South St. Paul

Antonio is a performer, composer, music producer, and audio engineer. He has had a love for music for as long as he can remember and has been playing piano for nearly 20 years and guitar for 15 years. He spent most of his childhood and teenage years learning how to play as many instruments as he could and playing in as many bands as he could fill his time with. He earned his bachelor’s in music from Minnesota State University Moorhead where he focused on jazz performance, music production, audio engineering, and music business. During his college years he ran a house show venue called Grandpa’s House and spent the following 6 years booking shows all over the Fargo, ND/Moorhead, MN area for touring and local artists.

Antonio has performed in numerous groups, most notably indie-rock 4-piece Naivety. He currently plays guitars, keys, and lap steel in the backing band for Minneapolis solo indie project Walker Rider, alongside being Walker Rider’s primary producer. Antonio fills in for many other groups as a backing band member and does studio session work across the twin cities area. He also collaborates with other artists, helping them to write, record, and produce their own music.

Antonio believes that anyone can learn how to play, whether you want to pick up a hobby and grow your creative side or grow as a musician and take your skills and passion to the next level.

New to the Twin Cities, Emily is thrilled to share her musical knowledge with you. She began private lessons on the flute at 8 years old and practiced avidly while growing up in Idaho. While studying art in college, she constantly drew from the combination of discipline and expression she learned from her musical education. Emily finds a uniquely transportive experience whether playing the flute or piano which shapes her experience of the world. Her love of teaching comes from the opportunity to enable others to cultivate this experience. When she’s not teaching, Emily is making ceramics, listening or watching jazz performances, and enjoying the outdoors.

Cynthia offers 50+ years of experience as a musician, educator, therapist and clinician.  She graduated Cum Laude from the University of Alabama with a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education and her journey in her careers has given her a broad and creative philosophy of the use of music in every aspect of life.

She began playing piano at age 5 and then continued to develop her musicianship through all of her educational pursuits.   She gained experience in instrumental performance, vocal and choral performance and conducting, piano instruction, public school music education, liturgical music, music therapy, psychiatric nursing and performance venues.   Her most recent performance venue was at New York’s Carnegie Hall where she shared the stage with a former piano student in the world premiere of “Esther”, a choral composition by Mark Blankenship and Mark Cabiness.

Cynthia utilizes a success-oriented model for supporting the learning of students.  She works with each student with an eye toward individualizing lessons to the student’s learning style and interests and Cynthia believes that students develop a lifetime appreciation of music when they can maximize their skills as well as enjoying their musical pursuits.  Her time spent as a music therapist and psychiatric RN provided a wide view of approaches with special populations, including autism, neurological and physical disease, psychiatric illness, behavioral problems and cognitive deficits.  Her practice recognizes the vast benefits of studying music and performing music as an amazing tool for brain development and achievement which benefits all students, young and old.  Cynthia’s skill set is broad and creative but her ever present goal is to provide a joyful experience through music which can last a lifetime.

She looks forward to partnering with students and parents in learning to play piano and make music a part of each student’s life.