Meet the Teachers
Meet Our Talented Teachers
Liza Chkhaidze
Liza Chkhaidze is a classically trained pianist, composer, and educator originally from Tbilisi, Georgia, and now based in Los Angeles. At Music Junction Liza offers Piano and Voice lessons as well as Songwriting and Composing. She holds a degree in Film Scoring from Berklee College of Music and has extensive experience in both performance and music education.
Liza began her musical journey at the age of four and trained under distinguished pianists, including Natalia Natsvlishvili, Tamara Poddubnaya, and Michael Lewin. Her background encompasses solo and ensemble performance, composition, and music direction for various projects, including television productions and orchestral works.
As an educator, Liza is committed to fostering musical growth in each student through an individualized approach tailored to their unique strengths, goals, and learning styles. She emphasizes strong foundational technique, interpretative depth, and artistic expression while creating a supportive and inspiring environment. Her teaching philosophy encourages students to develop confidence, creativity, and a lifelong appreciation for music!
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Natalia Nakopia
Natalia Nakopia is an educator, vocalist, and classically trained pianist with years of experience teaching and mentoring students of all ages and skill levels. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, she offers private piano and voice lessons that incorporate a deep understanding of technique, music theory, and ear training, and place special emphasis on performance and delivery.
With a background in classical, contemporary, and jazz music, Natalia’s teaching approach is personalized and adaptive, meeting each student’s individual needs and goals. Whether a student is pursuing a career in music or simply developing new skills, she creates a supportive and engaging environment where students thrive both musically and personally. Natalia works with a diverse range of students, integrating techniques that inspire consistency, enhance focus, and make learning interactive and fun.
Outside the classroom, Natalia is an accomplished artist and songwriter known for her distinctive sound. Her professional work spans collaborations with orchestras and renowned artists, as well as performances on prominent international stages and festivals. Natalia’s recent work includes the singing voice of Elphaba in the Georgian-dubbed version of Universal’s film Wicked. Drawing from her diverse background as a performer, she brings real-world experience into her teaching, offering students a glimpse into the artistry behind live performance and guiding them to take the stage with confidence! Book your lessons with Natalia at Music Junction today! (space is limited)
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Alexia Rosa
“To me, music has never been just about jazz chords or key changes. It's always been about storytelling. Every pitch feels like a character, full of personality. Every chord creates a new world, vibrant and alive. From a young age, my imagination was my greatest source of comfort—it gave me the courage to be myself. Whenever I dreamed up a story, music naturally followed. And whenever I played music, a narrative would unfold in my mind. For me, music and storytelling are inseparable—the existence of one depends on the other. Growing up between New Hampshire and Spain, I traveled throughout Europe, where each new place I encountered left an imprint on my imagination. Ancient ruins, historic artifacts, and unfamiliar cities sparked new ideas and melodies. With every memory I made, the stories became richer—and the music clearer.” ~Alexia
Alexia Rosa is a versatile multi-instrumentalist, composer, and passionate music educator at Music Junction. She offers lessons in Piano, Voice, Fiddle, Violin, Viola, Double Bass, Ukulele, Mandolin, and Cello, along with instruction in composition, music theory, and songwriting. A double major and scholarship recipient at Berklee College of Music, Alexia holds Bachelor’s degrees in both Film Scoring and Composition.
Her musical journey began in the second grade, where she quickly developed a deep love for both classical and folk traditions. Trained by a blend of classical violinists and renowned fiddle players, Alexia cultivated a distinctive sound that merges technical precision with expressive freedom. As a young performer, she toured throughout New England, captivating audiences with her vibrant fiddle playing. In addition to her performance career, Alexia has composed original scores for multiple short films and contributed music to album projects, demonstrating a dynamic range in both cinematic and contemporary musical styles.
As an educator, Alexia values patience, playfulness, and intentionality in finding what works best for each student. She is dedicated to nurturing each student’s creativity and confidence through a personalized and supportive approach. Whether teaching a beginner or guiding an advanced student, she focuses on building strong technique, musicality, and a lasting appreciation for music!
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Henry Baskin
With a background influenced by several musical traditions including jazz, classical, and world music, Henry Baskin brings many different perspectives into his private lessons. No matter what style his students are interested in playing, Henry is committed to making the experience of learning an instrument both fulfilling and enjoyable for them.
Henry is a Los Angeles based multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music educator. At Music Junction, Henry teaches guitar, bass, ukulele, piano, violin, cello, and drums. He holds a BA in Global Jazz Studies from UCLA as well as an associate degree in Applied Music from Los Angeles City College.
Henry’s musical journey began at the age of five when, inspired by his love of The Beatles, he started to take private guitar lessons. Bitten by the musical bug, it wasn’t long before Henry also picked up cello and electric bass. At the Los Angeles High School for the Arts (LACHSA), Henry studied jazz and classical music and began to perform professionally around the Los Angeles area. Immersed in this diverse and creative community, Henry became determined to explore everything the world of music had to offer.
At UCLA, Henry studied Balinese Gamelan, a style of classical Indonesian music played by an ensemble comprised of metallophones, gongs, and drums. There, he had the great privilege to study under Nyoman Wenten, one of Bali’s most celebrated artists and educators. Henry continues to play with multiple gamelan groups around Los Angeles and performed in the first Los Angeles Gamelan Festival with CalArts’ Burat Wangi at the Indonesian Consulate in Korea Town.
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Jason Lowery
Music Junction’s multi-talented, Jason Lowery, offers lessons in many instruments including Piano, Flute, Saxophone, Clarinet, Guitar, Trumpet, Tuba, and Voice. An East Coast native, Jason started his musical journey at the age of 5, soon to join his school's "Show Choir" and band program. In his multicultural home, he was exposed to various genres of music including hip-hop, classical, country, jazz, rock, gospel and reggae. At a young age, Mr. Lowery also studied the commercial music styles of musical theatre and jazz, while also focusing on solo, band and orchestral works of the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic eras.
While Piano is Jason’s major instrument, and excels in recital performance, Jason is always expanding his knowledge in various other instruments too, and has a passion and curiosity for learning every instrument out there! He also believes in the power of lessons, learning and refining one's skills. This effective manner of learning exemplifies Jason's teaching style, and he also values patience as virtue in teaching and in learning. Drawing from varying backgrounds of musical styles, Jason’s teaching incorporates many ways to a desired end, and understands that every student learns differently.
Jason recognizes his humble beginnings in Maryland at Barbara Ingram School for the Arts, and is also very proud to be an Angeleno. He plans to stay in the Greater Los Angeles Area through the completion of his Bachelor’s and Graduate Degrees. He is very enthusiastic about music production, and it makes sense that he Majors in Commercial Music and Recording Arts at East Los Angeles College (ELAC). While studying at ELAC, Jason earned a number of Pro Tools and Sibelius certificates, and is currently working on one for Media Composer too! Jason has studied with world-class celebrities and professionals, enhancing his own development and abilities in music. Jason is even more excited to share his unique and interesting learnings with his own students at Music Junction!
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Barun Sinha
Barun Sinha has been teaching for 8+ years and is also an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, producer and sound designer. At Music Junction, Barun teaches Piano, Acoustic & Electric Guitar, Bass Guitar, Drums, Voice, Violin, and Music Theory.
Learning instruments from an early age, what got him started was focussing his attention on the bass guitar through which he provides rhythmic support and melodic interplay. From there he stemmed out to other string instruments, voice and drums, becoming well-versed in a variety of instruments. Barun has experience in several musical genres too, including progressive, alternative, indie, RnB and singer-songwriter. Barun has played for several touring bands across different countries and also works as a sessions musician in the recording studio.
Barun got into music production early in his career and he works with artists from around the world. He has recently completed certificates for Music Production and Game Audio Design from Berklee College of Music.
Barun is a firm believer in bringing organization, time management and teamwork into the structure of his lessons so that the students benefit optimally while learning the techniques and creative aspects of instrumentation. He is a collaborative team player who is always searching for opportunities to impart valuable insights and opportunities to enhance his students’ and his own skills too!
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Erica De Lazzari
Erica De Lazzari teaches voice, piano and songwriting at Music Junction, and has been a professional educator with over 12 years of experience doing so. Her degrees include a Post Master Degree in Artistic Vocology, a Master Degree in Pop Singing at the Conservatory of Milan (Italy) and a Bachelors Degree in Pop Composition at the Conservatory of Como (Italy).
She is also an esteemed Italian singer and songwriter known for her powerful and versatile voice, which has earned her international recognition. Her ability to convey complex emotions through her singing demonstrates her exceptional artistry and deep understanding of musical communication.
With a flourishing career in music, Erica combines dynamic live performances with extensive work in music production. Erica has performed with renowned American artists like Stevie Wonder, Bluey (from Incognito), Wayne Vaughn (from Earth, Wind and Fire) showcasing her respect and standing in the music industry, and she appeared on well-known radio shows in Los Angeles: KPFK, KXLU, Europe: BBC Radio (National UK radio), Diamond Radio UK, Italy: Radio UAU, VIDEO Star TV Show.
Erica is a member of G.I.V.A., the Italian Group of Artistic Vocologists, an association of professionals dedicated to artistic vocology, a discipline that bridges science, pedagogy, and performance to promote best practices in support of the artistic voice. Erica’s coaching offers a personalized approach, integrating both mechanistic and holistic techniques. By combining various vocal methodologies—ranging from Proel to Estill Voice Training and Speech Level Singing—students are guided in developing their vocal skills enhancing control, expressiveness, and confidence in performance.
Currently, Erica is also part of the Audio Educator Advisory Group from around the world, collaborating with Professor John Krivit (Past President of the Audio Engineering Society and Chair of the AES Education Committee 2020–2022), where her work focuses on integrating artificial intelligence into vocal instruction, while also exploring additional innovative technologies and tools to enhance teaching methods.
Erica’s approach as an educator is hands-on, creative, and focused on building both technical skills and personal artistic expression. Erica believes in empowering students to explore their musical identity through digital tools and contemporary production methods.
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Gaetano (Guy) Grippo
Gaetano (Guy) Grippo teaches Guitar, Piano, Ukulele and Bass at Music Junction. Gaetano’s teaching style honors his teachers’ styles who really knew how to zero-in and engage him and others in music in the most optimal way. Gaetano believes that each student is unique in their learning process and identifying that path for each of them is his passion. With that efficiency in teaching as a foundation, Gaetano’s student learn and thrive powerfully in their musical journeys!
Gaetano discovered the guitar first at the age of eleven after first hearing the music of Led Zeppelin. He began his studies at a local music school and by the time he reached high school, found himself playing in bands and constantly working to feed his ever-evolving taste in music--a taste that grew to include various rock styles, heavy metal, blues, and jazz. In his senior year of high school, an internship at the studio where he took lessons helped him discover an innate knack and passion for teaching.
Gaetano graduated from the University of Maryland and taught music in the Washington DC area at that time. In 2014, Gaetano shifted his music teaching, education and career to Los Angeles where he completed a certificate program in guitar performance at Musicians Institute in Hollywood. Gaetano continues to develop his skills as a private instructor teaching Guitar, Ukulele, Piano and Bass, and has become involved with the local music scene, participating in freelance recording and performance opportunities with singer-songwriter artists.
As a teacher, Gaetano loves being an educator and strives to make his lessons enjoyable and informative, and he works to give his students the tools they need to accomplish their specific music-related goals.
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Vaja Mania
Vaja Mania offers lessons in Voice, Trombone and Guitar at Music Junction. He is a distinguished jazz vocalist, trombonist, and Berklee College of Music graduate whose seventeen-year career beautifully bridges tradition and innovation. His musical journey began in the country of Georgia, where he first captivated audiences with traditional Georgian folk songs before discovering jazz — a transformative influence that shaped his authentic artistic identity and inspired a lifelong devotion to vocal performance.
Through his teaching, Vaja blends strong technical foundation with soulful expression — inspiring each student, especially young kids, to see music as a joyful, lifelong, and deeply spiritual journey of self-discovery. It is important to Vaja for his students to be interested in what they are learning and have fun in their lessons, so he makes it a point to always listen to the students and hear what they want.
Recognized early for his exceptional talent, Vaja earned a full government scholarship to Berklee, where he excelled in jazz performance and received the prestigious Sylvia M. Zunz Endowed Scholarship for outstanding artistic achievement. He performed at major events such as Paula Cole’s “Love Is Real” and Maggie Scott’s Vocal Jazz Series.
Now based in Los Angeles, Vaja continues to perform and teach with passion, artistry, and heart. A finalist in Georgia’s Geo-Star (the local analog of American Idol) and a featured performer at the Made in New York Jazz Festival alongside Lenny White and John Benitez, he brings a wealth of international experience to his students at Music Junction.
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Dan Sabatino
Dan Sabatino is a distinguished music education specialist and multi-platinum award-winning professional. His ability to joyfully connect with music lovers of all ages has been recognized by millions of people worldwide.
From early childhood to collegiate, Dan is an inspirational and fun teacher who leads by example. Youthful and wise beyond his years, Sabatino is a true musical polymath. His advanced expertise of both the American and Western European canons of the guitar, piano, drums, voice, ukulele, and recording technologies is felt by all who enter our studio at Music Junction.
Not one for jargon, Dan is playfully entertaining and engaging while communicating high level knowledge that everyone understands. It consistently results in elite students who achieve peak performance and a genuine sense of pride.
Dan’s credibility in the music business comes from a career that spans a who’s who of the major record companies. Sabatino got his start after college managing an artist with Quincy Jones Productions. He spent five years working with UMG, Sony Music, and Warner Music Group in various consultant capacities that earned ten platinum plaques and a JUNO Award - where he too served as judge and academy delegate for the organization. Sabatino most recently played a role in the world’s first ethical AI music language translation for the Universal Music Group. He is a young musician that built his reputation as a producer, composer, and performer on over 300 records, mobile games, and music libraries used on countless hit songs and blue chip advertisements.
Born in Toronto, Canada, Sabatino studied Orff-Schulwerk and Suzuki at the Royal Conservatory of Music where he earned Distinction with First Class Honors on certifications in guitar, piano, percussion, theory, history, and education. Dan received his B.Mus Summa Cum Laude in Composition with additional certificates in business administration and marketing from the University of Toronto. Sabatino also trained ten years while teaching enriched students at the Merriam School of Music, an innovator and leader at the intersection of 'Contemporary Pedagogy and European Traditions of Excellence’ in North America. As an examiner on the adjudication panel he produced lecture masterclasses, taught privately, and contributed to curriculum development.
Always a student, always a teacher, and always of the craft, his philosophy “no two flowers are the same yet grow in the same soil” resonates because when our individual learning personalities are nurtured, it is with the same roots we all blossom.
He currently lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.
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Noah Draughon
Noah Draughon, a passionate music instructor at Music Junction School of Music, specializes in teaching Guitar, Drums, Bass, Piano, Voice, Ukulele and Music Theory. With more than 13 years of diverse musical experience, Noah has become an experienced musician, educator and songwriter in a variety of genres and styles ranging from classical, rock, jazz, funk, blues, to Mexican regional music.
From the Phoenix, Arizona area, Noah has spent many years teaching and participating in various music programs. He is proud to have worked with and shared the stage with legends such as Alice Cooper, George Clinton, and Johnny Depp in teaching kids and bands technique, theory and performance skills. Noah is not only committed to cultivating a love for music in every student, but also, he has the communication skills, patience and friendly demeanor to connect with all ages and types of students.
Noah is an adept music instructor with a proven track record at Guitar Center and Bach to Rock for several years in Scottsdale and Tempe Arizona. He believes in enhancing students' musical abilities with innovative and individualized lesson plans. Noah’s other areas of musical expertise include ensemble direction, sight-reading proficiency, music history, improvisation, composition, audition preparation, repertoire selection and ear training. Music Junction is proud to have Noah on their team of talented and experienced teachers!
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Louie Kang
Louie Kang teaches Piano, Guitar, Ukulele, Drums, Bass, Violin, Voice and Cello at Music Junction. A music teacher and composer from Los Angeles for the past 15 years, Louie brings his time-tested teaching style emphasizing critical thinking skills, creativity and problem solving. He places a strong emphasis on rudimentary and fundamental skills and exercises such as basic note reading, music theory, and preparation of primer level pieces.
A bilingual teacher (English/Korean), Louie offers lessons to students of all ages, starting at 4 years old to adults. Louie holds a B.A. degree from Cal State Northridge in Cinema Arts/Music Composition and an A.A. degree in Broadcasting/Media Arts from Los Angeles Valley College. He also has supplemental experience in Jazz Harmony/Theory and Composition, as well as Music Production.
Louie creates a patient atmosphere that supports students’ learning processes. He’s worked with a myriad of students in a wide degree of applications, creating a versatile array of teaching tools and techniques to offer. Louie loves teaching for the variety of needs such as a child preparing for their first recital, to the working college student getting ready for auditions, to accomplished musicians looking for supplemental development of skill. Call Music Junction for availability on Louie’s calendar!
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Jude Wright
Jude Wright, raised in Houston, TX, is a talented teacher and multi-instrumentalist. In fact, Jude plays more instruments than you can count on all ten fingers! Although he grew up playing Violin, Piano and Guitar, as well as Singing in church and school, Jude also is well-versed in Ukulele, Mandolin, Drums, Electric Bass, Upright Bass, Viola, Pedal Steel and Banjo.
Jude studied Guitar, Bass, Piano, Voice and Drums at the reputable Musicians Institute in Hollywood. He went on to perform Guitar, Bass, Keyboard, Ukulele, Fiddle, Pedal Steel and Voice with touring musical acts and musical theater pit orchestras.
Jude can even build his own instruments. What?! He’s played and constructed musical instruments professionally for over 15 years. As a builder, he’s created Cellos and Ukuleles but has made many custom, often strange, musical instruments for film and television composers!
Jude believes that learning a second or third (or even seventh!) instrument isn’t just a lot of fun, but helps to understand every other instrument and music as a whole. Jude’s teaching approach is friendly, playful and his excellent listening skills allow him to connect with students quickly and apply the right teaching tools tailored for each student’s success.
Book Jude for quality, private, music lessons at Music Junction while there are still openings!
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Mark Brown
Originally from upstate NY, Mark Brown is a classically trained musician who has been teaching piano and guitar for 22 years as well as playing professionally throughout the world since he was 16 years old.
Mark, a member of the The Music Teachers' Association of California (MTAC) is sanctioned to train and develop Music Junction students for the Certificate of Merit (CM) Program which is a standardized music curriculum for musical excellence in performance, technique, ear training, sight reading/singing and music theory created by the MTAC in 1933. Ask about how you can add the Certificate of Merit training to your music lessons with Mark!
Mark graduated from Lebanon Valley College in 2003 with a Bachelor of Music in Recording Technology. As a professional musician, he has worked in musical theater and toured internationally with rock, blues, jazz and pop artists. As a session musician, Mark has been recorded on over 200 albums. In 2012, he founded the funk trio “Hambone Relay” in which he plays Hammond Organ. The band has toured consistently for 5 years and recorded five albums of original material.
As a teacher, Mark owned and managed a music school in New Jersey where he taught piano, guitar and bass to students of all ages. He believes that music can and should be both fun and educational for all. He encourages all of his students to perform in front of any audience big or small at any level of experience. "Sometimes, the best rehearsal is a gig."
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Reese Massey
Reese Massey is a recent music education graduate from Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. Having grown up in Los Angeles, Reese spent her childhood singing in every choir she could find. She started taking vocal and piano lessons at a young age, but soon learned that her passion was singing with others. At Berklee, Reese performed in countless shows as a soloist, background vocalist, choir member, and accompanist.
Additionally, she spent her time arranging a cappella music, songwriting, and directing numerous choirs. With vast performance experience, Reese enjoys singing and performing all genres from classical to jazz! However, her biggest passions lie in teaching music.
Reese has a focused and engaging teaching personality. She strives to be genuine in everything that she does and believes her teaching reflects that. Being a preschool music teacher at Small World Child Care helped her to become comfortable teaching younger ages and meeting students where they were. She learned how to balance making music class fun while also making sure the students were learning important skills. Additionally, during her time at Berklee, Reese focused on vocal pedagogy where she learned vocal anatomy as well as how to communicate vocal concepts and techniques to a variety of different ages. She prides herself in her ability to teach the same concept in a multitude of ways, an essential skill for a voice teacher.
To Reese, teaching music is not a back-up, but her goal. The more she learned about music education and vocal pedagogy, the more she fell in love with teaching. In fact, Reese comes from a long line of music teachers. There has been a music teacher in every generation of her family starting with her great great grandparents! Reese truly feels a passion for teaching and showing children the joys of music as an art as well as sharing the socio-emotional benefits of music with her students.
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Thomas Graeff
Thomas Graeff is a multi-instrumentalist originally from the Pacific Northwest. He holds a Music Performance degree from Western Washington University after studying jazz with Chuck Israels and the tuba with Dr. Carla Rutschman. He has been teaching music professionally since 2011 and in that time has helped hundreds of students learn the guitar, bass, ukulele, piano, drums, and brass instruments.