Our Teachers
Alexandra Rhoads (piano, guitar, ukulele)
Alexandra has been teaching music lessons for 20 years. She earned her Master’s in Education from George Mason University in 2012 and has taught full-time as a special education teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools at the elementary and high school levels. Alexandra has been a performing musician and songwriter in the Northern Virginia area both with a band (Spectra) and as a solo artist for over 15 years. She has released two studio albums entitled “Room to Breathe” (2007) and “All This Time” (2016) in which she performed all vocal, guitar, and piano tracks, and received a Silver award in the Rock category of the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest in 2016. Additionally, she has been nominated for 3 Washington Area Music Awards. She has a background in classical, rock, pop, and blues styles on both piano and guitar. Alexandra’s goals in teaching are to broaden her students’ knowledge of music, help them reach their full potential, and allow them to learn music that they are excited about. She is passionate about sharing her love of music with her students!
Steve Housewright (guitar, ukulele)
Steve Housewright has been teaching guitar and ukulele for 25 years. During that time he has taught hundreds of youth ages 5 to 17 through afterschool programs, in schools, libraries and privately. He has worked with several nonprofits in St. Louis and Los Angeles including the Strings Attached project, Sir Charles Blues Lab with Ray Charles and Heart of Los Angeles Youth (HOLA) in bringing music education to underserved communities.
Steve's work has been supported by numerous music education foundations including Les Paul Foundation, Fender Music Foundation, Mockingbird Foundation and as a Music Fellow with the Jubilation Foundation. He has played guitar since the age of 6 and played professionally as a backup musician and as a studio recording artist.
Levi Carpman (guitar, ukulele, drums, piano)
Levi Carpman is a Northern Colorado based musician, educator, and producer. He attended the University of Northern Colorado where he received a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies. Levi has been teaching since 2019 in a variety of settings ranging from private lessons to directing a state finalist marching band percussion section. He has experience with a variety of genres, allowing lessons to be tailored around the interests of the student, and his main goal is always to help students find the joy in music.
Olena Willits (piano)
Olena has more than 20 years of progressive experience in the piano and keyboard performance and teaching. Her professional history includes such positions as teaching at Kyiv School of Music, playing at the Kyiv Musical Theater Orchestra, as well as working as a concertmaster at the Kyiv Children's Choir, and a worship leader at local churches. She grew up and studied music in Kiev, Ukraine but now lives and teaches in the Atlanta, GA area.
Olena finds great pleasure in teaching and feels that she learns as much from her students as they do from her. Each one is a unique individual and she strives to find the right approach to help them learn and discover new things. Her teaching approach helps students develop a love for music and a desire to learn!
Alexandra Stoetzel (piano)
Alexandra is a dedicated music instructor with over 16 years of
experience. She is passionate about introducing students of all ages
to the transformative power of music. Alexandra believes that music
has the unique ability to uplift, inspire growth, and bring joy. She
strives to foster these qualities in every lesson. Her teaching style
blends inspiration, clear instruction, note reading, musical theory
and technical mastery, ensuring a well-rounded and enjoyable learning
experience for her students.Alexandra’s musical journey began at the age of five when fell in love with the piano. Her talent and dedication led her to graduate Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance from the prestigious Berklee College of Music. Always eager to expand her
craft, she continues to pursue education through apprenticeships,
private lessons, and hands-on experience.
In addition to her piano expertise, Alexandra is skilled in voice,
mandolin, and guitar, further enriching her understanding of music.
She has also served as both leader and musical director in various
contemporary ensembles, spanning genres such as blues, pop/rock,
country, and jazz, allowing her to bring a versatile and dynamic
perspective to her teaching.exandra has taught piano for 15 years. She loves to introduce students of all ages to music and its powerful ability to lift their spirits, help them to grow, and have fun. As a teacher, she focuses on balancing inspiration, explanation, and consistent technique practice. Alexandra began studying piano at age 5, after tagging along to her mother’s classical piano lessons. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BA in Music Performance from Berklee College of Music and continues her education through apprenticeships, private lessons, and real-world experience. Beyond the piano, she has studied mandolin, guitar, and voice. She also led or served as a musical director in several contemporary ensembles, including blues, pop/rock, country, and jazz.
Carlehr Swanson (piano, vocal)
Carlehr is a Ph.D. student in Music at the University of Virginia. She is a graduate of George Mason University and the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami with degrees in Jazz Vocal Performance. Before college, Carlehr accompanied and directed multiple church choirs. She credits this experience as significantly influencing her musicality. Upon entering college, she realized the absence of gospel music in higher education. Consequently, she co-founded and directed the Frost Gospel Ensemble. Giving back to her community and connecting with others has been an important theme in Carlehr's life, as she brings people together to serve the greater good. She is the founder and director of the organization "Music is Unity," where she takes music performances to people who may not experience them otherwise. Throughout this year, she has planned and performed more than a dozen virtual events for the community. In 2017 and 2022, Carlehr was 3rd Runner-Up (2017, 2022) in the Miss Virginia Organization and was named the People's Choice (2017). She continues sharing her social impact initiative, "Music is Unity.” Carlehr's career highlights include performances with Shelia Jordan, The Manhattan Transfer, and The New York Voices. Carlehr's greatest dream is to leave every place better than she found it.
Elisa Garcia-Gaetan (violin)
Elisa is a very enthusiastic violinist and violin teacher. She believes in helping the student reach their highest potential while at the same time considering the development and learning process of each student. She got her Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from The Hartt School in 2019 from which she graduated Suma Cum Laude. She has taught in several institutions in Puerto Rico, one of them being Musica 100x35 ( El Sistema de Orquestas y Coros Juveniles e Infantiles de Puerto Rico) with the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico. She enjoys performing classical music and Latin American music genres. She is fluent in teaching her lessons in English or in Spanish.
Yiwen Zhang (piano)
Dr. Yiwen Zhang is a pianist and dedicated educator with extensive experience teaching students of all ages and levels in collegiate, community, and private settings. She currently serves as Adjunct Faculty at John A. Logan College, where she teaches class piano, and has previously held teaching and accompanying appointments at the University of Montevallo and other institutions. As a Senior Teacher at West Virginia University’s Community Music Program and an active private instructor since 2015, Dr. Zhang has guided numerous students toward strong technical foundations, musical independence, and successful examination outcomes, including Royal Conservatory of Music certifications. Dr. Zhang holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from West Virginia University. She earned her Master of Music in Piano Performance from the Boston Conservatory at Berklee and her Bachelor of Music from the Peabody Conservatory of Music. Her teaching is informed by a broad knowledge of piano literature, strong emphasis on musicianship, and a commitment to fostering both artistic excellence and lifelong engagement with music.
Gwen Baier (piano, voice)
Gwen Baier is a passionate and versatile music educator with a Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from Shenandoah University and a Bachelor’s degree from Marywood University, where she also minored in Theatre. With experience teaching voice, piano, and acting, her diverse teaching style embraces classical, musical theatre, gospel, and contemporary genres. A decorated vocalist, Gwen is a two-time 1st Place winner in both the NATS District and Mid-Atlantic Classical Vocal Competitions. She brings an enthusiastic, technique-driven approach to help each student reach their full artistic potential.
Jennifer Chong (piano, guitar, ukulele, voice)
Jennifer has lived and breathed music all of her life. She started taking piano lessons at the age of 6 and enrolled in the Royal Conservatory of Music where she eventually graduated and obtained her ARCT (Associate of the Royal Conservatory) diploma in Piano Performance with Honors and Advanced Theory Certificate. As well as Piano, she is proficient in and teaches voice, guitar, and ukulele and also has completed a Bachelors Degree in Psychology.
Teaching is Jennifer’s joy in life and she has been teaching for 12+ years. She has experience teaching students of all ages and in many different countries such as the US, different provinces in Canada and Asia where she obtained a TESOL certificate and taught English to young children online. Students have many musical styles that they connect with and she loves facilitating that connection to happen, and is very open to teaching all musical styles with a great musical foundation in note reading, rhythm, and technique.
Faith Davis (guitar, ukulele, violin)
Faith is a classically trained multi-instrumentalist with a passion for teaching. She has a Bachelors' degree in music education and has been teaching for 13+ years. As a previous student of traditional music lessons, Faith takes an innovative approach to teaching, implementing games and creative learning tools. She has 10+years of experience in classical and contemporary performance, as well as violin improvisation. Faith believes that learning an instrument should be fun and still include the fundamentals of music. She believes every student has a unique way of expressing themselves and music is the perfect way to hone that expression!