Faculty & Staff
Our goal is to offer individual and group music instruction, and ensemble and performance opportunities, to students of all levels and abilities. Our objectives are realized by providing excellence in performing and fine arts education – from beginning through advanced levels – to infancy through adulthood. We also aim to sustain a highly qualified faculty and staff comprised of credentialed, experienced, and dedicated artists, educators, and administrators.
Jacqueline Banks, M. Mus.
Founder & Executive Director
Jacqueline Banks was born in England and raised in Miami, Florida. She began taking piano lessons from her mother when she was three years old and began formal piano instruction six month later through the Suzuki method. Until Jacqueline went to college, she was under the tutelage of piano teachers primarily trained from the National Conservatory of Havana, which shaped her musical development and overall style. She studied at the University of Miami's, Frost School of Music's Preparatory Program, Keyboard For Kids, for 5 years before attending Xavier University of Louisiana on a full music scholarship. From Xavier, she earned a Bachelors of Music in Piano performance and was awarded the Sister Elise Sisson Award for excellence in Music; the highest honor awarded from the Xavier's school of music. She also studied vocal performance and music management at Georgia State University. Jacqueline is also a Certified Yamaha Music Educator from the Yamaha Music Education Institute, L.A., Calif. 2013. She earned her certification in Kodaly Methodology from New York University Steinhardt School of Education and Arts Professions. Jacqueline also has a Masters of Music in piano pedagogy from Georgia State University.
Hailed for her distinctive musicality and expressive warmth, American pianist Jacqueline Banks is quickly establishing herself as one of the country's most sought-after rising stars for a variety of repertoire specializing works by African American and women composers. Mrs. Banks has a wide range of repertoire from C.P.E Bach, Domenico Scarlatti and Chevalier de Saint-George to Bela Bartok, George Walker and Tania Leon.
Mrs. Banks previous engagements have included recitals in Atlanta, Miami, Washington D.C and New York City. She has performed at such venues as the Levine School of Music, the International Keyboard Institute and Festival, New Orleans Piano Institute and Festival, and annual African American Music Festivals in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Jacqueline Banks has been teaching piano and voice for approximately fourteen years and nine years, respectively. She also teaches composition to musically gifted children. She has held faculty positions at several institutions and nonprofit organizations, and specializes in piano instruction, composition, music history, solfege and the Kodaly Approach to music education. She teaches private piano and group piano classes throughout the DMV area. She has also published a plethora of books, 7 are available on Amazon Books, on the subjects of piano, piano pedagogy, and music education for children Pk-12th grade. Mrs. Banks is also the founder and Executive Director of Music Education Today, a publishing company dedicated to the promotion of cutting edge concepts and applications of music education.
Mrs. Banks' students have placed in several piano competitions including the Rising Star Piano Concerto Competition, where her youngest student was 9 years old, performing Mozart’s Piano concerto in A Major, K. 488. One of her student’s also earned a scholarship to Harvard University for Musical Theater. Jacqueline Lives and works in Washington, DC with her husband and two daughters.
Publications
Meet Our Team
Andre Leonard
Piano and Voice
Andre Leonard is a dynamic and accomplished pianist, conductor, and music director, with a diverse range of experiences that speak to his passion for music and dedication to his craft. In 2022, Andre was honored to win the Gold Medal at the Boston International Piano Competition and Gold medal recipient of the Aloha international piano competition 2017, cementing his reputation as one of the foremost pianists of his generation.
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In addition to Andre’s achievements in the competitive arena, He also had the privilege of serving as Music Director for the installation of the Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune statue in the U.S. Capitol, as well as an Artist in Residence at the Kennedy Center and the Kettering Legacy Center. Andre’s work as Music Director for Adventure Theater and the CAPPA Chorale have allowed him to bring his talents to a diverse range of audiences, his role as vocal coach and pianist for the world premiere opera “On the Road to
Arivaca” allowed for commitment to new and groundbreaking work in the field.
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Andre’s musical accomplishments have also extended to the performance world. As a recitalist for the Washington Piano Society and an Artist in Residence for the Friday Morning Music Club and the Alliance
for New Music Theater, he’s honed skills as a collaborative musician, while working as a conductor for the iconic Howard Theater production “The Return of Jakie Mom’s Mabley” allowed the showcase of unique perspective and musical voice.
Taylor Russell,
B.A. Vocal Performance
Voice Lessons for Children and Adults. Beginner Piano.
Taylor Russell began her musical endeavors at an early age beginning with the Georgia Youth Choir and Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestra. Continuing her studies in "The Peach State," she is an alumna of Mercer University. While there she participated in Mercer University Opera and featured in productions including Pirates of Penzance and the premiere of Christopher Schmitz’ work, Hugh Smalling. She also had the opportunity to mentor younger artists throughout the Macon area through the Mercer University Children’s Opera program. Beyond her studies, she ventured on to become a member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus and serve various community music programs. Now in Washington, D.C., she is a leader within The Washington Chorus under the direction of Eugene Rogers, a vocal mentor for National Children’s Chorus, and an active member of the music ministry of Zion Baptist Church.
Eric Lewis, M. Mus.
African Drums, Percussion, & Drum Set
Eric Lewis is a graduate of the Duke Ellington High School of the Arts. He also attended the University of the District of Columbia. Mr. Lewis has studied with many master musicians from all over the world, including Rashied Ali, Abdou konte, Baba Ngoma, and others. For eight years he was a drummer with Washington's top West African dance troupe, Kankouran. He has also lead his own groups including All Souls Percussion Choir, and the H.A.P. Children's Percussion Ensemble. He was a drummer at the Action Chapel Ministries where he worked on his first CD project titled (2 Hands 1 Beat). Among the internationally-known musicians with whom he has worked are Roy Ayers, Oliver Lake, and Sun Ra.
Tarek Mohamed, M. Mus.
Percussion, Drum Set, Vibraphone, Marimba, & Drum Line
Tarek Mohamed is a highly experienced percussionist and educator from Maryland, who has been performing for over 20 years in a wide range of genres including jazz, concert bands/orchestra, rock, hip-hop, gospel, bluegrass, and folk. After graduating from Albright College in 2008, Tarek embarked on his music career, playing with groups and theater organizations in the DC, MD, and VA areas.
Tarek has had the opportunity to share the stage with Arts Centric (The Wiz, Next to Normal, Dream Girls, La Cage Aux Folles, Little Shop of Horrors, RENT) Tobys Dinner Theater in Baltimore (Beehive, Smokey Joe’s Café, Patsy Cline, Grease, and Xanadu) Dizzy Miss Lizzy's Roadside Revue (Oresteia and Saints), EnviroDrum MD, and many more theater organizations and schools in the DC, MD, VA area. Tarek has also worked and extensively toured with Grammy award-winning artist Dom Flemons (The Carolina Chocolate Drops).
Aside from musical performance, Tarek is a highly-educated individual with a master's degree in teaching from the Relay Graduate School of Education. He has put his knowledge to good use by teaching music and movement at Creative Minds International PCS and KIPP DC. He is certified as a special education teacher in DC. Presently, he is teaching a class of 3-5 grade special education students at C.W. Harris school in DCPS.
Ronald “Trey” Walton,
B. Mus.
Organ, Piano, Jazz & Gospel Piano, & Keyboard
Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ronald “Trey” Walton has been performing and composing music since the age of twelve. He is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and conductor whose works have been showcased in recital halls and churches up and down the east coast. Ronald Walton has written music in a wide variety of genres: chamber, orchestral, vocal, opera, and jazz. His first full opera, for which he served as both librettist and composer, was Dear Louie.
He has been part of the music ministry in several churches as a music director or organist and currently serves as organist at Mount Zion United Methodist Church, the area’s oldest African-American Congregation. Ronald also serves as the Jazz Ensemble Music Director for the Coalition for African-Americans in the Performing Arts (CAAPA).
Trey is a graduate of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in tuba performance. He currently attends the University of The District of Columbia as an organ performance major. Currently, Trey is working on an opera called Sons of our Fathers and an orchestral suite inspired by the history of American Cowboys. He will also share compositional credits in Alliance for New Music-Theatre’s expansion of a major work inspired by the artist Jacob Lawrence.
Matthew Paiz, B.Mus.
Cello, violin, piano, viola, bass
Youth Orchestra Conductor and Chamber Program Instructor
A Native of Corpus Christi, Texas, Mr. Matthew Paiz has spent the majority of his life playing and performing string instruments, and has spent nearly his entire career in music education. Matthew has spent several years teaching in both the public school system and in private lesson settings. With ample experience in teaching to all types of learners, he prides himself on being able to reach his students where they are at. His teaching style has been described as detailed, gentle, and non-judgmental.
Mr. Paiz’s student have regularly won awards in the Texas University Interscholastic League Competition for Orchestra, in both Solo & Ensemble and have ranked in UIL Region 14 Orchestras. Though the bulk of Matthew’s Experience is in teaching student-aged learners, he is also proficient in catering to adult learners.
In addition to being a teacher, Matthew also regularly performs, having been a section
cellist for the Kingsville Symphony Orchestra, The Lone-Star Philharmonic, and a Substitute Section Cellist for the Corpus Christi and Victoria Symphony Orchestras.
Mr. Paiz holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Instrumental Performance and Pedagogy from
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi. Mr. Paiz was previously the Head Orchestra Director at Driscoll Middle School in Corpus Christi, Texas, and taught orchestra to ages 6-12 for several years with the district. Mr. Paiz has recently joined as a member of the Accord Symphony Orchestra, a local group affiliated with the DC Strings Project.
Currently, Mr. Paiz is teaching privately at the National Conservatory of the Arts, and is also currently a Chamber Music Coach and Orchestral Director for the DC Youth Orchestra Program.
Molly Flanagan D.M.A.
Brass & Wind Ensemble
Molly is a member of the Ignis fellowship quintet and a DMA candidate at the University of Maryland studying under Greg Miller- she was formerly a member of UMD’s Oculus [Five] quintet from 2019-2021 She holds degrees and certificates from Boston University, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and Lynn University. As a Guildhall student, she was featured with her chamber group The Eolienne Quintet and other Guildhall chamber ensembles on BBC’s radio 3 as part of the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s “Total Immersion” program. She and members of the Supernova Woodwind sextet (2015) won the Ivan Sutton award for chamber groups with piano sponsored by Guildhall, the City Music Society, and the City of London Corporation as part of an annual competition. She also participated in the London premiere of Jonathan Dove’s “The Monster in the Maze,” a joint commission by the London Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, and the Aix en Provence festival for professional, conservatory, and amateur orchestra and choir. She has participated in a number of summer music festival, including the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) in Graz, Austria, a summer opera academy where she performed as a member of the orchestra. She currently teaches and freelances, including performances as a substitute musician with the Jacksonville Symphony, the Atlantic Classical Orchestra, and the Florida Grand Opera.
Genesis Banks
Piano, Voice, and Music Theory
As a young concert pianist, Genesis Banks is already a rising star. She started playing
the piano when she was two years old and began performing at the age of three. She is a
classically trained pianist and has won many piano competitions where she played the Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K. 467 at the age of 10. Ms. Banks attended NYU’s summer music programs for two years in a row on a full scholarship, and was invited back for a third year which would have been a special exception to NYU’s program. Instead, Ms. Banks chose to attend the Summer Music Academy at the Manhattan School of Music summer but was unable to participate due to the severe pandemic in NYC in 2020. In 2021, Ms. Banks attended the highly selective Piano Academy at
Indiana University where she received a Merit-based scholarship. Ms. Banks has had
masterclasses with Dr. Karen Taylor, Dr. Melinda Baird, Dr. Tony Weinstein, Gregory Wang, Gregory Sioles, Daniel Schene, Dr. Meeyoun Park, Dr. Matthew Gianforte, Brian Ganz, Roberto Plano, Emile Naoumoff, Eteri Andjaparidze, Edward Auer, Ruth Morrow, Christopher Harding, Arnaldo Cohen, Jean-Louis Haguenauer, Steven Spooner, David Cartledge.
Ms. Banks is a piano and voice graduate at the National Conservatory of Arts. She has been a long time piano student of Prof. Jacqueline Banks and operatic voice student of Dr. Felicia Lively and Prof. Dara Rahming. Ms. Banks has won leading roles in full-length musical theater productions, such as ‘Once On This Island’, and ‘Junie B. Jones’. Ms. Banks has sung arias in Italian, French, but her favorites are always in German.
At the National Conservatory of Arts, Ms. Banks participated in many in-house
competitions, masterclasses, and juries, music festivals. She has also participated in
evaluations and juries for the Royal Conservatory of Music where she had received
above-average scores for 3 years. During her last year of participation with RCM, Ms. Banks performed at a level 7, at the tender age of 10.
Ms. Banks is currently a piano and voice major at Manne Conservatory of New York City. Her goal is to finish her doctorate in both Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy by the age of 21. Ms. Genesis specializes in teaching piano to children ages 2.5 and older, teaching voice to children below the age of 14 years old, music theory.
