Owner/Piano & Vocal Instructor Janna grew up in northern Maine and began taking piano lessons at the age of 5 (after begging for a piano since she could talk). She started teaching piano and dance lessons in her town when she was 15 years old and performed in her first musical theatre production at the age of 12.
Janna received her B.A. in Theatre from Florida State University where she performed in many diverse projects such as mystery dinner theater, opera, stage, and films. While at FSU, she had the great privilege of studying with the legendary director Jose Quintero among other professionals from New York and Los Angeles.
She continued her studies at Emerson College where she earned an M.A. in Theatre Education in 2002. At Emerson, she specialized in playmaking for young people and self-scripting. Her thesis project was a self-scripted piece that was workshopped with Whoopi Goldberg.
Janna plays piano, flute, bells, and xylophone in addition to singing various styles from classical to pop. She has directed, musical directed, and choreographed several productions for both children and adults.
Janna has an extensive performance history, having appeared in productions from Maine to Florida. She was most recently seen in StageWorks 2021 production of "Broadway Our Way" in Leominster. Her album entitled “In My Dreams” was released in 2004.
She particularly enjoys teaching piano to young beginners as well as providing coaching to musical theatre students of all ages.
JAMES GAUDETTE
Guitar, Bass, & Drum Instructor Jim was born and raised in Lowell, MA. At an early age, he showed an interest in music, particularly Big Band (Swing), 1950s Rock n’ Roll and 1960s Soul. When he was around 5 or 6 years old, he asked his parents for guitar lessons (so I could play Elvis songs). He began guitar classes with a local Jazz musician and also developed an interest in drums. By the time he was in junior high, he was playing guitar, bass, and studying drums with a professional percussionist.
During high school at Bishop Guertin, he was a member of the Concert, Marching, and Jazz Bands. For his dedication and enthusiasm, he was presented with the “Green and Gold Award” which represented the highest achievement in participation and performance. It was during this time that he had the honor to meet and talk with his drum hero, Buddy Rich.
After high school, he began music studies at the University of Lowell and Northern Essex Community College. At that juncture of my life, he joined many bands, performed, traveled and gathered as much music information as his brain could store.
Jim was lucky enough to meet and even share the stage with some of his music idols such as Brian Setzer, Larry Coryell, Dick Dale, Johnny Cash, and B.B. King…just to name a few.
Several artists have made use of his strong songwriting, composing and arranging abilities.
Jim released an album of his original tunes on which he played guitar, electric bass, and drums on all tracks in 2014. www.jamesgaudettemusic.com
TARA MAKI
Registrar Playing the piano was something Tara had always wanted to pursue, and she started taking lessons once her kids were in high school and college.
She is currently an adult student, and learning to play has been so rewarding. Having worked in customer service/office administration for more than 20 years, Tara is excited to draw on her work experience and become involved with the studio in a different way.
She brings her considerable experience and joy of helping others to the role of registrar and is happy to assist with scheduling, billing, and other business related requests.