Instructors
Emre Kartari
Born into a family of musicians and artists in Ankara-Turkey, Emre Kartari moved to the United States when he was ten years old. Soon after moving, he began to study drums, which led to studying jazz percussion with T. Howard Curtis at Virginia Commonwealth University. During this time, he toured the United States with the spoken-word, hip-hop group, Jazz Poets Society.
While in New York, Emre studied with Adam Nussbaum, John Riley, Tony Moreno, Billy Hart and Jamey Haddad. He has performed with jazz greats including Charlie Byrd, Jim McNeely, Ralph Lalama, Vic Juris, Ron McClure, Mike Richmond and David Liebman. Emre holds an M.A. in jazz performance and composition from New York University and received the Barney Josephson Award in 2003.
His first CD as a leader, Perpetual Anxiety, is released in Turkey under the Dogan Music label. His second recording, Origin, featuring saxophonist David Liebman, is released by the RecbySaatchi Label. As an educator, he worked with the New York Pops-Mentors in Music program. In 2005, he performed and recorded for the rock band Brindley Brothers, and the electric jazz group, Signals. He is currently playing and recording with the trio, Good Day Bad Day, featuring Zulfugar Baghirov and John Lee. Emre also recorded with the trio Big Girl, featuring Darius Jones and Trevor Dunn.
John McCain
John has over 30 years playing experience on guitar and bass and has taught privately for over 20 years.
During that time he has sought out many wonderful musicians for private instruction and studied privately with many great jazz guitarists such as Tal Farlow, George Van Eps and Ted Greene.
John has a wide range of musical interests and is comfortable teaching nearly any style at any level.
John Morrison
John has over 20 years experience in music with over 13 years in guitar. He studied guitar locally under Rob Ross and has over a decade of experience in performing, recording, and songwriting. Lessons are focused on sight reading and ear training in addition to learning songs and building tools for songwriting and creativity. Over 7 years experience in teaching.
Jamie Parker
Jamie's father is a professional musician/composer, and, thankfully, he was raised on the music of Yes, Doc Watson, Jimi Hendrix, Beethoven, The Band, John Coltrane, Aaron Copeland, The Beatles, Thelonius Monk, and Charles Ives, to name a few.
He studied music and percussion formally from fourth grade onward, becoming a Jazz Performance major at Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC) and Shepherd College, immersing himself in stage band, mallet instruments, symphonic percussion, and whatnot.
Jamie has studied privately with Roger Brooks, author of The Drummers Next Wave Vol. I (Warner Bros.), NVCC music instructor Marshall Maley, and DC-area recording artists/freelance musicians Mike Smith and Keith MacMichael.
He has done freelance work, playing in straight-ahead jazz and R&B/blues groups, and spent two years working regularly for a DC-area talent agency.
Jamie is most proud of the original music projects he has been involved with, such as: a spoken-word/funk/hip-hop trio in the vein of Gil Scott Heron; The Tools and the Stuff, a 2008 release by DC-area band Rambling Shadows; and his own band, Glass and Apples, which strives to combine a Foo Fighter's-like assertiveness with a Steely Dan-like harmonic sensibility.
Jamie owns the fundamental experience and knowledge it takes to individualize a teaching protocol for new and old students of drumming.
"During lessons, students learn best while practicing and performing with a teacher rather than while being observed and critiqued by a teacher."
Glass and Apples at Facebook | Rambling Shadows
Paul Pieper
Whether he's pushing the envelope of modern music with his trio Signals, performing lead vocals and guitar with the rock group Glass and Apples, or sharing jazz standards with audiences across the world, versatile guitarist Paul Pieper brings technical and improvisational prowess to every song he plays. Paul's debut solo record, Stories of Before, beautifully showcases Paul's ability with a unique blend of jazz and pop compositions all filtered through the rich timbre of steel and nylon string guitars.
Paul first caught the attention of the music community in 1995 when he captured second place from over 200 competitors at the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Guitar Competition, a global event whose judges included Jim Hall, Pat Metheny, John Scofield, and Pat Martino. A sought after musician in the Washington D.C. area, he has numerous appearances at D.C.'s famed Blues Alley and a 2000 stint with the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra to his name. As a jazzman he's traveled to a dozen countries, ranging from Chile to Iceland, from Kyrgyzstan to Japan. In 2005 alone he accompanied vocalist Ericka Ovette on trips to Ecuador and Bangladesh, and he joined bass player Victor Dvoskin on a three-week tour of Russia. A respected composer, arranger, and session player, his compositions Something Blue, Spider Monkey, Pensees, Kineticism and The Red and the Black have been performed and recorded locally, and Paul has appeared on upwards of twenty CDs.
A D.C. area native, Paul first picked up the guitar at the age of 13. From the start Paul was a determined student of music. "I didn't just want to play—I wanted to become fully competent on the instrument." When it came to continuing his education, Paul ultimately chose to master his craft through performing rather than school--he was earning a living playing music at the age of 19. "I learned an enormous amount through private studies with D.C. area guitar teacher Mike Bevan—he provided me with a strong foundation—but it was through performing that I really gained the skills I needed to earn a living as a musician. I've been lucky to work with a lot of great musicians who were very open about what they know."
In addition to promoting Stories of Before, Paul's current projects include the group Signals—a trio with Emre Kartari on drums and Gavin Fallow on electric bass. "We're trying to play music with a strong groove, that incorporates our various influences, from pop and dance music to electronic music to some of the improvisational elements you might find in a jazz group. We've worked to make the music sound as 'right now' as possible." Paul also has a modern jazz record in the works that will feature original compositions with guitar, bass, drums, and tenor saxophone.
Though he is best known for his work as a jazz musician, Paul seeks to explore all genres of music. "Regardless of style or genre, there are a few things that I really love about music: harmony, a great groove, and improvisation. If one or all of those things are present, then I'm happy."
Mauricio Perdomo
Concert guitarist, composer and arranger Mauricio Perdomo was born in Bogota, Colombia, on August 12th, 1976. He began his musical studies in piano and voice at the age of seven. As a young adult, Mr. Perdomo studied classical guitar with guitarist Larry Snitzler and jazz guitar/improvization and music composition with Bill Bieselker. He also studied performance, improvisation and music composition with personalities such as Scott Tennant, William Kanengiser, Pepe Romero, Roland Dyens, and Andrew York. In addition, he studied audio engineering and production with Larry Wheeler, as well as music composition under the tutelage of composer Steve Antosca. Most recently, Mr. Perdomo has focused on composition as his main area of expertise and it is a consuming passion. Currently, he writes music for guitar and every combination of instruments possible, and tours North America, South America and Europe playing classical music improvisation and original contemporary music.
Ben Ritter
Ben Ritter has been playing guitar, piano, and drums for approximately 20 years. He earned a BA in Music from Skidmore College in 1999, where he began gigging extensively around the Albany region with his own groups, as well as with Skidmore faculty. After Graduating, he moved to NYC where he was much in demand as a session drummer for countless singer songwrirters. During this time, he toured the country with his band, "Daddy", and recorded in some of the best studios in New York and LA. He returned to the DC area in 2005 and now plays in the band, Feral Kids with ATR owner, Barclay Saul.
Barclay Saul
ATR's founder and owner, Barclay Saul, began his musical education as a seven-year old behind a used Slingerland drum set. He suffered from an over-active imagination and a slightly unhealthy Beatles fixation. When Barclay told all of his friends his drum teacher was Ringo Starr, they knew not to believe him. Barclay attended the Langley School for elementary school, where he played alto saxophone in the McLean Jazz Workshop. Barclay picked up the guitar while a student at the Potomac School, playing saxophone in the Potomac jazz and symphonic bands and guitar in the pit orchestra for the high school musicals. While in high school, Barclay played with his first professional band, playing Motown and pop songs at proms and school dances all over the DC area.
Barclay studied composition with new music composer Joan Tower at Bard College in between playing guitar and keyboard in about five million rock bands. He left Bard to pursue his rock and roll dreams and ended up back in DC, studying music education at George Mason University and teaching music full-time for various schools in the area including The Alexander School, Spring Hill Music Instruction, and The Madeira School. Barclay opened ATR in January, 2005, intent on creating an atmosphere he would want to teach in and people would want to learn in.
Barclay can soon be seen with his new band, Feral Kids. We'll keep you posted.
Todd Wilcox
Todd started piano lessons at age six, and later studied piano under a graduate of the Russian Conservatory. He co-founded his first band Phoenix at age 13 and was the keyboard player for about six months, recording such non-hits as "I Am A Dog" and "Jeffrey Hutton". His departure from Phoenix began a six-year hiatus from music which ended when he discovered the guitar while studying Engineering at Virginia Tech.
After spending four years teaching himself basic guitar skills, Todd joined or formed several bands of wide ranging styles, including folk rock, classic rock, progressive metal, christian rock, hard rock and alternative, jam, funk, jazz, and more. He also also played guitar in the orchestras for productions of "Godspell" and "Cats", the latter marking his professional debut. He has also been active in the DC music scene as a bassist, vocalist, harmonica player, live and recorded sound engineer, and stage manager.
Currently, Todd is playing lead guitar in Rogue Saint, a hard rock band gigging the area. He has also started teaching guitar lessons to a few private students, and continues his engineering work on several recording projects as well as the occasional live sound gig.
Todd leads the free jam sessions ATR offers every Sunday from noon to 4:30.