Blog
Meet the New Teacher: Ghadeer Abaido
Tampa Bay Music Academy is pleased to welcome our newest piano faculty member, Ghadeer Abaido, to our team! We know our students and their families will love working with Ghadeer, and we’re looking forward to sharing her expertise with our music community. Ghadeer received her Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Iowa in 2022. She also holds a Master of Music from the University of South Florida and a Bachelor of Music from the National Music Conservatory in Amman, Jordan. Before coming to TBMA, Ghadeer worked as a teaching assistant for piano students at the University of Iowa and as a private piano teacher. She served as an adjudicator for the Sharjah World Music Festival Piano Competition in the UAE in 2017, and has served in several other roles including accompanist, music workshop leader, assistant choir director, and musical director for various organizations. Ghadeer has also composed film scores for short films, songs, and...
Follow Us:
Meet the New Teacher: John Chatterton
Tampa Bay Music Academy is excited to welcome John Chatterton as the newest member of our music faculty! He has been hired to teach cello and piano for TBMA. John is a rising composer/performer/teacher aspiring to dedicate his musical life to collaboration. As a composer, John has worked with composers such as Steven Stucky and Christopher Theofanidis, and ensembles such as Gaudete Brass Quintet and the Mivos String Quartet, both of whom performed his pieces “Picayune” for Brass Quintet, and...
We Are Hiring an Administrative Assistant
DO YOU WANT TO JOIN OUR TEAM? We plan to expand our incredible team at Tampa Bay Music Academy in the near future by adding a part-time Administrative Assistant. If you are interested in learning more or applying for the position, please click here for more details. To learn about other employment opportunities, including faculty teaching openings, please visit the employment page of our website by clicking here.
Press Release: Sara Maniscalco Promoted to School Administrator
Wednesday, August 2, 2017—Tampa Bay Music Academy, Tampa's premier music conservatory serving Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco County Florida, is pleased to announce that seasoned faculty member Sara Maniscalco has been promoted to the role of School Administrator. She will serve alongside Executive Director, John Tracy, who said, “I am excited that Sara has accepted this important, strategic position in the future of our school. She has proven to not only be a great teacher and musician,...
Meet the New Teacher: Shanna Thompson
Tampa Bay Music Academy is excited to welcome Shanna Thompson as the newest member of our piano faculty! Shanna has over a decade of experience teaching piano to students of all ages. In 2013 she recorded a vocal and piano album in Melbourne, Australia while volunteering at a camp. In addition to teaching piano lessons, Shanna also sings worship music and describes herself as being on a mission to impact the world with music that honors God, promotes unity and love, and inspires true joy and...
How to Choose a Music Teacher
Let’s face it. Music teachers are a dime a dozen. Anybody can hang out a shingle and offer lessons, whether they’ve been playing their instrument for 5 years or 30. And choosing someone with a music degree doesn’t always guarantee a good fit either. Being a great musician doesn’t always make you a great teacher. So how do you know which teacher is right for your child? Should you choose the neighbor who teaches out of her home or go with an established studio? Let’s take a look at some key...
Meet the New Teacher: Cormac Kavanagh
Tampa Bay Music Academy is delighted to welcome Cormac Kavanagh to our music faculty! Cormac has twenty years of experience performing and teaching guitar and piano lessons to students at all levels of experience across a broad range of genres including classical, classic rock, indie, modern, folk, jazz, and pop. Cormac possesses a Grade 8 Distinction in classical guitar granted by the ABRSM (Associated Board of Royal Schools of Music, London) as well as a Distinction in jazz studies and...
Meet the New Teacher: Valeria Frege
Tampa Bay Music Academy is delighted to welcome Valeria Frege to our string faculty! Valeria has more than a decade of experience teaching private lessons to students from age 6 through undergraduate college students. In addition to individual instruction, Valeria conducted a beginner’s orchestra for the Cochabamba Symphonic Foundation in Cochabamba, Bolivia. She played violin for the Municipal Symphonic Orchestra of Cochabamba for six years, and played with the Cochabamba Philharmonic...
Meet the New Teacher: Shannon French
Tampa Bay Music Academy is pleased to welcome Shannon French as our newest voice teacher! Shannon has a Bachelor of Music from Southwest Texas State University, and graduated with her Master’s in vocal performance from Louisiana State University. She began teaching in 2001 and most recently served as an adjunct faculty member in the voice department at University of North Carolina Pembroke. Her performance experience includes the following roles: Turnspit in Rusalka, North Carolina Opera...