Teaching Artists

Below is a list of teaching artists in the state of Michigan. This list is to be used as a reference. Please contact Teaching Artists individually for professional references. If you are a teaching artist interested in being included in the database, CLICK HERE for the application. 

Instrumental Music, Vocal Music

Metro Jazz Voices

Troy Oakland

Metro Jazz Voices delivers American Songbook classics and popular favorites in shimmering four-part harmony. With four vocalists, saxophone, flute, piano, bass and drums, the Detroit-based group creates musical fireworks that delight the eye and ear.

Instrumental Music

MiJung C. Trepanier

Midland Midland

A resident of Midland, Dr. MiJung Choe Trepanier is an active performer in piano locally, nationally, and internationally, with solo and chamber recitals in Latin America, Asia, and throughout the United States. In Michigan, she was invited as a guest artist to perform with the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra under the baton of the late Maestro Patrick Flynn in 2008.

MiJung C. Trepanier

Instrumental Music

Musica Batteria

Troy Oakland

Percussion duo Musica Batteria entertains, educates, and fascinates audiences of all ages. Unique both visually and musically, concerts feature a dynamic repertoire of classical, Latin, and light popular favorites performed on a vintage rosewood marimba. For schools, interactive educational programs showcase the diversity of the percussion family through demonstrations and performances of instruments from around the world.

Instrumental Music, Vocal Music

Mustard's Retreat

Ann Arbor Washtenaw

The Mustard’s Retreat show for kids is especially suited for elementary ages, grades 2-5, though it is very adaptable. It basically runs 45-60 minutes, and consists of songs and stories: sing alongs and interactive songwriting and a whole lot of fun!. In addition, Mustard’s Retreat can do songwriting workshops with the students.

Instrumental Music

Neil Jacobs

Grand Haven Ottawa

Neil has spent his lifetime traveling, collecting a wealth of stories and experiences, and developing his rich musical background. From his adventures with the Gypsies of Spain, Cowboy TV Specials in Russia, and ethnomusicology studies in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, and beyond, Neil showcases his masterful adaptations of exotic folk and classical music on the uniquely American folk instrument, the 12-string guitar.

Instrumental Music

Norma Gentile

Ann Arbor Washtenaw

Sacred sound as chant exists in all cultures. Healing, or bringing balance to the body, mind, and emotions using these sounds is one of the most ancient of all traditions. Using 900-year-old chants written by a woman, Hildegard of Bingen, and authentic Tibetan singing bowls, Norma invites listeners into the intimacy that beautiful sacred music creates. Uniting her studies as a classical singer (University of Michigan, Masters in Voice Performance) with her studies of energy healing, Norma found her passion is bringing the inaudible realm of spirit into music for healing purposes. Blessed with a magical voice and having recorded four acclaimed CDs, she is traveling and sharing what she has found through concerts, workshops and individual sessions.

Instrumental Music

Pauline Martin

West Bloomfield Oakland

Pianist offering workshops.

Cultural, Instrumental Music

Peter Madcat Ruth

Ann Arbor Washtenaw

Folk Music, Blues, Jazz, and World Music with an underlying theme of Cultural Diversity and World Brotherhood performed on harmonica, guitar, ukulele, kalimba, penny-whistle, jaw-harp and other folk instruments from around the world. Madcat's kids' concerts are "kid tested and approved."

"Since 1980 I have had the pleasure of playing folk music, blues and world music for school assemblies throughout the United States. In my assembly programs I use harmonicas, ukulele, guitar, penny-whistles, jaw-harps, kalimba and other folk instruments from around the world to demonstrate a variety of musical styles. The students are encouraged to ask questions and to participate in the program by clapping out rhythms, composing blues lyrics, and by singing along."

"My assembly programs run about fifty minutes in length. When I perform at a school I bring with me a portable sound reinforcement system (P.A.), and a large assortment of musical instruments. It usually takes me about an hour to unload my equipment, set it up, and tune my instruments. Then it takes another hour to pack it up and reload it into my car. For this reason I can do no more than two assembly programs per day. I usually charge $400.00 for an isolated assembly program, $500.00 for two shows in the same location, and $300.00 per school if I perform in two schools in one day. I like to book my engagements a few months in advance."

Instrumental Music

Peter Madcat Ruth

Ann Arbor Washtenaw

Grammy Award-winning harmonica virtuoso Peter Madcat Ruth is exhilarating to watch, and has amazed audiences worldwide. Acoustic guitar wizard Shari Kane is considered one of the country's most versatile blues guitarists, taking audiences from her raw interpretations of Delta Blues to an up-town Chicago groove with style and ease. Together, the pair make Madcat & Kane. Since 1990, the pair has wowed audiences nationally and internationally. Their repertoire includes many styles of American roots music including country blues, classic blues, and urban blues, plus a bit of folk music and a touch of jazz.

Instrumental Music

Picks & Sticks String Band

Northville Wayne

This gumbo mixture of four stringed instruments is the complete performing package. Picks and Sticks String Band educates and entertains with their unique roller coaster assortment of music gone by. Their performances stretch the imagination and delight audiences with a variety of acoustic traditional folk, old time, country, cowboy, ethnic, swing and some light pop styles. Their original arrangements are performed on the fiddle, banjo, guitar and hammer dulcimer, and are complemented by incredible vocals. Picks and Sticks have toured the country and performed as convention headliners, at city concerts, schools, corporate functions, re-enactments and theme parks.

Picks & Sticks String Band

Instrumental Music

Raion Taiko

Novi Oakland

From formal events to educational programs, Raion Taiko offers unique entertainment for an array of occasions. Taiko is the dramatic and exciting Japanese art of ensemble drumming. With a repertoire ranging from traditional to modern, Raion Taiko is an unforgettable highlight at any event. Leaders Brian and Mayumi Sole trained in Taiko drumming at Asano Daiko in Japan, and have shared their passion in Michigan since opening the Great Lakes Taiko Center in 2009. A performing group of up to seven members, Raion Taiko has performed for many events around Michigan, including the Detroit Concert of Colors, Arts Beats and Eats and at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

Instrumental Music

Raven Hill Discovery Center

East Jordan Charlevoix

Outreach programs are also available in science, history and the arts for all ages:Museum To Go; Animals To Go, History To Go and Art To Go

Cultural, Instrumental Music, Vocal Music

Red Tail Ring

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo

Red Tail Ring is the Americana roots duo of Michael Beauchamp and Laurel Premo. Whether rendering a traditional tune or one of their original compositions, the duo infuses each song with musical imagination, haunting harmonies and instrumental artistry on fiddle, guitar, banjo, mandolin, jawharp and plain-old foot stomping. Three years and 300-plus shows into their partnership, Beauchamp and Premo have traveled increasingly farther in their musical ramblings, playing shows throughout the Midwest, East Coast and Southeastern United States. In the summer of 2011, the duo added Denmark to their list when they performed and taught as cultural ambassadors through the American Embassy.

Instrumental Music

Reed-Works Saxophone Quartet

Milford Oakland

Reed-Works Saxophone Quartet dazzles audiences with musical finesse and sensitivity, while covering a broad range of music styles such as swing, jazz, rock, and novelty tunes. Their repertoire includes transcriptions of great classical music, original saxophone literature, original music and arrangements by members of the quartet. These fine saxophone players also double on clarinets, flutes, and piccolo. The Reed-Works Saxophone Quartet has performed throughout Michigan, Ontario and Ohio since 1988, and is equally at home in band shells, concert halls, libraries and art fairs. Reed-Works is an amazing chamber group capable of entertaining a wide range of audiences.

Reed-Works Saxophone Quartet

Instrumental Music, Vocal Music

Rhythm Billies

East Lansing Ingham

The Rhythm Billies receive praise from their event performances at festivals, coffeehouses, schools and workshops for continuing to keep the old songs alive.

Instrumental Music

Rick Robinson

Detroit Wayne

CutTime Simfonica is a classical music sextet that rocks.

Instrumental Music

Rodney Lamar Page

East Lansing Ingham

Explore a wide variety of musical genres with violinist and DJ Rodney Lamar Page.

Rodney Lamar Page

Instrumental Music

Saline Fiddlers

Saline Washtenaw

Fiddlers offering workshops and student performances.

Cultural, Dance, Instrumental Music

Sangeeta’s Dance & Music of India

Midland Midland

Sangeeta Kar is an internationally renowned exponent of Odissi, the oldest classical dance form of India. She is also an award-winning singer and performs regularly on Indian TV, movies, stage, and CDs.

Sangeeta’s Dance & Music of India

Cultural, History, Instrumental Music, Theatre, Vocal Music

Sheila Grazino and Neil Woodward as Matter & Ghost

Chelsea Washtenaw

Sheila Graziano and Neil Woodward pay tribute to the ghosts of their folk arts ancestors by performing the music and dances that are the foundation of their traditions. These Michigan artists are well known for their entertaining and educational performances of traditional and original dance, songs and folk music. Together as Matter and Ghost, the pair performs dances from England, Scotland, Canada and the Appalachian Mountains, accompanied with tunes and stories reflecting the historical settings of the steps.

Sheila Grazino and Neil Woodward as Matter & Ghost