I am a musician, artist, composer, and educator. I’ve also been an educator for most of my adult life starting in tech and moving over to the music world in 2007 when I opened my private voice studio.
My lifelong love of music started as a toddler when my mom would sit me in her lap while she played the piano. Piano lessons started a few years after that. While I loved piano, I discovered my true passion was the voice and composing. By the time I was a teen, I was composing with my keyboard and Commodore 64 and singing in a variety of groups including a gospel choir, show chorus, an elite madrigal group, and a barbershop chorus.
After a brief detour to engineering school, I returned to my first love of music, performing oratorio, cabaret, musical theater, and art song throughout the Northeast US. I eventually opened a voice studio as I settled in as assistant director to a large church music program. While there, I came back to my love of composing and added arranging to my arsenal – when you have three fantastic choirs to work with, it was a no brainer! I spent some time at Berklee College of Music obtaining a Masters certificate focused on composing, arranging, and harmony.
I stumbled into Zentangle® purely by accident. I’ve doodled since childhood, filling the margins of pages with repeated patterns — no blank paper was safe! Around 2014, I was experimenting with mandala drawing and looking for patterns to fill in the spaces. Pinterest pointed me to several Zentangle® patterns and the rest is history. Several local Zentangle® classes completely hooked me on the art form.
During the pandemic, I moved my studio online and learned how to use Logic, broadening my base of students as well as my composing/arranging abilities. I discovered that technical aspects of sound design and MIDI programming tickled my engineer brain! Also in 2021, I attended Zentangle® CZT 37, the workshop where I formally earned my Certified Zentangle Teacher® title. I could officially teach this wonderful art form! While I didn’t realize it then, Air & Ink Studio was born! Air & Ink happily blends my two passions – music and art.
Nowadays, I write music daily while maintaining a small studio of composition and voice students. While I still try to participate in the Zentangle world, I’m mainly focused on music for the time being. I collaborate with musicians all over the world and enjoy creating original songs in a variety of styles. Over the past 30+ years, I have worn a variety of hats in the music industry. I’m grateful for all of the experiences that shape who I am as an artist.
If you would like to hire me to work for you as a composer, producer, orchestrator, or singer, please check out this page. Listen to my music here.
My Philosophy as a Teacher & Coach
Zentangle®’s message of gratitude and appreciation without judgment allows me the freedom to experiment. This message threads its way through all of my creative endeavors and underpins my teaching philosophy.
I encourage my students to enjoy the process and the journey as much as the outcome. We experiment with different techniques to see what works best for their style of music, their bodies, and how they process information. I ask my students to quiet their inner critic while we work with a variety of ways of ideas – sometimes easier said than done! I create a judgement-free, playful zone so students can take time and learn what they need to learn at their own pace.
Everything I teach is rooted in science. Zentangle® draws from mindfulness and flow – there’s brain science in that art! The latest voice science and acoustic vocal pedagogy guides how I teach voice. Part of my job is to translate these ideas into something concrete that a student of any age can understand and use.
My artistic journey leads me through a series of creative deep dives, allowing me to explore various subjects and ideas from many different angles. Likewise, in music and art, I also lead my students on their own creative deep dives to uncover talents and develop skills.
If you’re looking for one-on-one lessons and coaching, please check out this page.
My Music Background
I have been singing and performing since my early teens. After performing professionally for ten years, I started my voice studio in 2007.
My unique background helps me train successful singers. A proud geek, I hold a Bachelor of Science degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. My science and engineering training help me understand the science of singing. My performance career and choral directing background taught me the more ethereal aspects of vocal performance, allowing me to express them to my students more effectively. I blend artistry, experience, and science to help my students uncover their best singer.
I also enjoy arranging and composition, and specialized in these areas when I studied at Berklee College of Music. My arrangements have been performed throughout the New England region by choirs and small singing groups.
Student Successes
My teenage students graduate into music and theater programs including:
- Berklee College of Music
- University of Massachusetts at Amherst
- Hartt School of Music
- AMDA
- Marymount Manhatten College
- Susquehanna University
- Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
My students also attend nationally recognized auditioned summer and music and theater intensives, including those offered by Ithaca College, Boston Children’s Theater, and Broadway Workshop in New York City. I regularly coach my adult, teen, and child students for auditions, competitions, and performances in their local area.
My Performance Career
I perform in a variety of venues in the New England area. Before the pandemic, I was a featured soloist at the First Unitarian Church in Worcester. I also regularly performed in cabaret and classical programs throughout the region.
Some of my favorite performances include Mother in Amahl & the Night Visitors, Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and various parts in Godspell. I have performed solos in such works as Mozart’s Requiem, Dvorak’s Mass in D, Ariel Ramirez’s Nuestra Navidad, Rutter’s Requiem, Vivaldi’s Gloria, and Eleanor Daly’s Requiem. As a musical director for a local theater, helped craft critically acclaimed performances of Lucky Stiff and She Loves Me. I reaffirmed my love of acapella music as Artistic Director of the Post Road Chorus, a Sweet Adelines International women’s chorus. I was also the Vocal Coach and Assistant Music Director at The First Congregational Church of Shrewsbury, MA for many years.