EDDIE MINJAREZ

Acoustic & Electric Guitar:  classical, rock, blues and songwriting

Eddie’s dedication to music and guitar has earned him a spot as a highly sought after guitarist and teacher in the Atlanta area. He has played guitar for over 30 years and has over 15 years’ experience teaching and performing. He holds a Bachelor of Music in classical guitar from Kennesaw State University where he studied with Mary Akerman and a Master of Music in classical guitar from the University of Texas at Austin where he was under the tutelage of Adam Holzman. He has performed for many of the guitar world’s finest musicians, including Roland Dyens, David Russell, Douglas Neidt, Ricardo Iznaola, Ricardo Cobo, Nigel North and Micheal Troster among others.

After returning to Atlanta from Austin, Eddie taught guitar at Reinhardt College, Georgia Perimeter College, as well as Emory University where his guitar courses for the extended learning center were in high demand.  Although Eddie’s primary interests are in classical guitar and songwriting, he also plays and plays rock guitar, flamenco and blues guitar.

In 2009 he opened Guitar Decatur and currently lives in Decatur with his dogs Wolfie and Marley.

Catherine Price

Violin & Viola

Catherine Price, originally from Statesboro, GA, is a graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy.  She completed her Bachelors of Music degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and earned her Masters of Music in viola performance with emphasis in string pedagogy at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music.  Catherine has served as principal violist of the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra in Sapporo, Japan.  She has held posts with the Chicago Civic Orchestra and Les Miserables 25th Anniversary National Tour.

Francisca Vanherle

Voice

Francisca Vanherle was born in Argentina but grew up in Belgium. She studied at the Royal Conservatorium in Brussels, where she obtained both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s Degree in Vocal Arts and a diploma in Vocal Pedagogy. During this time, she worked mainly as a free-lance chorister with ensembles such as Huelgas, Il Fondamento, La Petite Bande,  the Brussels Cathedral Choir and the VRT Radio Choir.

In 1997, she was granted a Fulbright Scholarship by the Commission for Educational Exchange between the USA and Belgium and Luxembourg.  With this scholarship, she continued her education at the University of Texas at Austin.

Besides opera and operette, Francisca regularly sings as an oratorio soloist and in art song recitals with piano, a genre which is particularly close to her heart.

Francisca has a home base in Brussels, Belgium and in Atlanta, Georgia

Lauren Allain

Acoustic & Electric Guitar: rock, folk, songwriting, classical

Lauren began playing her dad’s old nylon string guitar at age 11. While in college, she decided on a career in music and studied classical guitar at James Madison University where she received her Bachelors in Guitar Performance. Lauren continued her studies at the University of Texas at Austin with Adam Holzman and there, earned a Master of Music. She has completed three years of course work in the Doctor of Musical Arts program at New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where she worked with renowned guitarist Eliot Fisk.
In addition to her many years as a performer, Lauren has over 15 years of teaching experience and excels at playing and teaching rock, folk and classical music. Lauren lives in Atlanta with her fiancé David and their pup Winnie.

MARY LYNN WEATHERLY

Piano

Mary Lynn has enjoyed teaching piano to students of all ages for four decades. Following her education at Georgia State University where she earned both the Masters and Bachelors of Music degrees in music education with concentration in piano, Mary Lynn combined public school music teaching and church music ministry for a while before settling into a career in church music ministry and private piano teaching. She has held church organist and Music Director positions in several metro Atlanta churches and has  taught many piano students who have excelled in competitions and participated in numerous piano festivals. She is a member of The National Federation of Music Teachers and Choristers Guild and she is married to Thomas Weatherly, a retired Psychology professor. They have one married daughter and a delightful toddler grandson who is looking forward to a baby sibling soon.

Jessica Kornhoff

Cello & Double Bass

Jessica started cello at the age of 9 and later received a Bachelors degree with the late Wolfgang Laufer at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Claire, decided Martha Gerschefski at Georgia State University would be a great fit for her pursuing her Masters degree in Cello Performance. She has participated in numerous International Music Festivals and performed solo masterclasses for famous cellists such as Norman Fisher, Evan Drachman, Stefan Kartman, Hans-Jorgen Jensen, Darrett Adkins, Mihai Tetel, Timothy Eddy, Andres Diaz, and Yo-Yo Ma. Her teaching experience encompasses private cello lessons to large classroom string settings in multiple counties within Georgia.

Jessica lives in Decatur with her husband Ethan, children Taylor and Claire & their three-legged dog Oreo

Alan Dynin

Piano

Alan Dynin has been playing piano professionally for over thirty years and maintained a busy teaching schedule for over twenty. He has been a featured performer for The North Carolina Jazz and World Music Society, the Circular Church Jazz Vespers Series (Charleston),  and The Atlanta Symphony Associates.

His versatility as a pianist and performer allows him to perform  comfortably in many genres including  jazz, classical, blues and boogie, latin as well as many other styles. Alan has three solo piano CD releases of original piano compositions as well as popular music that uniquely connect such diverse genres as jazz, impressionism, classical, boogie and gospel.

Alan lives in Decatur, Georgia and is available for teaching and performing opportunities in and around the Atlanta metro area.