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Mr. Charlie (ChIMES)
Born and raised in the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, Charlie Perkes comes from a strong musical family. He was accepted into the United States Army Band as a bassist and while in the Army, he studied at the Department of Defense School of Music.
After completing four years in the Army Band, he joined his wife in the Navy Band, where they completed a four-year tour of duty performing all over Europe and Africa. His next tour to Japan was for four years, performing all over Southeast Asia.
Charlie plays the bass, cello and ukulele, and has been teaching ChIMES classes for several years. He also works as a Strings Teaching Artist for SDYS.
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Miss Kat (ChIMES)
Kat Fitzpatrick has a BA in Child Studies and an AS in Early Childhood Development, and over 30 years of early childhood teaching experience. She has taught preschool at both private schools and at CVUSD. Kat also ran her own business teaching music and drama enrichment classes for young children and performing for children all around San Diego.
Her other passion (besides the little ones!) includes musical theater and performance. Kat has won awards for her own original preschool song recordings and also for performing; she has been in many San Diego productions, most recently Sister Act at SDMT and The Addams Family at Lawrence Welk Theater.
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Miss Michelle (ChIMES)
Michelle Caravia began playing the piano at a very early age and has a Bachelor of Music with a major in vocal performance. She has taught private piano and voice lessons as well as improvisational acting and group singing classes. She was a substitute teacher and paraeducator with the Orange County Department of Education for 6 years in the special education classes.
Michelle is passionate about performing and enjoys everything from singing to acting to improv. She has sung with Opera San Luis Obispo, Miami City Ballet and New World Symphony. She has performed in improv festivals around the country and, most recently, performed in an interactive theater production at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Florida.
A daughter of Cuban immigrants, Michelle grew up in a Spanish-speaking household and she is excited to give ChIMES families exposure to Spanish language through songs and other musical activities.
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Miss Mariana (ChIMES & Music Discovery)
Mariana (Mari) Jones began working with SDYS in 2022 as an Opus Program Assistant and ChIMES Teaching Artist, and will be teaching Music Discovery as well, starting in the fall of 2023. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Mari came to San Diego to receive her BA in Theatre Arts and Performance Studies from the University of San Diego, where she pursued a minor in Comprehensive Music, and spent much of her time singing, playing piccolo, dancing baile folklórico, and acting.
Over the last few years, Mari has been working in music education and devoting her time towards connecting with her Mexican heritage, and her passions for applied theatre and border advocacy. She has been studying and practicing theatre of the oppressed and community music applications to connect and work with those affected by the border crisis in Tijuana and San Diego.
Mari has always looked up to her mother, who works in early childhood education, and she is excited to be following in her footsteps and teaching with ChIMES and Music Discovery.
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Mr. Thiago (ChIMES)
Thiago Winterstein is a charismatic, family-oriented multi-instrumentalist who performs and teaches in multiple languages and genres. Starting at age 8, he began studying piano and trombone, which would provide a foundation for learning many other instruments. His formal studies included earning a Guitar Performance degree from Musicians Institute in Hollywood, CA, and studying Brazilian percussion, drum set, cavaquinho, arrangement, and 7-string guitar in São Paulo, Brazil.
For the past 17 years, Thiago has been performing, teaching, recording, and writing music in styles ranging from Bossa Nova, Nueva Trova, North American and Latin American Folk, reggae, rock, and blues. For years he performed with Chilean singer Angela Roa. He also helped develop a music program in Los Angeles to promote language development, literacy, and movement with the support of the Hope Street Family Center.
He is currently establishing his musical roots in San Diego, playing capoeira, and helping raise his twin daughters.
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Miss Helen (ChIMES)
Born and raised in Surrey, UK, Helen is a passionate performer, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. As a teenager, she took the stage in numerous musical theatre productions, starring as Elphaba in Wicked and Blousey in Bugsy Malone. She went on to study at the Academy of Contemporary Music, earning an Associate's Degree in Music Industry Practice before completing a Certificate of Higher Education in Vocal Performance and Songwriting. During her studies, she performed as both a vocalist and instrumentalist in various bands.
Since moving to the United States in 2019, Helen has dedicated herself to teaching music and theatre to students of all ages. She continues to write and perform her original music throughout San Diego.
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Miss Briana (ChIMES)
Briana Mossman is an oboe player and teacher with a Bachelor's degree in music from UCLA. She was born and raised in San Diego and began playing clarinet in elementary school. While attending Helix Charter High School, she began playing oboe and quickly joined multipled San Diego ensembles such as San Diego Youth Symphony, City Ballet of San Diego orchestra, and many more. Now residing in La Mesa, she gives private oboe lessons in her home and for various schools across San Diego. Briana is so excited to be coming full circle by joining the KeyNote/SDYS family again through the ChIMES and Music Discovery programs. She is a deep believer in the importance of music education and is looking forward to connecting with more students and families.
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