MEET OUR TEACHERS
Our university trained team of highly qualified and dedicated music teachers excel both in the field of teaching as well as performance. Below are just a few of the many teachers offering music lessons in the Conejo Valley, San Fernando Valley and beyond. Whether you are looking for beginner music lessons for your kids, or are an adult wanting to improve your skills, our instructors are ready to help you now!
We are serious about high quality instruction and bringing music to all lives. Our teachers hold at least one university degree in music. In addition, our instructors are carefully selected and we believe we have assembled the very best music teachers our community has to offer.
Each one of our Music School To Go teachers on staff receive thorough background checks and go through an extensive interview process. The safety and security of our students is very important to us — and it should be important to you.
FOUNDER
Jason Sulkin, Founder of Music School To Go
Guitar
Sonoma State University, B.A. in Music Performance
Born in Tarzana and raised in the Conejo Valley, Jason started playing the guitar at the age of 12. He continued to play guitar throughout high school and it wasn’t long before he developed a strong repertoire and a love for all styles of music. Jason went on to further his studies at Sonoma State University where he studied under the tutelage of Mel Graves focusing on jazz theory and improvisation and jazz composition. During his music training, he was a member of the highly acclaimed Sonoma State University Jazz Ensemble. He also studied extensively with renowned San Francisco Bay Area guitarists Steve Sage and Randy Vincent, two great guitar players and mentors who he credits for bringing out the discipline and skills he would need for a lifetime of music achievements and expression. Jason is a professional musician, educator, performer and recording guitarist. He works and performs with a variety of musicians, jazz groups and ensembles in Southern California and continues to indulge his passion for the guitar.
TEACHERS
Amanda
Voice, Piano, Flute
UC Davis, B.A. in Music and Vocal Performance
Amanda's love of music began at the age of five when she started playing piano. Her love of music grew even stronger when she began playing flute in her elementary school band. Amanda has a love for musical theater and was featured in choral works such as The Road Home, Amazin' Grace and Ives' Symphony 4. She has sung with the Chorus and San Francisco Opera Adler Fellow in the UC Davis production of "Carmen," as well as Purcell's "Dido and Aeneas," Le Nozze di Figaro, Die Fledermaus, and The Magic Flute. Amanda performs in Musical Theater and has played a wide variety of roles including The Wizard of Oz, Sweet Charity and West Side Story where she played the role of Maria.
Bill
Guitar
Berklee College of Music, B.A in Professional Music
Born in Morristown, New Jersey and raised in Boston, Bill began his musical journey on guitar at age 11. With one year of lessons under his belt, he started his first band and has not looked back since. While engaging in his studies, Bill worked as an audio engineer and session guitarist in both Boston and Los Angeles. After graduating from Berklee Magna Cum Laude, Bill moved to Los Angeles to continue his career as a session guitarist and audio engineer. Currently Bill works throughout Greater Los Angeles in both live and studio settings. He believes playing the guitar should be enjoyable and rewarding, and he hopes his students feel as passionate about playing their instrument as he does.
Taylor
Drums, Piano
Berklee College of Music, B.A. in Writing and Production
Taylor is a drummer, composer and producer from Los Angeles. He began playing drums at the age of 7 and was exposed to a wide variety of music from Jimi Hendrix to Miles Davis. Taylor holds a Bachelors Degree in Contemporary Writing and Production from Berklee College of Music.
Currently, Taylor is the drummer for the Karen Lovely Band and does freelance work in the LA area. Notable venues and shows Taylor has played include The Hollywood Bowl, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Monterey Jazz Festival and the Congac Blues Festival.
Ana
Violin
Humboldt State University
Ana was raised in a musical family. Her love of music came from her mother who was a violinist. Ana started playing violin at age 7. She had private lessons throughout her childhood and was mentored by Susanna Han, a student of Shinichi Suzuki. Throughout her musical career, Ana has enjoyed playing Bach Partitas and orchestral music concertos, as well as in quartets and small ensembles. Ana began teaching private lessons to her Mariachi students at the age of 22 and since then has continued to share her knowledge and experience with others. She has worked with students of all ages and levels and is very proud to continue to inspire her students and watch them grow into aspiring young musicians.
Kailey
Violin, Piano
Berklee College of Music, B.M. in Professional Music: performance, music business, songwriting, recording. Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music
With a rock and roll keyboardist for a dad and a classical ballerina for a mom, Kailey was born into the arts. At age three, Kailey jammed with her father in what became her first song titled “Little John.” Kailey strives to bring a new musical voice to the industry with her exuberant stage presence and unique playing style. She is described as having an exciting and intense energy on stage that captures audiences with her talent and vivacious personality.
Her extensive classical training led Kailey to discover a passion that bridges technical elements to contemporary music. Kailey has the rare ability to bring an artist’s vision to life, while integrating her own individual style. In addition, Kailey can contribute with her ability to write, collaborate string arrangements, improvise and sing background vocals in live performances and recording sessions. Kailey’s live performance highlights are comprised of playing with artists such as Rod Stewart, Annie Lennox, Willie Nelson, Lalah Hathaway, Sharlotte Gibson, Jetro da Silva, Mario Castro Quintet w/ Strings feat. Dave Liebman, Nikolas Metaxas, Art Decade, Jesse Denaro, Animal Flag, Berklee Contemporary World Strings under direction of Eugene Friesen, and the Whitney Houston Tribute show. Her collegiate education includes the Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music from 2008-2010 as a Violin Performance major and the Berklee College of Music, where she graduated with a B.M. in Professional Music in May 2013.
Kailey is currently working on her debut album. In addition, she is committed to teaching violin, piano and music to inspire and empower anyone and everyone to step into their greatness and fulfill their dreams and goals.
Andrew
Guitar
University of Southern California, B.M. in Classical Guitar
Andrew is a passionate, multifaceted musician from Calabasas, CA. His mastery of the guitar spreads across multiple styles of music, focusing on classical and pop. Andrew has quickly built a career as a performing artist, guitarist, and composer. As a teenager, he was already in high demand with his band, Mysterious Bob. They were even invited to perform on the Sharon Osbourne Show. To date, Andrew’s performance experience is vast and includes performing concerts at Dodger Stadium, Universal City Walk, Whisky A Go-Go, Roxy Theatre and other notable venues.
While earning his Bachelors of Music in Classical Guitar Performance from the University of Southern California Magna Cum Laude, Andrew studied with and performed for some of the top classical guitarists in the world, including Pepe Romero, Scott Tennant, Andrew York, William Kanengiser, and Evan Hirschelman.
In addition to his studies and band experience, Andrew has taught guitar for many years, helping a wide variety of students achieve their musical goals. He has a true passion for teaching and loves to guide students of all ages in their journey to learn the instrument.
Shane
Piano
Wyndham Academy of Music, Piano Pedagogy and Composition
Shane is an accomplished pianist and composer. He began studying music at age 4, learning both the violin and piano. During his musical education, Shane performed frequently at various venues. Some of the venues included wineries, hotels, private gatherings, concert halls and several competitions.
Shane received a Certification in Piano Pedagogy and Composition from the Wyndham Academy of Music. After teaching in Oregon, he moved to Los Angeles to further his career in teaching and film scoring. Since then, he has taught at three schools with a wide variety of students and has had his compositions featured on Lifetime as well as several commercials.
While primarily schooled in classical music, Shane is also adept at teaching rock, blues, pop, jazz and ragtime. He believes that the method should always fit the student and remain relevant to their interests. His teaching method is to instill a love of music from the very first lesson so that music will never become a frustrating obligation, and always fulfilling source of joy and continuous exploration.
Carla
Piano/Keys, Voice, Songwriting, Music Composition
New England Conservatory of Music, B.M. Music Composition
Carla has been teaching and performing for more than 27 years. She holds a B.M. in Music Composition from the New England Conservatory of Music. Carla is just 8 credits shy of a Masters Degree in Music Education.
Carla has performed on the Chapman Stick with The Blue Man Group at the Astor Place Theater in NYC. She has also toured Europe as a background singer with many artists and performed with a girl group revival show called The Party Dolls. In addition, she has performed with many corporate bands in the NYC area. Most recently she is performing the part of Christine McVie in a Fleetwood Mac Tribute named “Mirage.”
Carla has a passion for teaching. For more than 27 years in between touring and performing, she has always had a large studio of students. She believes that each student is different and learns at their own pace. If a student is interested in the music they are learning, they will be inspired to practice harder and thrive at their instrument. Her philosophy is that any song that holds a student’s attention is one we can learn from, whether it’s chords & basic theory from a pop song or Jazz Standard, to song structure from a ballad, to phrasing and poetry from a rap song or vocal pedagogy from a light Operatic piece! Music has something for everyone.
Austin
Guitar, Piano, Voice
Cal State University Northridge, B.S.
Growing up between Atlantic City and Las Vegas, Austin developed a love for music at the age of 4, when he began taking singing lessons. Picking up other instruments along the way, he honed his crafts through experience; performing at venues such as the Venetian Casino, the Atlantic City Boardwalk, the Mall of America, the United Palace Theater, the Roxy, the Mint and the House of Blues, as well as several national and international tours. Austin also has an affinity for musical theater and was recently nominated for an Ovation Award for his work in the first Los Angeles production of “Dogfight” at the Hudson Mainstage.
Austin is an accomplished music teacher with more than 6 years of experience teaching multiple instruments and all levels. He has given music lessons to well known actors such as Max Ehrich (Under the Dome, The Young and the Restless), Leah Lewis (Gamer's Guide, Sing It!, Fred 3), Meg DeLacy (The Fosters) and many more. Austin is currently the Music Director at the Rage Performing Arts Complex and has taught music and songwriting at two well-known LA music programs: Hollywood Launch and School of Pop.
Austin's philosophy on teaching has always been student-centric. He believes the approach should always be tailored to the student and the ultimate goal to foster a student’s growing passion.
Jaki
Piano, Voice, Songwriting
Jaki has spent her life pursing the arts. She was first introduced to piano and voice at the age of 10 and quickly developed a passion for music studying everything from classical music to pop/contemporary and more. Jaki began her professional career teaching private music lessons and building her home studio to write and record her music, including recording vocals and piano for producers all over the world which led to getting signed for the first time in 2013.
With more than five years of professional experience, Jaki feels that her formal training and studies in styles ranging from Classical to Pop has not only assisted with her ability as a Music Teacher and Educator, but has also helped her attain writing and production work for dance and pop artists. In October 2017, her song 'Uh Oh' was placed on the Billboard Dance Chart, and her music can be found on Spotify and other online platforms. Jaki continues to be an active member of the local musical community and maintains a busy schedule teaching private music lessons and writing and recording her music.
Rachel
Guitar, Piano, Voice, Ukulele
Berklee School of Music, B.M. Songwriting
Paris
Drums, Piano, Guitar and Ukulele
Rutgers University, B.A. Music
Fay
Piano and Violin
George Fox University, B.A. Music: Piano Performance
Fay started exploring music with the piano and violin while attending the USU Youth Conservatory from age 7 to 18. During her senior year of high school, she memorized Saint Saens' Concerto in G Minor 1st movement for piano and Chopin's Concerto in F Minor 2 movement for piano.
Following high school, Fay moved to Portland, Oregon to study Piano Performance at George Fox University. While in Oregon, she worked at Ethos Music teaching piano, violin and music theory classes. During this time, her interest in electronic music grew while listening to synth-pop music by VNV Nation with melodic dance beats, indie-electronic anthems, beautiful ballads and post-classical soundtrack pieces. It was then that she decided to get involved in the creation of electronic music and its unlimited potential.
In 2016, Fay moved to Los Angeles to become a student with the Recording Connection Audio Engineering and Music Production School. She completed mentorship programs in electronic dance music production, sound design, film and video game composition and audio engineering. Music is Fay's inspiration with it’s endless possibilities and she looks forward to sharing that fascination and passion with her students.
Mariel
Voice and Piano
The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, NYC, BFA in Vocal Performance
Born in Sydney, Australia, Mariel’s life has been devoted to music from an early age. While still in Australia she began her performance career, appearing at large venues and events including performances with Opera Australia at the Sydney Opera House. Since coming to the United States, Mariel has completed a degree in Vocal Performance from the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in NYC as well as doing session vocal work for songs which have appeared on major national TV programs and on national ad campaigns. As an instructor, Mariel has been teaching students of all backgrounds, skill levels, and interests with both vocals and piano. She enjoys working with students of all ages and various interests, and helping them discover their innate love of music and to develop the tools to express themselves.
Chris
Guitar, Drums/Percussion and Piano
Azusa Pacific University, B.A. Music - Guitar Performance
Chris was born in the small town of Blythe, California. He first began playing guitar at age 12, being inspired by the music he heard from video games. As an active musician through high school and college, he performed with different acts, playing genres such as rock, metal, funk, pop, hip hop and country.
From 2010 to 2014, he studied classical and jazz guitar performance at Azusa Pacific University and performed in the jazz and classical guitar ensembles. He also began studying audio production and percussion and piano.
After graduating he moved to Northridge, California and currently writes, records, and produces original music in his home studio. He also regularly performs his original music as well as country and pop covers with multiple acts throughout Los Angeles under the name Eli Davidson. He's here to help you become the best musician you can!
Matthew
Piano and Voice
McNally Smith College of Music, B.A Music Theory and Composition
Matthew is a formerly signed Independent artist based out of Los Angeles, CA. Spending his formative years in Morocco with his Norwegian-American father and his African-American mother before moving to Minneapolis-St. Paul, Matthew fell in love with music as a young boy. Introduced by his supportive musician father to the songwriting of The Beatles, the stage presence and undeniable showmanship of James Brown and the epic artistry of Michael Jackson, Matthew didn’t just absorb these influences but symbiotically ingested them. With a natural affinity at age six, Matthew quickly learned piano, and drums, while also excelling at singing, melody, and poetry.
Graduating from the McNally Smith College of Music in Saint Paul in 2014, Matthew enjoyed his first taste of success with the six-piece ensemble, The Common Cassettes, who toured throughout the U.S. with marquee performances in Seattle, Austin, and Rochester, New York. This notoriety landed him at Minneapolis’ largest independent label, Pledge Empire Records, with whom he found himself producing, ghostwriting, composing and featuring on various songs for groundbreaking Hip-Hop/Rap artists such as Ced Linus, Sti-Lo Reel, Prince Carlton and Louis P. During this prolific time, he was nominated "Best RnB Artist of the Year" by the Twin Cities Urban Music Awards while also scoring compositions for "Worldwide Star Search" in Hollywood, performing with 3x Grammy-Award winners, Jamaica Bennett, and Pippi Ardennia, and collaborating with former NFL Defensive Linemen, Esera Tuaolo for "Hate in Any Form is Wrong," an event to foster diversity in sports and anti-bullying among youth.
Aside from playing live music, Matthew continues to teach beginner/intermediate artists who are looking to improve their skills as a musician. Whether you want to learn how to hit a note, play a riff or event or elevate yourself as a singer/songwriter, Matthew has got you covered!
Stephen
Voice, Guitar, Bass, Piano and Percussion
Stephen grew up in Nashville, Tennessee and in Tampa Florida. The son of two working musicians, he became interested in music early in life. He started with piano at the age of five, and then become proficient in guitar, bass, percussion and singing. After graduating from Berklee College of Music, Stephen worked as a professional musician performing weddings and corporate events. As a songwriter, his work has been featured on TV and film including the hit show "Dance Moms" on Lifetime. He is passionate about helping both beginners and professionals reach their musical goals. Stephen has taught children as young as five, teenagers and adults. He looks forward to helping his students reach their full potential.