Music Teachers in Sycamore

Una Lawrence teaches flute lessons at The Music Connection. She is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in music education and K-12 teacher licensure from Northern Illinois University, where she has studied with Peter Middleton and currently studies with Dr. Elizabeth Barber. Una has performed with numerous ensembles at NIU, including the university's Wind Symphony, Wind Ensemble, Philharmonic, Flute Ensemble, and more. She also serves as the principal flutist for the NIU Wind Symphony.

Yajing Li is a piano teacher at The Music Connection, LLC. Having been teaching piano for many years, she has rich experience in piano instruction. Patient, enthusiastic, and approachable, Yajing is skilled in teaching students of all ages with different levels. Yajing studied piano with Dr. William Goldenberg at Northern Illinois University. She has two master's degrees in music (solo performance & accompaniment and chamber music) from Northern Illinois University. As a musician, she has been playing for churches and school choirs for years. She was once an accompanist working for DeKalb High School, Clinton Rosette Middle School, and Huntley Middle School. Contact Yajing at lyj19910312@icloud.com

Danielle Pivonka is a recent graduate of Northern Illinois University in the 2017 class, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She began playing piano at 6 years old, and violin at 9 years old. Since then, she has completed hours of private lessons on each instrument. On piano, Danielle has won competitions, accompanied students for Solo and Ensemble performances and Senior Recitals, and has taught lessons for six years. She has also been playing piano as a worship leader for Sycamore United Methodist Church since 2011. On violin, Danielle has performed in countless orchestras and attended music camps across the country such as Illinois Summer Youth Music (ISYM) at University of Illinois, Birch Creek Symphony in Door County, Wisconsin, and Lyceum Music Festival in Midway, Utah. In middle school she played violin in the Community School of the Arts (CSA) Symphonette and transitioned to the CSA Sinfonia once she entered high school. Most recently, Danielle has been a member of the first violin section in the Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra (KSO). Danielle has been teaching lessons on violin for five years and has thoroughly enjoyed it. She recently studied with violinist Renee-Paule Gauthier at North Park University and Mathias Tacke at Northern Illinois University. Danielle adjusts her teaching method to each child's needs and truly enjoys helping students who are excited to learn and grow as musicians!"

Danna Webber is a flutist and educator with a passion for teaching students of all ability levels. She began her collegiate career as a double major in music education and special education with an emphasis in learning disabilities at Northern Illinois University in the fall of 2012. To this date, she has completed 5 major clinical experiences in both areas and will be student teaching in special education shortly. Webber is also a founding director of the Penguin Players, a musical theatre group for adults with disabilities in the northern Illinois region. Webber has played in professional ensembles such as the NIU Wind Symphony as the principal flutist and NIU's elite New Music Ensemble. Coinciding with her educational passions, Webber frequently judges solo and ensemble contests and is on staff for the Stillman Valley High School Marching Band. Webber has taught many private lessons and enjoys working with students of any age or ability level.

Elizabeth Eastman Becker graduated from NIU with an undergraduate degree in music performance and political science. Her cello instructor at NIU was Avalon member Cheng-Hou Lee. She has played with the NIU Philharmonic as well as the Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra . She was a member of Community School of the Arts Sinfonia for four years while she was in high school. She has taught private lessons for several years for students of all ages and abilities, Elizabeth has also been a sectional coach at Dekalb High School as well as the CSA summer string chamber program.

Alex Rattana is currently an undergraduate vocal performance major at NIU. He is a Basso Cantante that has been singing for 5 years. For a young singer, he is heavily involved with professional choirs and church choirs in the Dekalb area. He has studied voice with Jeff Nesseth and is currently studying with Myron Meyers. Alex currently is a freelance vocalist and a Bell Choir Director at Bethlehem Lutheran Church. He is also a member of the NIU Concert Choir, DeKalb Festival Chorus, and Kishwaukee Barbershop Harmony Singers. He currently serves as the Alumni Relations Officer of the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia chapter at NIU.

Amelia is a senior majoring in Vocal Performance at NIU, studying privately with Dr. Orna Arania. She is involved in the NIU Concert choir, Chamber choir and Opera Theater. Classically trained, Amelia incorporates a strong emphasis on breath support and vowel placement. She also has training in musical theater and jazz. She is active in the DeKalb community by sharing her voice as a primary cantor for the NIU Newman Catholic Student Center. Aside from school, Amelia is a freelance performing artist writing songs on the piano, playing various venues across the Chicagoland area. She is passionate about singing and performing and looks forward to helping those who want to improve their abilities as well as find their own unique sound.

Mick Gehr is currently studying Vocal Music Education at Northern Illinois University. Since a young age, he has been fascinated by the human voice and all that it can accomplish! Mick has been accepted into ILMEA District Choirs for both traditional and vocaljazz. Entering college, he was eager to try something different! Mick joined The NIU Huskie Hunks, the premier all-male a cappella group at Northern! Of his four years in the group, The Huskie Hunks advanced to the semifinal round of the ICCA (International Championship of Colleigate A Cappella), making the group one of the top 10 in the Great Lakes region and top 50 in the US and Great Britain! Mick was fortunate enough to serve as Music Director of the group for two years. Also, he began working on his beatboxing, which led him to become the groups primary VP (Vocal percussionist). Mick is incredibly excited to start working with The Music Connection, LLC to start spreading his love for the voice to every student possible!

Kyle Brooks is a saxophone instructor for The Music Connection. Hailing from the suburbs of Chicago, Brooks' musical upbringing has been diverse in nature, and implemented studies in jazz, classical, and contemporary music. Brooks is also well-versed in flute, clarinet, vocal techniques, music theory, jazz theory, both classical and jazz piano, as well as guitar and bass. A current undergraduate dual-degree student of music education and jazz performance from Northern Illinois University, Brooks has performed, studied, and taught with many active musicians and educators in the Chicagoland area. Those of which include: Geof Bradfield, Nate Lepine, Rodrigo Villanueva, Fareed Haque, Mark Dahl, Reggie Thomas, Dr. Ronnie Wooten, Dr. Jessica Maxfield, and Dr. Thomas Bough. In addition to his studies, Brooks is also in pursuit of an active performing career, some endeavors including work with big bands, small jazz and contemporary music ensembles, saxophone quartets, and wind ensembles, in addition to solo saxophone repertoire. Kyle currently serves as the music director of the Epsilon Rho (NIU) chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the men's music fraternity of America. Brooks seeks to use his broad base of musical knowledge to facilitate growth, passion, and inspiration in students of all ages and skill levels.

Ted earned his M.A. in Guitar Performance at Northern Illinois University where he was a student of virtuoso, Fareed Haque, and since has been teaching the Suzuki method of classical guitar in Rockford and Sycamore. His classical repertoire showcases Baroque, Classical, South American, Spanish, as well as 20th Century styles and has performed original compositions and transcriptions for recitals. While primarily classically trained, Ted shifts comfortably between a diverse spectrum of musical styles, including jazz, blues, rock, folk, and bluegrass. In addition to guitar, Ted teaches mandolin and ukulele.