Sarah Christianson
Percussionist Sarah Christianson plays a dynamic role in Chicago's music community as a performer, music educator, and arts administrator. As a performer, she has played with orchestras including the Musicians of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, among others. She currently serves on the faculty of The People's Music School and on the administrative staff at Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts. Sarah holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from DePaul University.
LJ White
LJ White is a composer and educator based in Chicago, IL. He has worked with world-class musicians and ensembles including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Alarm Will Sound, the Spektral Quartet, Ensemble Dal Niente, the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, the JACK Quartet, Steven Schick, and members of International Contemporary Ensemble, Roomful of Teeth, Eighth Blackbird, and the Bang on a Can All-Stars. LJ earned a doctorate in composition from Northwestern University in 2017 and was a full-time lecturer at Washington University in St. Louis from 2017-2020. He has taught young musicians at the Merit School of Music, People's Music School, and in the Boston Public Schools and maintains a private studio of composition and music theory students. See more of LJ’s work at wwww.ljwhitemusic.com
Jaime Esposito
Jaime Esposito is a percussion performer and educator based out of Dallas, Texas. In 2018, Jaime co-founded Spectrum Ensemble, a non-profit organization dedicated to highlighting talented LGBTQA+ composers and performers. See more about Jaime: https://www.spectrumensemble.org/ http://www.jaimeespositopercussion.com/
Miranda Stone
Miranda graduated from Appalachian State University in 2018 with a degree in Percussion performance. She currently lives in Asheville, North Carolina and teaches in an after school music program. Miranda teaches general music lessons to the kindergarten and 1st grade classes and helps out with percussion lessons for 2nd-5th grade classes.
John Corkill
Percussionist, John Corkill, is currently serving on faculty at the University of Chicago and Loyola University directing percussion ensemble and teaching applied lessons. He is currently serving as the percussionist for the University of Chicago’s Grossman Ensemble, an ensemble-in-residence at the University’s Center for Contemporary Composition. Similarly, he has performed with ensembles such as Third Coast Percussion, Eighth Blackbird, Ensemble Dal Niente, and the Milwaukee Symphony. John received his Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University where he graduated cum laude and Master of Music Degree from the Yale University School of Music. His teachers include Robert van Sice, Michael Burritt, and James Ross.
Pedro Gomez
Pedro was introduced to the drum at age 13 in a rumba circle. His connection to music has always come from a place of community and rooted in the African/Indigenous diaspora. While performing and studying through out the Caribbean, Central and South America, Pedro has been able to understand the perspective and influences of master musicians. His passion for performing and teaching stems from the belief that musical expression is a form healing and power.He is committed to working hard and passing on traditions that uplift young people and their communities. See more of Pedro’s work at www.bayonics.com & www.ritmoso.com.
Wendelyn Daly
Wendelyn is a homeschool graduate, homeschool mother of two, educator, and Music Specialist. Using the power of music, she tailors each class/lesson to meet the individual needs of her students and helps them reach their full potential. To learn more about Wendelyn, visit her on her Facebook page at Facebook.com/musicwithwendelyn.
Alissa Voth
Alissa Voth is an adaptive arts educator who believes that musical exploration is for all. As both a teacher and a PhD student studying music composition at Northwestern University, she understands the value of cultivating self-guided, never-ending learners. Alissa enthusiastically supports the musical education and inclusion of students with autism, Down syndrome, and other disabilities, and she has teaching experience in schools, theater companies, and music studios in Massachusetts and Oklahoma. When she is not working or student-ing, she enjoys playing the piano, writing silly songs, and making collage art.
Juan Carlos Alarcon
A native of Puebla, Mexico, Juan-Carlos Alarcon developed his love for music while playing piano at an early age. His musical activities have taken him to New York to perform at Carnegie hall in 2016, where he sang in a choir presenting chosen works of the African Diaspora. In February of 2019, he traveled to Los Angeles to the 61st Grammy awards where the CD he worked on, “American Dreamers, voices of hope, music of freedom” by John Daversa, received three Grammy awards.
Educational outreach with young musicians is of utmost priority for Juan-Carlos. Because of his desire to further the arts, education, and inclusion for all, he is involved in local leadership roles. His positions include membership in the Elkhart County Symphony Orchestra board of directors and the IU South Bend Arts Foundation board of directors and is Dean of the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Previous and upcoming conducting highlights include Handel’s Messiah, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Cavalleria Rusticana and Matilda the musical.