Meet the Instructors

Anna Kopansky received her Bachelor of Arts in piano instruction with highest honors from Stefan Nyaga College of Music, and Master of Arts in piano instruction with highest honors from Gavril Musichescu Conservatory in Kishnev, Moldova, USSR. She also attended Rimsky-Korsakow Conservatory of Music in St. Petersburg, Russia as a Resident-in-training. In addition to becoming a laureate of the National Music Competition in Kishinev and playing as a soloist on international tours, she has taught a number of prize-winning students on both national and international levels in the U.S., the former Soviet Union, and Europe. Kopansky is also the accompanist to our choral organizations.

Celebrated composer and pianist, Leonardo Le San has had notable premieres and performances throughout the world. In 2022, Leonardo’s Microbiome Vol.2 for string quartet was premiered at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow by the Rusquartet. The Condor and Woodpecker, sonata for violin and piano, were premiered in 2022 in New York City at the BMS Theater. Juilliard alumni, Leerone Hakami and Shay Slusky championed Leonardo’s sonata and etudes for violin and piano. In the same year, Concert pianist Edward Cohen recorded Le San’s Scherzo No.1 “Migrant Species” in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2023, renowned Naxos artists, Duo Villa-Lobos, will perform Leonardo’s work for cello and guitar. Le San’s recording of Nocturne to Luz Ofelia was chosen by multiple playlists curators on Spotify. For the past two years, Le San has been composing orchestral, ballet and new chamber, vocal works as well as co-directing current- international projects. Leonardo has performed as composer and pianist at Carnegie Hall, The Merkin Hall, The White House, The Harvard Musical Association, Palais Ehrbar Hall in Vienna, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, and The Queens Museum to name a few. Le San’s work Blessed Are the Poor won first place at the Golden Key of Vienna competition. Leonardo Le San has been featured in classical music tv- broadcasts to millions of viewers through the Euro-Channel and RCN international tv. Le San’s recordings have also received airtime in public radio in the US, the national classical radio of Serbia, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Italian radio, as well as publications in Spain and in other parts of the world.

Beth Dzwil, director and principal violist of Fairmount Strings, has been teaching violin, viola, and chamber music for over thirty years. Having formerly taught at Abington Friends School, the Community Partnership School, Germantown Friends School, St. James School, and Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, she is currently an adjunct professor of upper strings at the Community College of Philadelphia and was recently named conductor of Philadelphia Sinfonia Strings. She is a seasoned chamber musician, performing for over thirty years with the Fairmount String Quartet and for fifteen years with the Elysian Camerata. She served as principal violist of the Pottstown Symphony for over twenty years and has been a featured soloist with several area ensembles. In addition to her classical work, she has performed internationally and recorded six critically acclaimed jazz albums with the Tyrone Brown String Sextet earning her the status of voting member in the Grammy organization. Her May 2019 album with the Fairmount String Quartet, “Spoken with Strings” is available on all major streaming platforms. She is currently recording an album of works by women composers with the Fairmount String Quartet that is scheduled for release in late 2022. 

Rachel Massey is a professional violinist and violist hailing from Denver, Colorado. With a foundation laid at the University of Denver and Longy School of Music of Bard College, Rachel has enjoyed being a part of the Philadelphia area music and theater scene since 2013.

As a classical musician, Rachel has spent several summers at the Aspen Music Festival and School and has traveled widely for tours and music festivals in Spain, Germany, and China. She currently plays with orchestras in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Montana. Rachel is also an active session musician and has shared the stage with artists such as Guster, Jason Alexander, and Lauryn Hill. 

Rachel is frequently seen and heard in theater productions in Philadelphia and beyond. Her work in theater has placed her both in the pit and on stage as an actor-musician at companies including the Arden Theatre, People's Light, and the Delaware Theatre Company. She has earned multiple Barrymore nominations and an award in 2023.

In addition to her work as a performer, Rachel is an active and passionate teacher and is Suzuki trained and certified through Book 4. 

Justin Yoder is a Philadelphia-based cellist and teaching artist. A southeastern PA native, he holds a bachelor’s degree from Goshen College and a Master of Music in cello performance from Temple University’s Boyer School of Music. In addition to working with students at The Haverford School, Justin performs regularly with orchestral and chamber ensembles throughout the region and maintains a private cello studio in West Philadelphia for students of all ages. Trained and anchored in the world of classical music, Justin’s career has also featured extensive cross-disciplinary collaboration; he is passionate about exploring diverse genres in his performance work and encouraging young musicians to do the same. Justin is a regular pit musician with some of the region’s leading professional theaters and is frequently sought after as a versatile studio musician. His playing can be heard on the soundtracks of several recent feature films from major distributors, including Netflix, Universal Pictures, and A24.

Michael Brodine received his Bachelor of Arts from Villanova University and studied guitar with Chuck Anderson. Brodine plays a wide range of musical styles including, country, bluegrass, jazz, classical, and rock 'n' roll. In addition to serving as the staff classical guitarist for the Romig, Carney, and Lewis orchestras, he has performed with the bluegrass band, The Keystone Ramblers, and with a rock 'n' roll band that went on to be #49 on the Billboard charts. Brodine writes and performs original music. Some of his compositions have been recorded and played on national radio.

Rhett Tierney is a self-taught multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, specializing in guitar and harmonica.  Rhett began performing professionally as a teenager, and now has over two decades of experience as a solo artist and leader of a three-piece band.  He has written, produced, and recorded four studio albums, in addition to countless unreleased tracks.  His passion for music encompasses all genres, creating a seamless blend of styles in his original compositions.  As an educator, Rhett aims to inspire creativity while maintaining a comfortable and fun learning environment for his students.

Paul Butler has performed in concert with Grammy Award-winning cellist David Darling, most notably at the International Cello Festival in Montreal, Canada. He has collaborated with David on the recordings Balance, In Tune, and Open Window, and on the soundtrack for the Knosis film, “The Song of the Stars.”

In 1999, Paul and the Hot House Trio (with Eric Henry, tuba, Jim Smith, tenor guitar and vocals) were selected Jazz Ambassadors to the Middle East by the U.S. State Department and the Department of Cultural Exchange. As Jazz Ambassadors, they performed and taught in Syria, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, Morocco, and Tunisia.

Paul earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education degree from Mansfield University and is a certified Music For People teacher, leading workshops in music improvisation for self-expression and is committed to sharing his passion for music with children of all ages.

In addition to being a trumpet player and teacher, Charles Cacioppo is also a composer and scholar. He has written chamber, vocal, orchestral, jazz, and electronic music, and has earned degrees in music from Cornell University, UMD College Park, and SUNY Purchase. His scholarly work covers a wide range of topics from Renaissance music to hip-hop, and his dissertation dealt with jazz trumpet solos. A native of Haverford, Charles grew up studying at the Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz, and performing with the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra. He has performed at some of the city’s most beloved venues including the Mann Center, the Kimmel Center, the Curtis Institute, and Ortlieb’s, as well as at several museums, schools, churches, hotels, and restaurants.

Drummer Phil Giordano, whose band plays in the great tradition of Count Basie and Woody Herman, is both founder and music director of the Phil Giordano Jazz Orchestra.

Born in 1951, he studied drums privately with some of the finest jazz drummers: Mel Lewis, Philly Joe Jones, Sonny Igoe, and Joe Morello. Giordano attended the Philadelphia Music Academy and studied percussion with Nick D’Amato and arranging with Manny Album and Jim Amdei. He has performed with the Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey Orchestras, the Four Aces, the Howard Lanin Orchestra, Al Grey and Jimmy Forest, and most recently with Ted Curson and Pat Martino.

Abundant Sounds magazine voted Giordano “Most Popular Musician,” and his big band was voted most popular jazz ensemble in Philadelphia by the Philadelphia Daily News.

Drummer and percussionist Kyle Struve brings a lifelong love of music and a genuine passion for teaching to every lesson and every student.

Born and raised in the rural midwest, Kyle fell in love with the drums at age four, after hearing an older cousin play and getting his own opportunity to try.  An unforgettable experience!  He began piano lessons as a fourth grader and joined the school band as a percussionist the following year.  Apart from every opportunity his public school band program offered, he was self-taught until age 17.  After high school, he attended Lawrence University, where he majored in classical percussion with a jazz emphasis. He then moved to NYC to study with John Riley at the Manhattan School of Music and Purchase College. In the following years, he lived in Brooklyn and performed with a broad range of musicians including Nir Felder, Linda May Han Oh, Adam Niewood, Mika Pohjola, and the Asphalt Orchestra.  Over time he also received invaluable mentorship from drummers Felix Lecaros, Dan Rieser and Kenneth Salters.  After his wife's work brought them to the Philadelphia area, Kyle found himself rediscovering his love for teaching.  He considers it a privilege and a pleasure to guide each student along their own unique path of self-discovery through music.

Carole Latimer is originally from Nova Scotia, Canada. She is active as a soprano soloist and voice teacher in the Philadelphia area. She has taught voice, French Diction for Singers, and Opera History at Eastern University for the past 13 years. A long time member of the Opera Philadelphia Chorus, Carole was recently seen in Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Choristers of Upper Dublin, Die Meistersinger at The Metropolitan Opera, Dialogues of the Carmelites with Curtis Opera Kimmel Center Perlman Theater, and Nabucco at the Academy of Music. She holds post-graduate degrees in opera performance and a master’s in vocal performance from the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati.