Community Music School
INSTRUCTORS & INSTRUMENTS
The MVNU Community Music School utilizes a talented pool of MVNU faculty, students, and experienced local music professionals. Private lessons are available for voice, piano, and most instrumental areas including woodwinds, brass, percussion, strings, and guitar.
To inquire about a group class or private instruction, e-mail communitymusic@mvnu.edu.
INSTRUCTORS
John Packard - Program Director, Brass
Dr. John Packard teaches trumpet and band. He is a music professor at MVNU where he directs the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and chairs the music department. He earned his Doctor of Arts from the University of Northern Colorado and is active as a performer, clinician, and adjudicator.
Heather Faulkner, Program Coordinator
Heather Faulkner studied music at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio and at the Carl Maria von Weber Hochschule für Musik in Dresden, Germany. She's played trumpet with orchestras, concert bands, big bands, pit orchestras, and brass bands but started her instrumental journey on the clarinet. Heather has taught elementary music and high school German in the Southwest Licking Local School District and is currently the Assistant Band Director at Highland Local Schools.
Sabina Anderson - Voice
Sabina Anderson directs the MVNU Treble Singers Women's Chorus. She graduated from MVNU with a Bachelor of Arts in Music. After completing her Bachelor’s degree, she spent time in Indonesia teaching music and drama at Mountainview International Christian School. She then went on to complete her Master of Arts in Ethnomusicology at The Ohio State University.
Andrew Clarkson - Guitar
Andrew Clarkson is a graduate of Kenyon College. He has played guitar for 15 years. He has knowledge of all styles, although his focus is jazz. Andrew performs in various musical settings including the Knox County Jazz Orchestra, the jazz combo Fat Tuesday, and several musical theater productions. He has been teaching for around 10 years and is excited to be teaching guitar this fall for the community music school.
Cary Dachtyl - Percussion
Dr. Dachtyl teaches percussion at both MVNU and Kenyon College, and also maintains a private studio in Columbus. In 2014, Dr. Dachtyl took over as owner and editor of Per-Mus Publications, a sheet music publishing company specializing in music for percussion. He also owns and operates Pterodactyl Productions, a recording studio in Columbus specializing in the recording of acoustic percussion and analog keyboards. He performs in the Columbus area with his wife, a Hammond B3 artist, in the Linda Dachtyl Trio and as a duo with Linda on piano and Cary on vibes.
JoAnn Koh-Baker - Piano
Dr. JoAnn Koh-Baker teaches piano, piano literature and pedagogy, music theory and history at MVNU. She offers and prepares students for the Royal Conservatory of Music certificate program with a comprehensive curriculum covering technique, repertoire, musicianship, and theory. Dr. Koh-Baker holds her doctorate and masters degrees from Boston University and Ohio University, as well as performer diplomas from the Trinity College of Music and the London Royal Schools of Music.
Adrienne Lape - Clarinet, Saxophone
Dr. Adrienne Lape teaches clarinet and saxophone at MVNU. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts from The Ohio State University and is an active musician and private music lesson instructor in central Ohio.
Cynthia Mahaney - Voice, Violin, Viola
Cynthia Mahaney has taught music in Central Ohio since 1981. A graduate of Ohio State University, Cynthia received her Doctorate of Musical Arts in vocal performance, her Bachelor of Music degree in vocal performance from Ohio University, and her Master of Arts degree in vocal pedagogy from OSU. Cynthia is an instructor of voice at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, where she has taught since 2002. She also is a member of the viola section in the Knox County Symphony since 2018. She resides in Howard Ohio with her husband of 33 years in the community of Apple Valley.
Juan Carlos Ortega - Strings
Dr. Juan Carlos Ortega teaches strings at MVNU. His students have held principal chairs with the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestras and have won competitions including the Women in Music Mary Lane Memorial Violin Competition and The Ohio State University's Concerto Competition. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The Ohio State University.
Jenny Packard - Flute
Jenny Packard teaches flute and piccolo and directs the Flute Choir at MVNU. She also teaches flute at Kenyon College and directs the Knox County Community Flute Choir. Jenny’s high school students have participated in honor bands including OSU Honor Band and All-State Band, as well as various competitions and youth orchestras. She holds a Master of Music degree from The Ohio State University.
Juliet Strinka - Voice, Piano
Juliet Strinka has taught piano and voice lessons in Central Ohio for 15 years. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music (Voice) from Ohio Wesleyan University in 2009. Upon graduation, she was awarded the MTNA award for private music teachers, and the Music Performance Award. Juliet loves to tailor each lesson to her student’s unique abilities, needs, and goals, while providing a firm foundation in the basics of musicianship.
Amy Tatz - Piano, Group Piano
Amy Tatz began piano lessons at the age of three and studied Music Business at DePauw University and Otterbein College, after which she began teaching private lessons. She plays flute for the Mount Vernon Community Band, is involved with Mount Vernon Players and many other community groups!
Mike Twymon - Percussion
Mike Twymon is a recent MVNU gradate and elementary music teacher for North Fork schools where he also assists with the Utica High School marching band.
FOR MORE INFO
MVNU Community Music School
800 Martinsburg Rd.
Mount Vernon, OH 43050
740-397-9000 ext. 3000
communitymusic@mvnu.edu
Director John Packard (jpackard@mvnu.edu)
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