Andy McElhatton
Instructor - Guitar, Bass
Andy McElhatton started out his younger years heavily involved in sports and competition. Though he didn't begin playing guitar until college, he took lessons he learned in athletics and applied them to his study of music. He quickly realized music was more than a hobby; it was his passion. Andy began studying music formally at Portland Community College. Upon receiving his associate's degree in music through PCC he transferred to Portland State University where he continued his musical education and earned his bachelor's degree. Andy has been teaching students of all ages since. He loves sharing his musical knowledge and passing along the joy one can achieve from learning to play music. Andy's long term goal with each of his students is to prepare them for the ability to teach themselves how to analyze and approach a new song or musical style. When he is not playing guitar, Andy enjoys reading, exercise, and visiting with family and friends.
Tara Velarde
Instructor - Piano, Guitar, Voice
Tara Velarde is a music teacher and performer here in Portland, OR. She has a BA in Music Education with a Secondary Choral Emphasis, and has worked as a music teacher (Pacific Youth Choir, Portland Center Stage, Veritas Academy, Ethos Music Center, Oregon Music Academy, Pacific University, CS Lewis Academy), a soprano (The Oregon Symphony, White Bird Dance), a musical theater actor (Portland Center Stage, Broadway Rose Theater Company, Third Rail Repertory Theater, Oregon Children's Theater), and as a band frontwoman (two studio albums, tours in the US and Europe).
Belinda MacDougal
Instructor - Violin, Piano
Belinda has been teaching the violin and viola since being awarded a Bachelor of Music, Pedagogy from the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia in 2001. In 2000 she was also awarded an Associate of Music with Honors from the Australian Music Examinations Board on the viola. She has previously taught a full studio of young violinists and violists in Australia at Tamworth Regional Conservatorium of Music in group and solo lessons. She has also performed as a violist of many different orchestras and in chamber music recitals. Most recently she is an assistant instructor at Metropolitan Youth Symphony.
Aber Miller
Instructor - Piano, Drums
Aber Miller grew up in Lawrence, Kansas where he studied piano and drums from a young age. He attended college as a music major at Humboldt State University (now Cal Poly Humboldt) in Arcata, California, earning a BA in music. Many of his compositions were performed by groups at Humboldt, including the Humboldt Jazz Orchestra’s arrangement of his composition “Meditation.” Simultaneously, Aber began performing around Humboldt County in a variety of genres and settings, in time becoming one of the area’s most prominent jazz musicians before moving to Portland in 2018. When not teaching, Aber tours with local notables Shook Twins.
Aber’s teaching approach emphasizes musicianship, theory, and improvisation, in order to set students up for a lifetime of music in a variety of settings.
Shiloh Schatzkamer
Instructor - Guitar, Ukulele, Voice and Piano
Shiloh Schatzkamer is a graduate of Reed College and is an experienced ukulele, guitar and piano teacher. Shiloh welcomes students of all ages interested in pursuing this noble path. In addition to being the student of Julia Banzi (Al Andalus Ensemble, Reed College and Lewis & Clark College) Shiloh has the good fortune to be the daughter of renowned guitarist and educator Mark Shark (Tao.of.tunings.com). Experience in the art of teaching younger students was cultivated at the highly respected CLASS ACADEMY ~ A private learning institution for Pre-K through 6th grade students (Northwest Portland) where she ran the music program for two years after graduating.