Our Faculty

David Brewster
Piano

David enjoys an active career as a pianist, music director, and conductor in the greater Spokane area.

He holds the degrees of Master of Arts in Music (Washington State University, 2008) and Bachelor of Arts in Music (Whitworth University, 2006). In 2007 he participated in the Bösendorfer International Piano Academy in Vienna, Austria.

In addition to his work as a collaborative pianist with Chorale Coeur d’Alene, David has also appeared with the Spokane Symphony Chorale, Spokane Chorale Artists, and Spokane Kantorei Choir. David is on the Advisory Council for the Idaho Central Spokane Valley Performing Arts Center, scheduled to open in summer 2024, and serves as music director and conductor for Spokane Valley Summer Theatre’s summer programming as well as its Big Band Christmas shows.

As a pianist, David has toured throughout the United States and Canada with Irish tenor Michael Londra as part of his Celtic Fire and Ireland with Michael tours. Aside from his career as a musician, David enjoys skiing, cycling, cooking, and being Liberty’s husband and “Dada” to Fiona and Rowan.

Jacquelyn Claxton M Ed, MT-BC
Board Certified Music Therapist

Jacquelyn currently conducts Music Therapy sessions with special needs clients in the Post Falls/Coeur d’Alene area. At the Conservatory, she is available for individual and group sessions using the intrinsic characteristics and elements of music to enhance the engagement and social connections of people with different challenges.

Jacquelyn’s life work has been to find ways to enhance the lives of special people with music. She sings and plays the guitar and utilizes drums and rhythm instruments in her sessions. Additionally, she uses non-traditional melodic instruments, such as chimes, xylophones, and keyboards in her sessions. Jacquelyn has provided Music Therapy in many different settings over the course of her career and finds joy in discovering new ways to share music with new people.

Danté D’Angelo
Saxophone, clarinet, guitar, percussion, oboe

Danté D’Angelo is an experienced music educator with a Bachelors Degree in Jazz Studies and Music Education as well as graduate studies in Education. Has has been a high school band director for two years, middle school band director for one, and taught elementary music for two years as well. In addition, he has specialized in private lessons on Saxophone, Guitar, and Percussion for 10 years.

Originally from San Francisco, Danté performed as an alto saxophonist with big name jazz artists such as Marcus Shelby and Arturo Sandoval from local stages like Cafe Stritch in San Jose to main stages like Yoshi’s in Oakland. He was the lead horn of a house band out of Savannah Jazz club that frequently aired on San Francisco’s KCSM-FM jazz station. Danté continues to perform music and has began focusing on the blues and rock n roll vocals in addition to saxophone.

His deep passion for music education is centered around individualized learning, and motivation. Prompting his students to create goals, Danté specializes in adapting and modifying his instruction to best fit his students’ needs in achieving success.

Nanette Erickson
Violin, Viola and Voice

Nanette Erickson is a violist and violinist from Pullman, Washington. She started playing the violin when she was seven with the Suzuki method, and continued through school, taking lessons and playing in school and youth orchestras, as well as chamber ensembles. In high school she started playing the viola to fill out the viola section of a local youth orchestra, and fell in love with the sound and feel of the instrument. Nanette went on to earn her Bachelors of Music in Music Education from Washington State University, and currently teaches violin and viola lessons at the Music Conservatory of Coeur d’Alene, and violin, voice, and piano lessons at Pioneer School in Spokane Valley. In addition to teaching, Nanette also performs with the Coeur d’Alene Symphony Orchestra, the Washington-Idaho Symphony Orchestra, and the Mid-Columbia Symphony Orchestra. When she’s not making music, she enjoys cooking, sewing and knitting, the outdoors, and square dancing.

Rhys Gerwin
guitar, ukulele, bass, piano, percussion and vocals

Rhys Gerwin is a Coeur d’ Alene native, multi-instrumentalist, performer, composer, content creator, and teacher. He received his Bachelor’s of Music in Jazz Guitar Performance from Cornish College of the Arts in 2015. His primary instruments are guitar and bass but he also works with piano, vocals and various percussion to produce a wide range of genres including Jazz, Soul/RnB, Rock, Classical and Pop. Find his music on all streaming platforms and/or playing his one-man-band, live looping sets of covers and originals in the nearby area.

Hannah Harder
SAXOPHONE

Hannah Harder is a saxophonist, composer, and educator from the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. She recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Liberal Arts and a Certificate in Arts Administration. During her high school and college years, she gained valuable experience in the Minneapolis/St Paul music scene, having performed, recorded, and subbed for many different groups, including her own quartet and quintet. While in school, she performed regularly with her band, Summit Blue, which has an album on all streaming services, and one on the way. As an educator, Hannah has experience teaching both groups and individuals. She has led many masterclasses regarding saxophone and jazz studies topics, led a Big Band, has taught clinics to saxophonists and jazz bands alike, has worked as a Saxophone Instructor at Shell Lake Arts Camp in WI, and has taught private lessons for several years. As a composer, she is currently working on an album of her original compositions. Hannah has moved to Coeur D’Alene post grad to spend some time with family, and is very excited to join this music community!

Caleb Hill
BASSOON

Caleb Hill has been playing bassoon since 2005 and teaching since 2011. He is currently serving as Principal Bassoon in both the Coeur d’Alene Symphony Orchestra and the North Idaho Philharmonia. He’s excited to perform as part of the Coeur d’Alene Woodwind Quintet as well.

Caleb studied bassoon performance under Dr. Christian Smith at Brigham Young University. While there, he played bassoon and contra-bassoon in the Philharmonic and Symphony Orchestras. Caleb spent 4 years working as a recording engineer for the BYU School of Music and there discovered a love for digital audio technologies. Since graduating from BYU, he has performed in many different places and with many different groups across Utah, Nevada, and Idaho.

Caleb is married to his eternal sweetheart, Elizabeth. Together they have a one- year-old son, named Liam, who is the greatest cause of both joy and chaos in their lives. He and his family moved to Hayden, Idaho in 2021. Caleb currently works as a Data Science Analyst for Kochava, a Mobile Measurement Partner located in Sandpoint, Idaho.

Alyssa Jacobs
Piano

Alyssa graduated cum laude from Brigham Young University with bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the school of education while minoring in piano performance. It was here that she discovered her passion to make music accessible to all children regardless of race, ethnicity, developmental ability, and socioeconomic status. In graduate school, she focused her work on auditory learning pathways of the brain and early childhood literacy development. She has received post graduate training for neurodivergent children and specializes in teaching those with ADHD, dyslexia, auditory processing disorders, and those on the autism spectrum. Alyssa uses a multimodality approach to teaching, combining aural and kinesthetic skills while developing a child’s discipline to musical literacy.

A Boise native, Alyssa has expanded her career by teaching in the Dallas, TX public school district and also operated a large piano studio in Raleigh, NC before moving to Coeur d’Alene. Her passion is bringing families together in the community and she finds joy in supporting her own children’s musical progress. She has recorded two albums of children’s lullabies and enjoys accompanying within the Coeur d’Alene school district. Alyssa’s creative focus has always been to use music as a way to love and inspire a child as they navigate their own unique journeys.

Terry M. L. Jones
Trumpet

After receiving a Master of Arts in Music Education and a Master of Music in Instrumental Conducting, from Eastern Washington University, Terry became the director of bands at North Idaho College. For over thirty
years, he conducted the NIC Wind Symphony, directed the NIC Jazz Ensemble, and directed the Cardinal Pep Band. In addition to his performing groups, his other NIC teaching duties include Survey of Music over the Internet, Studio Trumpet. He also taught Survey of American Popular Music and Survey of World Music, two courses he designed. He was the founder of the “Gathering of the Bands”, a mass middle school band festival and of “JazzNIC”, a three day series of big band clinics. After his retirement, Terry started the Couer d’ Alene Chamber Music Society. Currently he performs with two brass quintets: Fossil Five and CdA BrassX5; two orchestras: Panhandle Symphony and the North Idaho Philharmonic and the Coeur d’ Alene Big Band. Terry also works as a student teaching advisor for Washington State University and the University of Idaho. He also continues to adjudicate and guest conduct throughout Idaho, Montana, and Washington.

Kent Kimball
Conducting

Kent studied conducting at LA City College, University of CA Northridge, Whitworth University, University of CA Los Angeles (UCLA), and University of Southern Calif (USC). He has studied conducting with David Glismann, Charles Hirt, Roger Wagner, Robert Shaw, Alice Parker, Howard Swan, Paul Salamunivitz & Helmut Rieling. As a vocal soloist, he has appeared with the Spokane Symphony, Festival at Sandpoint, Omaha Philharmonic, Spokane Opera, Inland Northwest Opera, Zepher & the Spokane String Quartet.

He has appeared with the Northwest Bach Festival (9 yrs), LA Philharmonic, LA Master Chorale, Hollywood Bowl Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (London), Allegro, Century Singers, the Good News Singers & the Westminster Chamber Orchestra. An “LA Times” reviewer wrote of his conducting at the Wilshire Ebell Theater “rhythmically precise, well-balanced performances…a model of beautiful choral blend and tone.”

Asuka Lewis
Early Childhood and Taiko drums

Asuka was born and raised in Hyogo, Japan. She graduated from the Osaka Welfare Technical School in 2011 and had worked in a pre-school and daycare setting for several years while residing in Japan. Ever since she moved to the United States, she has been continuing to take care of children and has been teaching Japanese culture to the children that she cares for. As a Japanese preschool teacher, she will be teaching the art of Taiko and its rich culture to our students. Japanese Taiko is not only about drumming, It also provides an in depth look into the culture, history and discipline that molds students into skilled Taiko drummers! She is very excited to introduce the Taiko drum and its beautiful Japanese culture.

Andrew Maurer
Piano

Andrew Maurer completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Idaho with bachelor’s degrees in Piano Performance and Marketing in 2018 and a master’s degree in Piano Performance in 2020. He was a winner of the 2014 University of Idaho Concerto Competition and performed the opening movement of Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3. Soon after, he was awarded the gold medal as a Musicfest Northwest Young Artist and performed with the Spokane Symphony.

Andrew has also been an active member of the University of Idaho Music Teachers National Association Chapter and has presented at the Collegiate Piano Pedagogy Symposiums in Texas and Florida and the MTNA 2018 National Conference. Andrew’s teaching philosophy begins by establishing and building trust with students and fostering confidence in themselves and their abilities. As such, he hopes to communicate what he has learned to the next generation of musicians.

Maria Meeds
Early Childhood

Maria teaches all three levels of Mini Music Makers classes. She is trained as a music therapist and specializes in working with young children. Maria graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a bachelor’s degree in music therapy where she studied flute, guitar, piano and voice. In 2021, she moved to Spokane, WA for a position at Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital. Maria joined the Conservatory team in September 2023 teaching Mini Music Makers classes. In her free time, Maria enjoys hiking with her two dogs, rock climbing, and roller skating.

Hannah Nordlie
Flute

Hannah Nordlie received her Bachelor’s Degree in flute performance and studied under Gary Woodward at Biola University and Sydney Carlson at Portland State University. She has been playing flute since she was eight years old and has held an active studio of students for the past 10 years. She has performed in master classes under William Bennett and Jean Ferrandis and has enjoyed playing flute in several chamber ensembles, weddings, funerals and pit orchestras. Hannah performed as the principal flutist with The Portland Choir and Orchestra before moving to Idaho where she currently plays with the NIC Band in Coeur d’Alene. She has competed in MTNA competitions at a national level and regularly serves as an adjudicator for student All State competitions. Hannah is passionate about sharing and passing on the joy of music with her students and loves getting to come alongside each student teaching and encouraging them in their musical pursuits. She believes music is a lifelong skill that is forever a gift to be shared. Hannah loves hiking, camping, good food and spending time with her family and friends. She is married to her husband Matt and her full-time job is being a momma to her two boys and greatest blessings; Jack and Callum.

Julia Petersen
Early Childhood

Julia Petersen is a music instructor and the Music Therapy Program Director. She is teaches the Mini Music Makers classes that offer a music experience for our youngest students and their parents. Julia has been a practicing Music Therapist and Music Educator for over 30 years. Her approach is a synthesis of music application and a clinical perspective – that embraces a wide range of needs and perceptual experiences. Music exposure at the youngest ages must be successful and enjoyable. Providing children with a foundation and ongoing relationship with music supports their developmental milestones and nurtures their creative expression.

Julia also teaches cello and enjoys working with beginning piano students.

Emily Sana
Vocals – Youth Choir Director

Emily Sana graduated from Vanderbilt University with a BS in Human/Organizational Development and Music. She pursued private vocal studies in Florida with Dr. Carole Clifford, later singing in classical and jazz vocal ensembles at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music.

Mrs. Sana performed for more than ten seasons with the Seattle Symphony Chorale, under the direction of Maestros Gerard Schwarz, Ludovic Morlot, and Joseph Crnko. She enjoyed choral preparation of guest choral conductors Helmut Rilling, Masaaki Suzuki, and Stephen Layton. She participated in the full-scale works Benjamin Britten’s A War Requiem, Berlioz’ Requiem, and Bernstein’s Wonderful Town. Her favorite pieces are J.S. Bach’s sacred works St. Matthew Passion and Mass in B Minor, and Edward Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius set to the poetry of Cardinal John Henry Newman.

Emily Sana sings in liturgical settings as a cantor and as chorister of schola choirs in several region parishes. She has taught general K-8 music in Seattle and Spokane, also leading select auditioned youth choirs in those schools.

Hunter Strobel
French Horn

My pursuit of music began in middle school playing French Horn. Before leaving high I knew I wanted to be a music teacher. The next steps took me to the Lionel Hampton School of Music at the University of Idaho. At University, I began exploring as many instruments as I could and took a special interest in the cello which I studied alongside the French horn. After graduating with a bachelors degree in music education, I accepted a music director position in St. Maries Idaho where I serve currently as the high school and middle school band and choir director.

Luke Webb
Piano and guitar

Luke Webb is a musician from New Orleans, Louisiana. He obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Music at the University of New Orleans, studying jazz guitar, jazz piano, and jazz theory/arranging. He has diverse performance experience, ranging from acoustic singer-songwriter settings to heavily improvised jazz trio environments. He is equipped to teach advanced topics, but is equally passionate for teaching music fundamentals to all ages. He is patient, empathetic, and loves to share the joy of music with others at every opportunity.