Our Oakville Music Teachers

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Alanda has been involved in many different aspects of the music scene for over 20 years.  She has extensive experience working with choirs, musical theatre, and also plays many different instruments.  

Over 20 years ago she started using her contagious love of learning as a teaching tool; inspiring people of all ages to learn and enjoy learning music with a positive and fun approach.  

Alanda has also been teaching music lessons at Addison Music Learning Centre for over 20 years.   

 Gretchen has performed across Canada in Theatre and Music Theatre, Operatic Works, (including original works), Symphonic concerts and has also been seen on television, feature films, and has also performed for CBC Radio. Originally from Toronto, Gretchen has extended her musical and acting studies to include New York, where her training was mostly Classical there, but she feels equally at home in Music Theatre, folk, pop and light jazz. 

Her singing performance beginnings, were folk and rock, but she believed in the power of classical training. She is one of the original members of the PHANTOM OF THE OPERA company, and also the MUSIC OF ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER concert series, as well as having starred and originated many roles for Canadian Music Theatre. 

Gretchen is also well known for her role of 4 years playing Mrs. Jeremiah, the mother of the series star Joey Jeremiah, in the award winning television series DEGRASSI JR. HIGH. Her roles in standard Music Theatre repertoire include Kate, in KISS ME KATE, Alexandra in ALEXANDRA THE LAST EMPRESS (original), Bertrande in THE HOUSE OF MARTIN GUERRES (original), Iolanthe in IOLANTHE, as well as many others that also include Anne of Green Gables, The Boyfriend, The Picture of Dorian Gray (original work, by the award winning composer of the recent DROWSEY CHAPERONE Greg Morrison), and The Desert Song for Shaw Festival. She has appeared many times in concert with the Conductor and Operatic Star Mark Dubois, and has enjoyed singing with full symphonies on numerous occasions. 

Gretchen is please to have founded the quartet QuattroVoce. Gretchen has also Music Directed, Conducted and Directed in the Panasonic Theatre’s production of CABARET. Gretchen has also co-hosted a radio show for CBC called Basic Black, with the infamous Danny Marks. She has also trained several movie stars for their singing and musical roles in feature films and television. 

Gretchen is a renowned vocal instructor, and spends much of her time training her well known roster of students, who’ve gone on to Broadway, and L.A. in movies and stage, and are all known for their excellence at their craft. (Some call her their “best kept secret”.) She also directs and writes shows 2 - 4 times a year for them, and produces these, at theatres in Ontario. 

Gretchen is also responsible for for forming and producing for “SAY YES TO OPERA!”. A group that brings opera to “urban” spaces. CBC RADIO has been a great support of this event, and Gretchen has done a full 12 minute interview for Ing Wong Ward on her radio show. Gretchen has also been interviewed on the internet based radio show LIQUID LUNCH. You will find her on occasional Saturdays, with her group performing for folks at the ST. LAWRENCE MARKET at Front and Jarvis in Toronto.   

 Irina Graduated from the Saratov State Pedagogical University with an Honours degree speacializing in Music for Elementary and Preschool.   Three years previous to this she obtained a Music Education diploma from Volgograd State Pedagogical College.  

Since 1995 she has held many positions in the field of music education including  an accompanist for a ballet company (piano), Elementary Music School teacher and Choral Conductor,  and a private voice and piano instructor at schools such as the Hamilton Conservatory and Mohawk College.  Irina specializes in classical but can perform and teach all styles .       

 Katharine is a classically trained musician with over 25 years of experience. At the ripe age of four, she began voice training at Studio Aline Dansereau in Laval, Quebec, after begging her parents for an outlet to sing, and her innate passion and talent was given room to flourish. There she learned the basics of theory, harmony, sight reading, singing in multiple languages, piano and performing popular, folk, and many varied styles, from the Beatles to Cirque de Soleil themes.

She then went on to train at Académie Musicale Annie Busque, where she began to expand her repertoire and focus on classical and lyrics songs. She completed the Royal Conservatory of Music exams in her pre-teens and performed in many different classical music festivals and concerts, including solo work, duets, and chorals, preparing her for her College studies at the prestigious Cegep Marianpolis, where she studied and trained in Classical Voice Performance under Irene Feher, PhD in Voice. The program was in tandem with McGill University, where she trained and performed in the McGill choral, piano as a second instrument, and private voice training. She participated in many competitions, festivals, and performances during that time, including the Prix d'Expression Musicale, and the Bicentennial celebration of the Oratoire St-Joseph in Montreal, performing an original contemporary composition. 

She also had a lead role in the Montreal West Operatic Society's performance of H.M.S. Pinafore. Her extensive learning at Marianopolis focused on advanced musical theory, sight-reading, ear-training, sound recording, music history, and of course performance. 

Her studies led her further to Université de Montréal, where she began her Bachelor of Music in Classical Voice Performance, further developing her technique and mastery of the languages of song; English, French, Italian, and German. After some time in the program, she decided to take a different path and joined a contemporary alternative classical-jazz-pop band, the meadowsweet, where the band composed and recorded original complex pieces and performed at venues such as the Theatre Imperiale du Quebec. This experience encouraged Katharine to begin experimenting with writing and recording her own music for voice, piano, and other instruments. 

Katharine specialises in voice and piano, also plays ukulele, and dabbles in other instruments such as melodion. She enjoys covering and recording her own renditions of current and old popular/folk music, and has performed internationally at concerts, weddings, and other events. She is currently working on recording a solo project of original compositions. Her immense passion for music has no limits, and her dream is to continue to play music in all of its forms, and to share her knowledge and infinite love of music with her students. 

Ian has been teaching guitar in Oakville at Addison Music Learning Centre longer than any other teacher at the school.  Along with Kim he has watched the school grow from 3 teachers and 30 students to well over 20 teachers and 1,000 students.  

If it's maturity in style, education, and experience, it's Ian that you want as a teacher as he has been writing and performing music professionally for over 20 years and he has been teaching since 1992.  

He is capable of playing many different styles and to prove that works in diverse bands from rock, grunge to jazz.  Ian has also recorded his own CD that features jazz standards as well as a few originals. 

 Though not trained as a singer Ian enjoys singing and does so at many of his gigs.  Ian is a graduate of the Mohawk College music program and is more than capable of teaching any student and any style.    

Ray studies guitar at Humber School of Creative and Performing Arts where he's working towards his Bachelor of Music degree. Before that, he'd studied jazz guitar and acoustic folk music in high school.  He has been playing guitar and bass since age 10, and also has experience teaching ukulele. 

His greatest musical influences are Pat Metheny, Joni Mitchell, and Herbie Hancock. 

When he's not practicing, Ray spends his time rock climbing, cycling, and transcribing music. As an experienced lead camp counsellor at an arts camp, Ray has a passion for leadership in the arts and loves working with kids to help find their passion.  

Over the past 11 years, he has learned closely from great guitar players such as Nathan Hiltz, Lorne Lofsky, and Michael Walsom. Ray has played in many musical capacities, performing on guitar in a jazz setting, bass in a funk cover-band at multiple venues around the GTA for the past 5 years.

Ray's main focus as a musician is composition and songwriting, and as a teacher, offers lots of tools and skills to his students to guide them what motivates them on their instrument and what music they want to explore, no matter the style or genre. 

 Stefan recently graduated from Humber College's Bachelor of Music program and is now a busy freelance musician in the city of Toronto. 

A deep affinity for woodwinds has led Stefan to master the saxophone, flute, and clarinet. An experienced performer, Stefan often plays several shows per week with a diverse collection of musicians. Considering versatility his greatest asset, Stefan not only plays a wide variety of instruments but also a wide variety of genres and is eager to pass on the knowledge that he has learned in the areas of jazz, classical, funk, hiphop, pop, and rock & roll.

In addition to being a prolific performer, Stefan is also a seasoned teacher. In addition to several years of private teaching experience, Stefan spent the summer of 2018 co-leading jazz ensembles, marching bands, chamber ensembles, and orchestras at the prestigious Buck's Rock Creative and Performing Arts Camp in Connecticut. 

Stefan's dedication to music has resulted in a rich and enjoyable life full of experiences and possibilities.  As a teacher, Stefan hopes to share his lifelong love of music with his students and inspire them to see the beauty of music and the depth that it can add to everyday life.

At an RCM A.R.C.T playing level, Cody is a classical pianist and teacher who has graduated from the  Mohawk College Music Program and hopes to eventually become a concert pianist and university music teacher. 

After discovering he had perfect pitch, Cody studied with a retired concert pianist, learning Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” which he performed six months later at a piano bar while on a holiday in Cuba. Two years later, Cody enrolled in the music program at Mohawk College where he would study with teachers such as Jamshed Turel, Alexei Gulenco and Dusty Micale as well as many others.   Cody now takes piano lessons with world renowned pianist, Valerie Tryon, and looks forward to getting ready for university and furthering himself as a musician.  

In a very short time Cody has greatly exceeded anyone’s expectations and performed works such as Chopin’s Scherzo in B flat minor and Liszt's Mephisto Waltz as well as many other virtuosic works. 

Cody has participated in master classes with pianists such as Stephen Hough, Marcel Bergmann, Marc Pierre Toth and Samuel Deason. He has also performed in events for the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra and Hamilton Public Library as well as many other venues. 

As well as classical music Cody is also an avid lover of musical theatre.  Cody regularly participates with an orchestra as a keyboardist for Burlington Student Theatre performing shows such as Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Xanadu among many others. 

Cody is currently taking some time off from furthering his education to refine his technique and musicianship skills before continuing university studies. 

Karan is a classically trained pianist and is currently in the Jazz program at Humber college. He was introduced to western classical music at an early age and subsequently started appearing for grade examinations acquiring an Associate diploma from the board of Trinity college London. 

He has performed at the NCPA and the Russian centre of performing arts (MUMBAI) as an accompanist and solo pianist respectively. He has a wide range of experience teaching various age groups ranging from 5 to 50 in High schools and private music schools respectively having different skill levels from beginner to advanced. He has trained students for piano recitals as well as annual music examinations from ABRSM, LCM, TCL etc. 

Karan specializes in good technique and a strong theoretical conceptual base from his classical roots at the same time uses effective variety of techniques to make his lessons fun and enjoyable by teaching an extended repertoire of various genres in music like Pop, RnB, Ragtime, Jazz etc and has innovative methods to teach Aural training as well. He strongly believes that hard work, patience and perseverance with a splash of fun is the key to accomplish any big goal or a goal as small as learning a new piece of music.  

 Marianne grew up outside Walkerton on a family-owned dairy farm.  She started playing piano at a young age. Marianne participated in music festivals across Ontario winning first place awards and successfully moved on to compete at the provincial level. 

Throughout her life she performed in numerous church, community and fundraising events and entertained at various functions. Her passion for music led her to study at Mohawk College where she has been involved in various ensembles including piano duos, piano trios, flute trios, and Classical choir.  

She is now a graduate of Mohawk College and has received her applied music advanced diploma. She has also achieved her grade 9 RCM.  

 Patty has been playing piano for over 35 years and teaching since 1993. She graduated from the prestigious Arts York program at Unionville High School and went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts (Music) degree from the University of Western Ontario. Patty has a special interest in music theory, having studied with Joe Ringhofer, current Chief Examiner of Theoretical Subjects of the Royal Conservatory of Music. In addition, Patty is active as an accompanist for exams, music festivals, and other events.    

Logan has been playing drums for over 16 years and is based in Toronto as a gigging/ session musician. 

While growing up in Muskoka, Logan studied drums and played in multiple original and cover bands, including the notable Muskoka Concert Band. After completing his Bachelor of Commerce at Carleton University, Logan decided to pursue his passion for music and study in Humber College’s Bachelor of Music program. 

He has studied privately with Don Vickery and Steve Mancuso, attended masterclasses with Mark Kelso, and has played in an ensemble under Larnell Lewis’s direction. 

Logan had the pleasure of playing in Deerhurst Resort’s HITLIST, the same show credited for launching Shania Twain’s solo career. HITLIST is recognized as the longest running show in Canada (for 35 years) and Logan is grateful to have taken part in it’s final year of production. 

Logan has completed his Bachelor of Music Degree program from Humber College and is now pursuing performance and session work.  Teaching on the side allows him to share his passion and knowledge in music!   

Sama is a passionate and dedicated certified Orff instructor and Early Childhood Music teacher who has worked for several musical institutions since graduating from Art University of Tehran with a Master in Music Education.  She has completed Orff Level I & II to further her knowledge in music pedagogy through The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, and also completed her Smart Start course at the RCM which concentrates on teaching toddlers music.

Focusing on cognitive, language, and social skill development using music in childhood, Sama uses voice, Piano, Recorder, Tar and her strong knowledge of music theory to provide young children with the tools necessary to succeed in life and music long-term. She works with early childhood centers and schools across Toronto in order to bring a love of music to as many children’s lives as she can.