Saxophone/Woodwinds

Javier Arau - Saxophone

Listen to Javier: "Body and Soul"
Neighborhood: Jackson Heights, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: age 8-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Secondary instruments taught: piano (from age 4), flute, clarinet, composition, theory
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Javier.

Javier Arau is an internationally acclaimed saxophonist, composer, and educator. The front cover artist on the July 2009 issue Saxophone Journal, he has received four Down Beat Magazine Awards for performance, composition, and arranging, and has received national awards and recognition from ASCAP, BMI, and MENC, among others. An active performer in New York City, he has shared the stage with Dizzy Gillespie, Richie Cole, the Joe Henderson Quartet, Clark Terry, Diana Krall, Steve Lacy, and many more. He studied classical saxophone with Steven Jordheim and jazz saxophone with Jerry Bergonzi and George Garzone. An innovator in the field of jazz education, Javier's research and development has been recognized by leading music institutions worldwide. He has taught at New England Conservatory of Music and Lawrence University and teaches private lessons to musicians of all ages in New York City. Javier is the author of several influential music texts and articles, and he has been published by Jazz Educators Journal, UNC Jazz Press, and Dorn Publications. He has taught jazz for over 17 years. For more about Javier, visit www.JavierArau.com.

Jacob Teichroew - Saxophone

Listen to Jacob: "Overly Nice"
Neighborhood: Astoria, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 8-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Secondary instruments taught: flute, clarinet
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Jacob Teichroew.

Saxophonist Jacob Teichroew is a musician and music journalist based in New York City. A versatile performer, Jacob holds a degree a degree in classical saxophone performance, and performs jazz, rock, contemporary improvisation, and salsa in numerous ensembles. He recently received the Jimmy Heath Excellence in Jazz scholarship from Queens College, where he is pursuing a Master's degree in jazz performance under the tutelage of Antonio Hart and Michael Mossman. He has received awards from Downbeat Magazine, and was one of four finalists in the 2006 NASA Young Jazz Artist national competition. An educator as well, Jacob is known for his thoughtful and patient approach to private lessons, and enjoys teaching students, young and old. Jacob has published articles for Jazz.com, works as a freelance promotional biographer, and is currently the jazz editor at about.com (jazz.about.com). There he writes CD and concert reviews, posts music news, and conducts interviews with leading figures in the jazz world. For more about Jacob, visit www.myspace.com/yacobt.

Other saxophone/woodwind players who can teach in your home:
Oscar Feldman

Trumpet

Jacob Varmus - Trumpet

Listen to Jacob: "Stillness"
Neighborhood: Astoria, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 8-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Jacob Varmus.

Trumpeter and composer Jacob Varmus is steadily gaining a reputation for his highly melodic yet rigorous music. In May 2009, Jacob premiered his second original score to Genes and Jazz: The Music of Cell Biology at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. The three-act lecture on cells, evolution and cancer supported and enhanced by the Jacob Varmus Quintet earned rave reviews for its innovative portrayal and illumination of cellular biology thru music. The original version premiered at the Guggenheim in New York in November 2008. In December 2008 The New Yorker magazine described Jacob's music as "lyrical and self-assured." To date, Jacob has recorded two albums of his original compositions, All the Things We Still Can Be (2006) and Terminal Stillness (2009). Varmus' compositions have been praised by Jazz Improv magazine (2007) for their "sense of purpose, structure and memorable melody lines." Jacob has a personalized tone on trumpet and cornet, both tender and strong, with clear connections to Clifford Brown and Miles Davis. Cadence magazine wrote of Jacob in 2007 that "it's apparent after one spin that the leader has fully absorbed the trumpet tradition (especially from bebop on)." A resident of Queens since 1998, Jacob was formerly the artistic director of Astoria Music Society's jazz series. In 2008 Varmus was awarded a New York City Department of Cultural Affairs grant which he used to present six free and accessible concerts of original jazz in Queens public libraries. Before moving to New York, Jacob studied classical trumpet with David Greenhoe at the University of Iowa during which time he finished first in the 1994 International Trumpet Guild's Student Jazz Competition. Jacob earned his BFA in jazz performance from the New School in 1998. For more about Jacob, visit www.JacobVarmus.com.

Other trumpet players who can teach in your home:
Philip Dizack
Chris Rogers

Trombone

Jeff Fairbanks - Trombone

Listen to Jeff: "Sa Ma Da"
Neighborhood: Woodside, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 5-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Secondary instruments taught: composition/arranging
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Jeff.

A native of South Florida, trombonist and composer Jeff Fairbanks moved to New York in 2005 to join the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop. An active trombonist, Jeff's performance experience includes the Tommy Dorsey and Jimmy Dorsey Orchestras, Wayne Gorbea Salsa Picante, Wito Rodriguez Salsa Jazz, Dan MacMillion, Busch Gardens and Carnival Cruise lines. He also toured the U.S. and Japan with the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Now also a bandleader, he leads his own small groups and the Jeff Fairbanks Jazz Orchestra, with which he has won local and national grants. As a composer he has won numerous awards, including from BMI and ASCAP, and is frequently commissioned to compose or arrange music for all types of ensembles. Jeff holds Master's and Bachelor's degrees from the University of South Florida. He studied trombone with Tom Brantley of Rhythm & Brass and Norm Bolter of the Boston Symphony. For more about Jeff, visit www.FairbanksMusic.com.

Other trombone players who can teach in your home:
Joe Beaty

Guitar

Dave Allen - Guitar

Listen to Dave: "Mantra"
Neighborhood: Astoria, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 5-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Dave Allen.

"Allen has found a true voice, his effortless technique downplays the apparent complexity, paradoxically creating a cool surface sheen that has a white heat glowing beneath it...music that seduces both the body and mind--again and again." - All About Jazz

Guitarist and composer Dave Allen is a distinctive voice on his instrument and is widely respected in the jazz community as both a player and a composer. At the age of 16, Allen was recognized by Guitar Player Magazine as a talent to watch. Born in Philadelphia, Allen moved to New York in 1988 to attend the Manhattan School of Music. Leading his own groups for the past 18 years, Allen has made his presence felt on the New York scene. He has released two critically acclaimed recordings, "Untold Stories" and "Real and Imagined" on the Fresh Sound label, which feature original music and a well-crafted group sound. Jazz critics have noted his effortless technique combined with his lyrical sound and melodic sensitivity. His groups often include some of the most sought after players working in jazz today, such as Mark Turner, Seamus Blake, Ravi Coltrane, David Liebman, Jeff Ballard, Donny McCaslin, Drew Gress, and many others. He has toured with his own projects in Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Scotland, Turkey and the U.S. For more about Dave, visit www.DaveAllenJazz.com.

Alejandro Florez - Guitar

Listen to Alejandro:
"Pasillo"
Neighborhood: Long Island City, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 5-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Languages: English, Spanish
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Alejandro.

Guitarist Alejandro Florez earned a Master's degree in Jazz Performance and Composition from the University of North Texas before moving to NYC. He now performs in various jazz and Colombian bands, and works as a composer/arranger, session player and educator. Alejandro's current projects include "Tibagui," which performs his original music; the Alejandro Florez Trio, with which he performs original jazz; the free improvisation trios "Apama" and "Torus," and the quartet "Trichrome Roach;" and the Gallo/Florez Duo, a group that explores the traditional music of the Colombian Andes in an improvisational end experimental setting. The album Retrato, featuring his band Tibagui, is his first record as producer and composer. The Latin American edition of Rolling Stone Magazine called the album "flawless from start to finish" and "indispensable." Alejandro's song "Cansao," featured on the album, was selected as a Finalist at the 2008 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. For more about Alejandro, visit www.AlejandroFlorez.com.

Russ Spiegel - Guitar

Listen to Russ: "Chimera"
Neighborhood: Greenpoint, Brooklyn (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 5-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Russ.

Guitarist and composer Russ Spiegel was born in Los Angeles, and raised in Santa Monica, California. While in high school he moved with his family to Germany and traversed back and forth between there and the US for a number of years. While in Europe, he established himself as an award-winning, in-demand musician, touring the Continent with various ensembles, performing at well-known Jazz festivals, and appearing on numerous television and radio shows. In 2001, Russ returned to the US, settling in the mecca of New York and quickly found himself busy on the music scene. Alongside performing - from solo guitar to running his ensemble The Russ Spiegel Jazz Orchestra (a 17-piece band featuring Russ's compositions and arrangements) Ð Russ is a commissioned composer who has released several CDs, written music for film, TV, and musicals, toured Europe and Asia, taught college-level courses, run workshops & seminars, given private instruction, and has copied music for Broadway shows and major-label recordings, as well as having appeared in a number of feature movies as both a musician and actor. Russ has also worked the last four years as the on-set music instructor for the hit Nickelodeon TV show, "The Naked Brothers Band." Russ received his Bachelor's Degree at the University of Michigan, majoring in Philosophy, studied Composition, Arranging and Guitar Performance at the Berklee College of Music in Boston on a scholarship, and went on to get his Masters degree in Jazz Performance at the City College of New York, under the aegis of world-renowned bassist, composer and educator John Pattitucci. For more about Russ, visit www.RussGuitar.com.

Other guitar players who can teach in your home:
Sten Hostfalt
Brad Shepik

Piano

Gabriel Guerrero - Piano

Listen to Gabriel:
"Falling Grace"
"Summertime"
Neighborhood: East Elmhurst, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 5-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Languages: English, Spanish
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Gabriel.

Pianist Gabriel Guerrero is an experienced teacher/performer/composer recording artist and high demand musician in the jazz world today. His extensive knowledge on the instrument on the field of jazz, Latin music and South American music makes him a first call artist in the scene. As a performer Gabriel has participated in numerous acts in the US and abroad. He has recorded and toured with world acclaimed saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi, and Grammy award-winning pianist Danilo Perez. His teaching experience includes clinics, lessons and ensemble coaching at Berklee College of Music, New England Conservatory, St. Paul School, Sergio Arboleda University, and Fernando Sor School, among others. Gabriel approaches each student as a person, finding the potential to succeed in music. Having classical training from age 5 gives Gabriel a great teaching perspective. He has a profound knowledge of piano techniques, postures, projection, sound, as well as harmony and rhythm, and he has developed a wide variety of fun routines to practice. Gabriel develops with students the basic fundamentals of the instrument, and is proficient teaching classical, jazz, and Latin music. Gabriel has taught for over 15 years, and he holds Bachelors and Masters degrees from the New England Conservatory of Music. For more about Gabriel, visit www.GabrielGuerrero.net.

Other piano players who can teach in your home:
Randy Ingram
Sean Wayland

Bass

Doug Drewes - Bass

Listen to Doug: "Running Late"
Neighborhood: Astoria, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 8-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Doug.

Bassist Doug Drewes has been featured on several recordings, including albums by jazz guitarist Oren Neiman, Queens hip-hop artists Too Deep and Dj Buffalo, piano rock band Hugo, and NYC based hip-hop artists DXA. Doug has also performed throughout the U.S. with Greg Hopkins, the Oren Neiman Quintet, David White Quintet, Lady Luck and the Suicide Kings, Damien Pacheco Quartet, Dirty City Power, Coleman and Leigh, Tristen Gaspadarek, Hugo, Doug Kwartler, and the United States Air Force Band of Liberty Big Band. Three of his compositions are slated to be featured on the forthcoming Drewes Brothers album, a quintet co-led by Doug and his brother, Scott Drewes, along with a newly self-composed album featuring saxophonist John Liotta and drummer Nick DeGregorio . A former faculty member at Camp Encore/Coda, Doug currently teaches private bass lessons from his home in New York. Mr. Drewes received his Bachelor of music degree at the SUNY Purchase. He has studied bass with Dennis Irwin, Todd Coolman, Mark Helias, and Scott Colley. For more about Doug, visit www.DougDrewes.com.

Other bass players who can teach in your home:
Dan Asher
Howard Britz
Michael Feinberg
Bennett Huxley Miller
Reid Taylor
Brad Shepik

Drums/Percussion

Pete Zimmer - Drums

Listen to Pete: "Down or Up"
(composed by Pete Zimmer)
Neighborhood: Astoria, Queens (will travel)
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Ages taught: ages 8-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Pete Zimmer.

Pete Zimmer, a gifted and articulate drummer, composer, and educator, moved to Queens, New York in June of 2001 after his completion at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA. Upon his arrival in the Big Apple Mr. Zimmer quickly became recognized for his uncanny swing and propulsive authority; all while maintaining a very high sense of musicality when seated behind the drums. These attributes, along with his constant professionalism, brought Zimmer to perform or record with a fine array of artists including: George Garzone, Joel Frahm, Jeremy Pelt, Michael Rodriguez, David Wong, Dennis Irwin, Rick Germanson, Randy Napoleon, Michael Karn, Julius Tolentino, Gene Perla, Tom Kennedy, Wayne Escoffery, Jaleel Shaw, Dan Nimmer, among many others. In May of 2004, Pete Zimmer launched his record label, TippinÕ Records, and on September 7th, 2004 released his first album as a leader, "Common Man," which was declared "an impressive debut" by the Philadelphia Daily News. Since that time, Zimmer has released three additional leader recordings featuring many of his own compositions that has brought him much critical acclaim worldwide. In addition to being an active performer, Zimmer is dedicated to educating and developing the talents of students. Mr. Zimmer has conducted educational clinics at many Universities throughout the USA including Indiana University, Ohio State University, Northern Illinois University, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, in addition to private lessons of various ages and levels. For more about Pete, visit www.PeteZimmer.com.

Other drum/percussion players who can teach in your home:
Richie Barshay
Kim Garey

Voice

We are currently interviewing voice teachers in Queens. Please visit our employment page for more information.

Other

Javier Arau - Theory/Composition/Arranging

Listen to Javier: "Gypsy Children"
Neighborhood: Jackson Heights, Queens (will travel)
View interactive map.
Ages taught: age 8-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Secondary instruments taught: piano (from age 4), flute, clarinet, saxophone
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Javier.

Javier Arau is an internationally acclaimed saxophonist, composer, and educator. The front cover artist on the July 2009 issue Saxophone Journal, he has received four Down Beat Magazine Awards for performance, composition, and arranging, and has received national awards and recognition from ASCAP, BMI, and MENC, among others. An active composer in New York City, his compositions have been played by Benny Golson, David Garibaldi, the Berkeley Symphony (Kent Nagano, dir.), and many more. Was a finalist for the BMI Charlie Parker Composition Prize and the IAJE/ASCAP Gil Evans Fellowship. Javier studied composition with Bob Brookmeyer and theory with George Russell. An innovator in the field of jazz education, Javier's research and development has been recognized by leading music institutions worldwide. He has taught at New England Conservatory of Music and Lawrence University and teaches private lessons to musicians of all ages in New York City. Javier is the author of several influential music texts and articles, and he has been published by Jazz Educators Journal, UNC Jazz Press, and Dorn Publications. He has taught jazz for over 17 years. For more about Javier, visit www.JavierArau.com.

Mark Josefsberg - Alexander Technique

Watch a video on the Alexander Technique here.
Neighborhood: Midtown, Manhattan and Elmhurst, Queens
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Ages taught: ages 10-adult
Levels taught: beg-adv
Secondary instruments taught: vibraphone
Send us an email letting us know that you want to study with Mark.

After studying Alexander Technique privately for some years, virtuoso jazz vibraphonist Mark Josefsberg decided to take the 1600 hour, 3 year training course to become a full time Nationally Certified Alexander Technique teacher. Mark has studied with some of the most experienced Alexander teachers from the United States, Israel and England, and he is ACAT and AmSAT Certified. In addition to his private teaching practice, with students from all walks of life, Mark has been on faculty at ACAT, training future Alexander Teachers. Some of Mark's private students have gone on to become certified teachers of the Technique. Mark has taught the Technique at Barnard/Columbia University's Physical Education department, and he is the AT teacher on staff at A.R.E. Holistic Health and Wellness Center in New York City. Mark also teaches the AT at the New York Spine Institute in Garden City, and at Step Into Stride Physical Therapy in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Mark is recommended by Beth Israel Hospital's Continuum for Health and Healing. Mark has written several articles regarding the Alexander Technique for Altmd.com, Wellsphere.com and alexandertechnique.com. For more about Mark, visit www.MarkJosefsberg.com.

Other players who can teach in your home:
Miles Okazaki - Improvisation/Theory/Composition

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