Sing Play Glorify

GLORIFYING GOD THROUGH MUSICAL EXCELLENCE

Category: Instructor

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Rebekah Thompson

Voice Instructor

Piano Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Rebekah Thompson is a piano and voice teacher at the Kansas City School of Music. She holds a Master of Music Education from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelor’s degree in K-12 Choral Music Education from Brigham Young University. She has presented research on junior high school student sight-singing at the Thompson Symposium, PMEA and Eastern MENC. Published work includes world music and Spanish lesson plans for the Smithsonian Institute.

More than just a voice teacher, she is an experienced pianist, singer, and accompanist. She has been a featured soloist in numerous vocal and piano recitals and concerts. She has competed in many music competitions including Gold Cup and New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA).

Mrs. Thompson has over 20 years of experience as a private piano and voice instructor, choral director, and early childhood music teacher. Her passion for teaching young children is clearly displayed in every lesson and has had a positive impact on many lives.

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Kevin Sterchi

Guitar Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Kevin Sterchi is a guitar teacher at the Kansas City School of Music. He has a master’s degree in music education and a bachelor’s degree in guitar performance from Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville. Kevin is also a graduate of The College for Recording Arts in San Francisco, California.

Kevin’s performance career has included various solo, duet, and combo work in both jazz and classical literature. As a recording artist, composer, and producer, Mr. Sterchi has published 7 CD recordings with London based North Star Music records. He was honored with the annual Jazz Award from the National Association of Jazz Educators in 1988 for his work in jazz performance and composition.

Mr. Sterchi has 30 years of experience in music education and has taught at universities, elementary schools, and as a private instructor. Kevin has also worked as an educator of audio engineering and is an accomplished freelance audio engineer/producer.

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Will Peak

Saxophone and Clarinet Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Will Peak is a saxophone and clarinet teacher at the Kansas City School of Music. He holds a degree in music performance from the UMKC Conservatory of Music, where he studied saxophone with Zach Shemon and clarinet with Jane Carl. In addition to his classical studies, Mr. Peak was also actively involved in the jazz program under the direction of Dan Thomas and Bobby Watson.

Will has experience performing in a variety of ensembles including jazz band, pit orchestra, wind ensemble, and saxophone quartet. He has also been commissioned as a concerto soloist by the Church of the Resurrection, with whom he made his debut at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Helzberg Hall.

Mr. Peak has many years of experience giving private music lessons as a saxophone and clarinet teacher. He has also been a guest lecturer and clinician at public schools and universities throughout the United States.

In addition to performing and teaching, Will is also an accomplished woodwind repair specialist. He has performed repair customization for many of Kansas City’s top woodwind musicians.

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Grace Mott

Voice Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Grace Wallace

Grace Ann Mott, soprano, is a versatile and multifaceted vocalist and vocal coach with Kansas City School of Music. Grace graduated with a Bachelor of Music with an emphasis in performance and vocal pedagogy from MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, KS. She received a masters degree in vocal performance at the UMKC Conservatory of Music under the direction of Vinson Cole.

Grace has performed multiple operatic roles but most recently the role of Gertrud in Hansel und Gretel at UMKC. She has performed with the Kansas City Symphony as a soloist in their educational outreach program. 

Mrs. Mott competed in the Kansas City region of the National Association of Teachers of Singing where she received first place in the Musical Theater and Upper Woman’s Classical divisions. She attended Utah Vocal Arts Academy where she studied the role of Fiordiligi and performed excerpts from Così fan tutte. Along with opera, Mrs. Mott has experience in musical theatre most recently with Theatre in the Park where she performed in The Wizard of Oz. She is also the soprano section leader at St. John’s United Methodists Church 

Grace lives in downtown Kansas City. She is heavily involved in music, directing youth musical theater and teaching music at Inclusion Connections, an inclusion program for individuals with special needs.   

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Scott Smith

School Director
Piano Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Scott Smith

Scott Smith holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Park College and has completed graduate work at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, Central Missouri State University, and Bob Jones University. He studied under Joanne Baker, Laurence Morton, Richard Smith, and Robert Anderson. Mr. Smith is an active performer, appearing numerous times in the Kansas City area as a soloist and chamber musician.

An experienced piano teacher, Scott has taught at Central Missouri State University, Calvary Bible College, and several elementary and secondary schools in the Kansas City area.

In addition to being a theory and piano teacher, Mr. Smith directed the Kansas City Youth Chorale and has held positions as organist, pianist, and choir director at several churches in the Kansas City area. Scott has been the director of Kansas City School of Music since its inception in 2003.

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Bonny Green

Director of Operations
Voice Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Bonny Green graduated Magna Cum Laude from Concordia College with a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance. While at Concordia, she was a frequent soloist in the world-renowned Concordia Choir under the direction of Dr. Renè Clausen. She also studied the roles of Adele from Die Fledermaus and Zerlina from Don Giovanni as well as performing the role of Barbarina in Le Nozze di Figaro with the Fargo-Moorhead Opera.

After Concordia, she studied under Dr. Anne De Launay at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, where she earned her Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance. She performed with the UMKC Conservatory as Ruth Putnam in The Crucible, the Dew Fairy in Hansel and Gretel and the lead role of Helene in Hindemith’s operatic sketch Hin und zurück.

Along with opera, Bonny enjoys musical theater. She has performed as Maria in West Side Story as well as the title role in Cinderella. She has sung with the premier choral ensemble, Kantorei, and was the soprano cantor for St. Mary Magdalene Episcopal Church for 15 years.  Mrs. Green has been teaching with the Kansas City School of Music since May 2006 and was promoted to Assistant Director in 2008 and Director of Operations in 2013. Bonny performs regularly in various concerts and recitals throughout the Kansas City area.

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John Eadie

Cello Instructor

Email: [email protected]

John Eadie was immersed in music from a young age at the Victoria Conservatory of Music in Victoria, British Columbia. Since 2009 John has been a cellist in the Kansas City Symphony.

He received his bachelor’s degree in cello performance cum laude from Butler University studying with Dr. William Grubb, and received his master’s degree at the University of Cincinnati studying with Yehuda Hanani. During the summers he studied at the Aspen Music Festival with William Grubb, Yehuda Hanani and Michael Mermagen.

John then became an orchestra fellow with the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, FL for three years. He has performed as principal cello of the Minnesota Opera Orchestra and he has performed with the Des Moines Metro Opera Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Aspen Chamber Symphony, the Spoleto USA Festival in Charleston, S.C., and the Colorado Music Festival. He has also performed extensively both as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the Kansas City region.

Mr. Eadie is a cello teacher for students of all levels. He find teaching both fun and rewarding, and he believes music is something that can be learned and enjoyed at any age.

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Alla Krolevich

Violin and Viola Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Violinist Alla Krolevich holds a Master Associate Degree and Artist Diploma from St. Petersburg Conservatory and has also studied at the Sverdlovsk Conservatory and Polevskoy City Music School.

Ms. Krolevich has toured 40 U.S. States and toured internationally with the St. Petersburg Quartet, in addition to performing with orchestras and chamber ensembles in major theaters and performing centers around the world. As a soloist, she has performed concertos with the Leningrad Chamber Orchestra, the Miami City Ballet Orchestra, and the Israel Symphony Orchestra of Rishon LeZion. She has also recorded under the Melodia label with the St. Petersburg Quartet.

Ms. Krolevich began as a violin teacher more than 20 years ago as an Assistant Professor of Violin with the St. Petersburg Conservatory. She has also taught at the St. Petersburg International Summer Academy, the Conservatory of Music “Beit Barbur” in Tel Aviv, Israel, and has given chamber music and violin solo masterclasses around the world.

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Christina Webster

Flute Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Dr. Christina Webster is a flute teacher who completed her Doctor of Musical Arts in flute performance at the UMKC Conservatory of Music. She studied with Mary Posses. Winner of a Fulbright award, she earned a Postgraduate Performance Diploma at the Royal Academy of Music (London). Here, she studied with William Bennett and Kate Hill. She holds a Master of Music in Flute Performance from the UMKC Conservatory of Music and a Bachelor of Music in Flute and Piano Performance, summa cum laude, from the University of Kansas.

Dr. Webster was awarded UMKC’s Graduate Woodwind Quintet Fellowship and performed with that group for three years. She was also Co-Principal Flute of the UMKC Conservatory Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, and Musica Nova. While at the Conservatory, Dr. Webster also won the Conservatory’s Concerto/Aria Competition, twice. Dr. Webster has performed with the Kansas City Symphony and has concertized with harpist Tabitha Reist Steiner and pianist Ya-Ting Liou. She was the instrumental winner of the 2000 Naftzger Young Artist Competition, and in 2005 was the winner of the SAI Scholarship Competition and the Kansas City Musical Club Scholarship Competition.

Currently, Dr. Webster holds the position of Second Flute with the Wichita Symphony and teaches flute at Kansas State University as a Visiting Assistant Professor of music. Previous teachers include John Boulton, Shannon Finney, Judy Johnson, and Geri Turvey.

 

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Un Chong Christopher

Voice Instructor

Piano Instructor

Email: [email protected]

Un Chong Christopher is a voice teacher who holds a Master of Music in vocal performance and a Bachelor of Music in piano performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music. Here, she studied piano with Joanne Baker and voice with Inci Bashar. As a mezzo-soprano, Ms. Christopher has performed throughout the United States, South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Seoul.

Ms. Christopher has served on faculty at Calvary University and University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music. She is also a part of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), as well as Mu Phi Epsilon (International Music Fraternity).

 

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