violin-studio, instructors

Meet our Instructors

The heart and soul of Resonance are our teachers

All of our instructors are trained and educated in the instrument or instruments that they teach


Voice Department

Meet Barbara Toombs, a seasoned voice teacher with over three decades of experience dedicated to nurturing the musical talents of aspiring vocalists. With a passion for music that burns as brightly today as it did at the beginning of their illustrious journey, Barbara is a true maestro in the realm of vocal instruction.

For more than 30 years, Barbara has been the guiding force behind countless voices, helping students discover the full range and potential of their vocal abilities. Their teaching philosophy is rooted in the belief that music transcends mere notes and lyrics; it’s a language of emotions and expressions. Barbara brings this philosophy to life in her lessons, fostering a nurturing and creative environment where students not only learn technique but also unleash the depth of their musicality.

As a passionate advocate for the transformative power of music, Barbara has honed her skills to impart not just the technical aspects of singing but also the soulful artistry that sets great vocalists apart. With Barbara as your guide, you’ll embark on a musical journey that not only refines your voice but also ignites your passion for the extraordinary world of vocal music. Join Barbara and let your voice soar to new heights under the guidance of a true master of the craft.

Gwen Hasheian Norton is delighted to join the teaching staff at the Resonance School of Music in 2024 as a voice and piano instructor. Gwen hails from Salem County,  NJ and began her music training in the Pennsville Public School District.  Vocal studies progressed at Rowan University with Dr. Eugene Thamon Simpson,  the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia  with Bill Shuman and post-graduate studies under the tutelage of Laura Brooks Rice at Westminster Choir College.  Gwen holds a doctoral degree (EdD)_from West Virginia University in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy.

Dr. Norton’s formal educational journey was greatly enriched by a performance internship at the Curtis Institute of Music and an opera apprenticeship at the Juilliard Opera Center.  She is committed to being a life-long learner for as long as possible!

She has performed and covered various leading and supporting roles during her career as a dramatic mezzo-soprano with the Merola Tour of the San Francisco Opera,  Chicago Lyric Opera,  New York City Opera,  Dallas Opera,  Opera Company of Philadelphia,  Santa Fe Opera and La Piccola Scala Opera of Rome, Italy, among others.   Over the last three decades,  Gwen has received awards and prizes from the Mario Lanza Foundation,  Marian Anderson Foundation,  Luciano Pavarotti Foundation,  Giargiari Bel Canto Guild,  and the Northeast Regional Council of the Metropolitan Opera.

Her teaching experience in the areas of vocal and instrumental music has included students of all ages and stages throughout the tri-state area.   It has been an absolute privilege to work with ensembles of all types and sizes, as well as solo performers and she plans to continue her teaching in these domains.

A music education and vocal track graduate at Rowan University, Kathryn takes the acquisition of vocal pedagogy seriously. She currently studies classical voice with Professor Lauren Athey-Janka, professional classical singer and recently published pedagogy expert. In the summer of 2016, Kathryn studied at Westminster Choir College’s Vocal Pedagogy Institute with their esteemed faculty. Later, in 2018, Kathryn was recognized in the published pedagogy series “Solo Vocal Repertoire for Singers and Teachers of Singers” by Christopher Arneson and Lauren Athey-Janka for contributing to the research and editing process.

Kathryn has sung in college, community, and honors choirs. She has performed in operas, musicals, pageants, and oratorios. Her greatest accomplishments include winning the Marian Anderson Scholarship Competition twice, singing with the Philadelphia Pops Choir, and singing as section leader at the Presbyterian Church at Woodbury.

In musical theater, she has portrayed Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast, Erzulie in Once on this Island, Vie Moore in Footloose, and Dolly in Annie Get Your Gun. In Rowan University’s opera department, she has performed Mable in Pirates of Penzance, First Lady in Magic Flute, Cunegonde in Candide, Cupid in Orpheus and the Underworld, Papagena in Magic Flute, the 1st Witch in Dido and Aeneas, and the Angel in The Happy Prince.

Kathryn has been a student of and collaborated with the following artistic community leaders: Jack Hill, Sylvia Richardson, Dr. Lillian Levinowitz, Professor Marian Steiber, and Dr. Christopher Thomas.

Currently, Kathryn is finishing her music education degree at Rowan University. She can be found doing local productions and singing as section leader of the Presbyterian Church of Woodbury.

In the future, Kathryn plans to pursue a Masters of Music degree in performance and pedagogy.

Since graduating from Rowan University with her degree in Vocal Music Education, Beth has been pursuing many musical and educational endeavors. She teaches piano and voice lessons at Resonance School of Music as well as at the Philadelphia Vocal Conservatory and is the Music Director at Holy Angels Parish in Woodbury, NJ.

Throughout her life, she has studied voice with Karen Huffstodt, Lauren Athey-Janka, and Melissa Daniels-McCann. She has also studied piano with Ellen Youssefian, Alrene Ezekiel, and Lydia Boguslavsky. Beth has a great deal of experience as a church musician and in teaching private lessons, workshops, classes, and leading choir rehearsals.

Beth started piano lessons at the age of 8 and has loved music ever since. She truly enjoys sharing her love for and knowledge of music with others. This motivates her to always continue her musical training. Beth teaches at Resonance Monday through Thursday.


Piano Department

Robert Thomas graduated Rowan University with a BA in Music Education and has taught piano privately for over two decades. Robert believes a well-rounded curriculum helps students develop a lasting appreciation for the great Classics. As well as building the skills to play the popular songs they enjoy most.

A classically trained pianist, Robert also has many years experience as a church pianist and keyboardist in Rock bands. He currently plays with the 80s Hair-Metal tribute “Arena Gods”

Teaching piano in the South Jersey area for over a decade, Aaron is an Alumni of the Berklee School of Music of Boston. There he studied music composition for film and television. Mr. Adriano has made his career in surrounding himself in the world of all things music. As a Musician, Mr. Adriano is still active as both a pianist and a composer and take a great deal of time perfecting his craft. As a teacher, Mr. Adriano likes to challenge his students through the study of dynamic repertoire and encouraging their own artistic abilities. Aaron Adriano has availability at the Resonance School of Music where he teachers composing, songwriting and piano lessons.

A classically trained musician and teacher at Resonance School of Music, Mark teaches Electric and Upright bass, guitar and clarinet. His life long career in music started at the age of 7 with Helen Slavin in Rockaway, New Jersey. Since then he has played clarinet, electric bass, upright bass, and guitar.

Throughout his time as a musician, Mark has studied with Rob Hall in high school and Doug Mapp at Rowan University. In High School Mark was in Marching Band, Jazz Band, Musicals and the Tri-M Music Honor Society. This shaped his abilities and honed in his interest in playing and being a part of the musical world. At Rowan University he achieved a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies for Upright Bass. At that time, he played in the Jazz Band, Lab Band, String Ensemble, and Orchestra, as well as in other ensembles.

Outside of academia Mark has written, recorded and played live for a multitude of groups ranging from folk and jazz to rock and classical. These groups have played in cities all across the country in places like New York City, Nashville, and Denver. Mark has taken all these influences and focused them into teaching to allow students the knowledge and capabilities to play in all styles of music masterfully. Theory and practice are an integral part of playing music and thus are implemented through these lessons.

Beth Pirolli graduated from Rowan University with a degree in Vocal Music Education. Since then, Beth has been pursuing many musical and educational endeavors. In addition to teaching piano and voice at Resonance School of Music, Beth teaches at the Philadelphia Vocal Conservatory and is the Music Director at Holy Angels Parish in Woodbury, NJ. Throughout her life, she has studied voice with Karen Huffstodt, Lauren Athey-Janka, and Melissa Daniels-McCann. She has also studied piano with Ellen Youssefian, Alrene Ezekiel, and Lydia Boguslavsky. In short, Beth has a great deal of experience as a church musician, and teaching private lessons, workshops, classes, and leading choir rehearsals.

Beth started piano lessons at the age of 8 and has loved music ever since. She truly enjoys sharing her love for and knowledge of music with others.


Guitar Department

Angus is a classically trained musician, having studied the guitar for more than twenty years, and hails from Bath in the UK.He attended Bath Spa University, graduating in 2015 with his BA in Music, majoring in Jazz.

In addition to his experience in theatre, big band, and function band settings; Angus has toured all around England, and enjoys a variety of genres.
Before emigrating, Angus taught in several schools, hosted weekend guitar workshops, and honed his producing skills – having composed, recorded, and mastered his own material, as well as others. Now having resided in the USA for five years, Angus continues to pursue as many musical endeavours as possible. He hopes to one day be able to play the National Anthem like Jimi Hendrix.

A classically trained musician and teacher at Resonance School of Music, Mark teaches Electric and Upright bass, guitar and clarinet. His life long career in music started at the age of 7 with Helen Slavin in Rockaway, New Jersey. Since then he has played clarinet, electric bass, upright bass, and guitar.

Throughout his time as a musician, Mark has studied with Rob Hall in high school and Doug Mapp at Rowan University. In High School Mark was in Marching Band, Jazz Band, Musicals and the Tri-M Music Honor Society. This shaped his abilities and honed in his interest in playing and being a part of the musical world. At Rowan University he achieved a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies for Upright Bass. At that time, he played in the Jazz Band, Lab Band, String Ensemble, and Orchestra, as well as in other ensembles.

Outside of academia Mark has written, recorded and played live for a multitude of groups ranging from folk and jazz to rock and classical. These groups have played in cities all across the country in places like New York City, Nashville, and Denver. Mark has taken all these influences and focused them into teaching to allow students the knowledge and capabilities to play in all styles of music masterfully. Theory and practice are an integral part of playing music and thus are implemented through these lessons.


Drum Department

Ryan Cullen is an aspiring percussionist in the New Jersey/Philadelphia region. Ryan completed his bachelor degree in music education: jazz studies at Rowan University where he studied under Dean Witten, Jim Miller, and Anthony Orlando. During his time at Rowan, he has had the chance to perform in various ensembles and chamber groups. He was one of the concerto competition winners for the orchestra and got to take part in the world premiere of Jennifer Higdon’s “Like Clockwork.” He was the recipient of the Steve Weiss Percussion scholarship his senior year.

Outside of school, Ryan has performed with the Eagle Theater, The Atlantic Brass Band, the Garden State Philharmonic, The Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra and many jazz artists in the region. In March 2016, Ryan took part in the inaugural tour of the World Percussion Group under the direction of the Maraca2 percussion duo. This international percussion ensemble toured universities and high schools in the US where Ryan was able to take part in showcase concerts, teach clinics on drum set, teach masterclasses and private lessons. The group was selected as a showcase artist for the Percussive Arts Society’s International Convention (PASIC).

Ryan hopes to continue his studies as a drummer/percussionist so he can bring an ever more enriching education to his future students.

Graduating from Rowan University in 2013 with a Bachelors of Music in Music Composition, Vince studied under the direction of Dr. Harold Oliver, Dr. James Castelli, and Bruce Yurko. There he received percussion lessons from Dean Witten and Dean Schneider. Before that he studied drum set under the instruction of Tom Callan for 4 years. Vincent has played drum set and percussion in ensembles from elementary school through college along with marching band and jazz band. In addition, he has played drum set at open mic nights and special events across the southern New Jersey area. Vincent can play a wide spectrum of genres including Jazz, Rock, Funk, Latin and is always ready to challenge himself in order to improve his abilities. He has a strong passion for percussion and composition as a whole, one that he will continue for as long as he can.


Strings Department

A freelance violist and music teacher based in the Philadelphia area, Zebadiah started his education in the Play On, Philly! program when it first began. Since then, he has gone on to perform in many renowned ensembles such as the Philadelphia Sinfonia Players and the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and has been in notable programs such as the Primavera Fund. He has also attended Kinhaven Music School located in Weston, Vermont. He is currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in music education at Rowan University where he studies with the head of strings, Dr. Timothy Schwarz.

Zebadiah has been part of many amazing projects both due to his musical abilities and his ability to capture an audience with his words. These projects include being part of a chamber group that opened a TED Conference in Vancouver and being featured in the documentary Crescendo, the Power of Music. Zebadiah currently resides in Glassboro, NJ but is still very active in Philadelphia as well as in New Jersey.


Woodwinds Department

Noah Avis is a Rowan graduate who loves to teach and bring out each of his student’s musical selves. Above all Noah is a saxophonist, and has experience with Classical, Jazz, and pop styles. However, he is also well versed in a variety of other wind instruments, like recorder, flute, and clarinet.

He believes in both traditional method teaching as well as playing what the students enjoy, as well as improvisation and exploring musical genres.


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