Stephen Taylor grew up listening to Sesame Street Jamboree records in Newton, Massachusetts and played in bands at Milton Academy and Middleburg College. He has been teaching Music Together since 2002 and has taught music at Poly Prep Lower School since 2007. He now lives in Kensington and loves making music with you and your family.

Lydia was raised in rural Pennsylvania and could always be found barefoot and adventuring. Whether she was catching frogs in the crick or battling dragons in the woods (stick sword in hand and dramatics in full effect), Lydia found joy through imaginative, expressive play. Thankfully, she didn’t have to let go of that imagination as her life led her to working with young children. After starting a teaching position in a preschool, Lydia soon realized her love for yoga and movement. She quickly found that children have a hundred languages of expression and one of the most under utilized ones is movement. This led her to pursuing her certification in both Children’s Yoga and Special Needs Yoga. Since then, Namaplay was born and Lydia created a program for children to explore yoga, movement, meditation, BIG feelings and play in an open and joyous environment. Five years later she is still chasing dragons through the woods, only this time with the back up of her little yogis. Lydia considers herself extremely fortunate to work with such incredible kiddos and privileged enough not to have grown up too much yet. 

Emily is the director of Hootenanny and a local mama. She teaches Music Together, private lessons, Kids Choir and Guitar for grown ups. Emily likes to bring a light hearted and casual approach to learning music and feels like she’s less of a teacher and more of a permission slip giver for folks to express the unique music that already lives within them. In this spirit, Emily likes to keep any instruction in the spirit of "living room learning"-- educational but low pressure, accessible and most importantly, joyful.

Emily holds a BA in Theatre from Hope College where she also studied voice, played a lot of guitar and made a ton of mix CDs. She was raised taking piano lessons, violin lessons and after-dinner guitar lessons from her Dad. You can find song of Emily’s original music on Spotify under the name Wind and the Why.

Emily is also an actor, writer and songwriter- she can’t wait to make some music together with you!

Nina Grollman is a Brooklyn based multi instrumentalist. They have been playing ukulele for 12 years and teaching for a little over 5! They just started at Hootenanny last year and love the community very much. Their teaching style is song based, meaning that alongside chords and strumming techniques, students learn a new song every week to apply the skills they’re developing.

Carolina Lamiell is a Chilean educator and artist based in Brooklyn. She has nearly 15 years of experience educating children and adolescents. She holds bachelor's degrees in education and history. 

Once she moved to New York, she worked as a Spanish tutor and caregiver, which led her to develop her interest in early childhood education. In 2021, Carolina joined Nido Forest as an outdoor educator, where she worked with children learning Spanish through nature exploration and free play. 

She is also a musician and singer and has applied her musical knowledge in the classroom from the beginning of her career. Currently, Carolina is part of the Urban Stages Outreach Program, which tours admission-free educational plays and workshops to libraries throughout all five boroughs of New York City in multiple languages. Through it, she has co-led Brainy Babies and led the Multilingual Storytime series in various branches of the Brooklyn Public Library.

In 2023, Carolina created Música y Canciones Para Grandes y Peques, a program where she offers Spanish immersion music classes for babies, toddlers, and their accompanying adults at Mi Centro BK in Bed-Stuy and at The Collective Kind in Park Slope. The same year, she got certified as a Canta y Baila Conmigo® instructor, which consists of interactive classes where children and caregivers can learn music and Spanish naturally and organically.

As an immigrant and Latina, Carolina is proud to contribute her knowledge and love of teaching meaningfully to the community of Brooklyn, where she has found a home and raised her family. 

Sarah Slipp is a composer, orchestrator, and music teacher from New Brunswick, Canada. She earned a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance and Composition from Acadia University in 2022 and graduated from NYU Tisch in May, where she earned her MFA in Musical Theatre Composition. Sarah has been working with kids for the past ten years and feels she has found her calling in teaching music, as it allows her to combine her love of working with children with her passion for the arts. Sarah prioritizes getting to know each student she teaches and aims to tailor each lesson to their unique strengths and interests. She loves learning about her student’s favorite songs or musical genres so that she can incorporate something that they love into their lesson, and use it to help challenge them to set attainable and exciting goals.

Jilian is a dynamic and versatile artist, excelling as a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist. Her passion for music is infectious, and her teaching style encourages experimentation while discovering one's own unique voice. Jilian's musical journey began at a young age when she fell in love with playing guitar and writing and performing her own songs. A passionate student of her craft, Jilian honed her skills at the prestigious Berklee College of Music, where she studied songwriting and vocal performance. Berklee became the ground where her talent blossomed into refined expertise. Jilian is deeply committed to nurturing the next generation of music makers and creative thinkers! Her infectious enthusiasm and patient guidance create an environment where young minds feel empowered to explore their creativity and authentic expression!

Sheniqua Trotman (she/her) is a Brooklyn-based song leader, vocal empowerment coach, and founder of Elevated Expression. She creates welcoming spaces where people of all backgrounds can sing, heal, and reclaim the power of their voices. Her circles center joy, liberation, and deep connection through song.

Micah Herron is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and teacher from Brooklyn. He completed his Bachelor of Music Performance in Classical Flute at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Canada. Micah performs in a variety of music genres, including bluegrass, old-time, Irish traditional, and musical theatre. His instruments include guitar, ukulele, flute, banjo, and tin whistle. He has been teaching music since 2017. Micah’s first encounter with Music Together was when he attended classes as a toddler with his parents. When he’s not performing or jamming, Micah can be found weaving on his loom or contra dancing. Micah plays guitar and ukulele in class. 

Tess Edwards (she/her) is an avid creator, composer, and stage manager based in Brooklyn. She holds a BM in Music Composition and Theory from the University of Delaware and is a recent graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts’ Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program. Previously, she has volunteered with the 52nd Street Program and A.I. DuPont Hospital for Children. In addition, she has worked as a stage manager and production assistant with Delaware Shakespeare, New Light Theatre, Rising Sun Performance Company, and Eat the Peadies! among others. She looks forward to collaborating with the wonderful community at Hootenanny!

Composer/author Charlie Rauh has been artist in residence for organizations including the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine. He is the author of “Simply, Patiently, Quietly” from String Letter Publishing - a combination of essays on creative approach, illustrations by Christina Rauh Fishburne, and a songbook of original compositions. Rauh’s work has been featured in Ploughshares, Acoustic Guitar Magazine, and The Advocate. He has given artist talks for music and literature departments at institutions including Louisiana State University, University of Tennessee, and New Jersey institute of Technology.

Isaac Gillespie is a musician, educator and all around bon vivant based in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Having spent over a decade playing ukulele and teaching music in schools and libraries throughout the five boroughs, Isaac has developed an appreciation for the great variety in students and musical approaches. By night Isaac plays guitar and bass in bands and puts on shows. From 2009-2020 he played primarily in the rock band The Due Diligence, making three albums and a handful of east coast tours. Catch him now on the Brooklyn honky tonk scene playing and singing with Kyle & Isaac.