Before having a baby, Amber was a music educator and then a performing musician.  After becoming a mom, she combined these knowledge sets into an engaging music program for Babies and Toddlers and created Meadowlark Music!  She has been teaching these classes in DC for 10 years and in that time, they have grown to 20 classes at multiple locations and over 150 babies weekly!!  Amber is honored to be part of the DC parent community and to play this role.  She regularly performs music in the DC area as well as in NC at various Festivals, community events, birthdays... all the fun!

Amber has a BM in Music Performance and a MA in Teaching and Music Education from UNC, and National Board Certification in Music Education. She has taught at various preschools and has 20+ years teaching private lessons on flute, guitar and voice, 4+ years as a Public Music Educator (middle school band and chorus), and several years as a performing musician, performing professionally in the DC area, including places like the 930 Club and Black Cat. Locally, all around NC, and even touring before having babies.  She has volunteered locally with Guitars for Peace DC, Girls Rock! DC, the Foggy Bottom Senior Guitar Orchestra, and Girl Scouts.

Ms. Rachael is a performer and teaching artist who is passionate about early childhood music education and an inspiring fellow human to spend time around each week. She holds a BA in music from the University of Central Arkansas, an MFA from The George Washington University, and completed training in Musical Theater at CAP21 in NYC. She is excited to share her love of singing, dancing, and making music with little ones. When she’s not singing with babies, Ms. Rachael can be found on stage, in the air (she’s also an aerialist, performing on silks and lyra), or at birthday parties, dressed as a Princess. 

Ari Jacobson is a singer/songwriter who plays guitar, sings, and acts locally in DC.  He grew up in Haverhill MA, studying music and theatre at UMass Amherst before moving to NYC to pursue an arts career. As a performer, Ari has sung musicals Off-Broadway, acted Shakespeare around the country, and played guitar for cruise ship passengers around the world, as well as performing his own original music as a singer/songwriter.  As a teacher, Ari worked as an after-school specialist, private guitar instructor, substitute teacher, and camp counselor before joining Meadowlark.  Additionally, his most recent work in NY was teaching weekly toddler/baby music classes and performing at birthday parties (more than he can count at this point!). Calling DC his home as of August 2015, Ari is excited for a year of fun and music with Meadowlark!

Marcel Penzes is a trombonist/music educator who grew up in Potomac, Maryland. He teaches and performs for all ages, D.C. and beyond! Marcel completed his undergraduate in Jazz Studies-Trombone at the world renowned Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, and will begin his Masters of Music at Johns Hopkins’ Peabody Institute in the Fall.

As a performer, Marcel has performed at the Kennedy Center, Smithsonian, the Spy Museum, DC Jazz Festival, the Anthem, and several other venues and festivals throughout the city! As a teacher, Marcel has taught private music lessons, and even curated a jazz educational program for elementary schoolers K-5. Additionally, Marcel has worked in childcare, for the CDC, and as a camp counselor, in Montgomery County, Maryland. Marcel is passionate about sharing the fun and joy of music with the next generation!

Julia is a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill double majoring in Psychology and Human Development and Family Science. Singing all her life, Julia has helped foster successful music communities in multiple environments through her strong leadership skills and warm attitude. For the last eight years, she has helped her church worship band grow extensively, lead her high school choir as President and Choreographer, and is now a music director for her collegiate acapella group, Tar Heel Voices. She has also spent a lot of time working with children, including her last summer where she worked with children with autism as a Behavioral Technician and this past year where she worked as a teacher at a preschool in Chapel Hill. Julia’s desire in life is to help people grow and work toward things they are passionate about, and can’t wait to work with you towards your goals.  You can also see her performing around town with the Little Larks (our Meadowlark Trio)!

Glenda Bates is a Jazz vocalist, Classical oboist, composer, songwriter, and writer. As an oboist, Glenda has performed with orchestras, chamber ensembles, and new music groups including Symphony Napa Valley, New Opera New York, Festival Opera Oakland, Glenview Classical Series, and Mills Performance Group. She even performed with Evanescence and Lindsey Sterling as part of the Classical Revolution Orchestra. Dr. Glenda has a D.M.A. in Oboe Performance from Stony Brook University in New York.  As a vocalist, Glenda currently sings with the Capitol Lab Band and is a founding member of the Jazz Mafia Choral Syndicate. She's working on recording her first album of original children’s music.

Glenda began writing children's songs when she first started teaching preschool music classes more than a decade ago. She taught and developed curriculum in preschools all over San Francisco as a Core Artist at Performing Arts Workshop for five years. She also taught baby & me classes with Music for Aardvarks before moving on to teach her own early childhood music classes at preschools and music academies in Oakland, California. After a long time away, Glenda is thrilled to be back home in the D.C. area and joining the Meadowlark Music team!

Kristi Brubaker is a specialized childcare provider who loves teaching and sharing her knowledge with others.  She has been working with children for over 15 years and 10 of those have been working with children with special needs.  She is passionate about communication and teaching parents/caregivers different ways to connect with their babies.  She focuses on increasing functional communication skills in a way that helps a child be a successful communicator in all environments.  Kristi graduated from Portland State University in 2008 and worked as a Speech Language Pathologist Assistant for many years.  She has recently moved here to NC from Denver, CO and loves being so close to the Eno River, the ocean and all the beautiful green trees!

Treasa McDonald grew up in the Chapel Hill area and is excited to be teaching at Meadowlark! She studied music therapy and psychology at Appalachian State and spent some time studying abroad in Italy and Amsterdam as well as a program in Tanzania. Her primary instrument is voice but she also plays piano, guitar, and ukulele. Music has been in her life since she was little, she was even in Amber's middle school choir class! For a few years after college, Treasa did floral design professionally and expanded her creative world through that outlet. Along with a friend, she participated in Art in Bloom 2024 at the North Carolina Museum of Art where they were awarded the Directors Choice Award and they are excited to be participating in the event again in 2025. She loves kids and is looking forward to getting to know the babies and toddlers of the Triangle and their families through music!

Originally from Naples, New York, Emma Lincoln received her Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from Fredonia School of Music in 2022. With a concentration in voice, she also teaches piano, guitar, ukulele, music theory, flute, and saxophone. After finishing her degree, Emma moved to Chapel Hill, NC where she now teaches K-5th grade music at McDougle Elementary School. She also had the honor of being the Music Director at Chapel Hill High School’s Musical this spring and is excited to be teaching chorus at CHCCS this upcoming year. Emma is so excited to continue teaching music in the classroom, while also being able to be a part of the Meadowlark Music! 

Geoff is a guitar player and music educator who was born in France and grew up in Rockville, MD. He's been a musician since age 6, starting with piano before moving on to guitar and singing. Now he teaches students of all ages and performs with a local bluegrass band in his spare time. While Geoff's background is in technology design, his love for music led him to make a career switch, bringing his passion for music education to Meadowlark! When not teaching or performing, Geoff can be found at concerts or at home baking pizza and bread for his family.