manager, producer, engineer, and musician.  Mike teaches piano, guitar, drums, and Spanish to students of all ages, but has particular experience with elementary grade students and those with learning disabilities.