Nicholas

Certified Tutor

I am a native of Canfield, a small town in Northeast Ohio. My passion for music developed at a very young age when my mother, father, grandparents and older cousins listened to it constantly. They each preferred different genres, so I heard a vast repertoire. In middle and high school, I started taking lessons for voice, trombone, guitar and piano. I was in wind ensemble, concert band, advanced choir, concert choir, solo and ensemble, school musicals and cross country. The reason why I was so involved was because the teachers were outstanding. They captured my attention and allowed me to really enjoy what I was doing while learning. I decided that I wanted to be a teacher because of them!

When I graduated from high school, I went to Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. It is a small, private college, so I was able to participate in too many activities to list. I received my undergraduate degree in music education, graduating Magna Cum Laude. When I graduated, I decided it was time to move somewhere with a warm winter. I had visited Arizona before and my favorite baseball team, the Cleveland Indians, play Spring Training games in Goodyear. So, I knew it would be a good place to go and have been teaching ever since. I taught in Casa Grande, then the West Valley for several years. Since the 2016-2017 school year, I have been at Paradise Valley schools teaching at Desert Cove Elementary, Shea Middle and Shadow Mountain High.

While teaching, I have earned my Master's degree in music education at Arizona State University, specializing in teaching music with incorporation of technology. My credentials for Ableton Live and Pro Tools digital audio workstation softwares are from the Berklee School of Music. I have been both a certified Apple Teacher and Makey Makey Ambassador since 2016. I am also part of the Phoenix Ableton Live Users Group.