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Our Team
A community of mentors

Battle of the Opening & Expansion Bands on Sun. 10/8. More info here.

Every aspiring musician needs mentors


Our well-trained teachers are highly experienced and work together as a team to help students reach their individuals goals. At Music House, you'll have access to some of the best musicians and instructors in Overland Park, Lenexa, Olathe and the Kansas City metro. Our entire team of educators works together to bring a diverse range of perspectives to each and every student.

Little-known fact: Our teachers are full-fledged employees of Music House, not just independent contractors like at every other music school in the Kansas City area. What does that mean? It means consistent instruction across the board, fully vetted music teachers, and an incredibly strong music community. We can't wait to meet you!

Administrators
Aaron Sizemore Co-Founder, Executive Director
Aaron Sizemore
Co-Founder, Executive Director

Music House Co-founder, Aaron Sizemore grew up in the Quad Cities, a hotbed of blues and jazz along the Mississippi River on the Illinois/Iowa border. He started out on the trumpet when he was nine...

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Becca Kephart Director of Band Workshops
Becca Kephart
Director of Band Workshops

As a popular independent music lesson teacher, Becca brought a whole fleet of students with her when she began teaching at Music House in 2014. It was the focus on community that had attracted her ...

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Rachel Vandivier Director of Classes
Rachel Vandivier
Director of Classes

Rachel Vandivier is a midwest based singer, actor, harpist, voice teacher, and musical director and is excited to join the Music House team! She holds an MM in CCM Voice Pedagogy and Speech Science...

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Rachel Loewen Director of Outreach
Rachel Loewen
Director of Outreach

Rachel comes to Music House from Wichita, KS where she was born and raised. She brings extensive knowledge of the music retail industry having worked 5 ½ years for one of the state’s largest music ...

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Kinsey Belgeri Director of Community Culture
Kinsey Belgeri
Director of Community Culture

Born in Overland Park, Kansas, Kinsey’s love for music came out of her early experiences as a dancer. Her parents influenced her love for classic rock, and she is now the self-proclaimed number one...

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Brian Kephart Director of Technology
Brian Kephart
Director of Technology

A veteran of many rock, funk & jazz bands from southern Illinois to the Colorado front range, Brian has a diversity of musical experiences that he loves to share with students and fans of all t...

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Jon Self Program Coordinator / Guitar / Bass / Ukulele
Jon Self
Program Coordinator / Guitar / Bass / Ukulele

Jon Self is a guitarist, trombonist, educator, and composer from Kirksville, MO. Having started as a self-taught guitarist, Jon understands a wide variety of musical perspectives. Recently graduate...

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Jake Schubert Program Coordinator / Drums / Piano
Jake Schubert
Program Coordinator / Drums / Piano

Jake Schubert is a percussionist from Milwaukee, where he completed his degree in classical percussion performance from UW Milwaukee. He has toured throughout Wisconsin playing jazz fusion and musi...

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Taylor Blake Community Assistant
Taylor Blake
Community Assistant

Taylor Blake grew up just outside of the KC area. She has had a love and passion for music for most of her life, playing various instruments and singing in different groups. Her experience in corpo...

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Emily Palmer Community Assistant
Emily Palmer
Community Assistant

Emily grew up in Kansas City and has enjoyed music and dancing since a very young age. She graduated from Turner High in 2019 and went off to Johnson County Community College where she took a music...

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Brass & Woodwinds
Alex Dergal Winds / Piano
Alex Dergal
Winds / Piano

For the past year Alex Dergal has been living in Overland Park while teaching in the Blue Springs school district. Directing most of his energy at Brittany Hill and Paul Kinder Middle Schools, Alex...

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Jen Hoover Voice / Piano / Flute
Jen Hoover
Voice / Piano / Flute

Originally from Topeka, KS, Miss Hoover has spent the past 14 years living & teaching in the New Orleans metro. After graduating from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary with double master...

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Daphne Hootman Piano / Flute
Daphne Hootman
Piano / Flute

Daphne Hootman is a Kansas City native who has been teaching in the area since 1995. “My teaching philosophy is to give students the important tools they need to learn,” says Daphne, “while also gi...

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Drums
Frazier Krohn Drums
Frazier Krohn
Drums

Frazier Krohn is a seasoned percussionist with 19 years of experience and a diverse musical background, encompassing performances from classical orchestras to punk rock bands. With a double major i...

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Nicholas Ferguson Drums
Nicholas Ferguson
Drums

UMKC graduate and Ferguson, Missouri native, Nick brings an electric element, a talented heart, and a creative mind to the Music House community. Working as a professional musician for many years, ...

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Dodi Wiemuth Drums/Guitar/Bass/Ukulele
Dodi Wiemuth
Drums/Guitar/Bass/Ukulele

Edoardo (Dodi) Wiemuth has been playing guitar, drums, and bass for over twenty-five years. He is originally from Tuscany, Italy and graduated from the Music Conservatory of Perugia in percussion. ...

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Joel Shipley Drums
Joel Shipley
Drums

Joel Shipley has been teaching drums for years, but what brings him to Music House is his passion for playing music with others. “My goal is to share the joy of drums and music with every student.”...

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Steve Thomas Drums
Steve Thomas
Drums

Throughout his over 20 years of teaching experience, Steve has enjoyed sharing his passion for music with students of all ages. His teaching style is often described as “inspirational” and we’ve be...

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Kevin McAfoos Drums
Kevin McAfoos
Drums

Kevin McAfoos is a drummer, educator, and audio/video technician in Kansas City. Originally hailing from small town Cleveland, MO, Kevin was given ample opportunity to try his hand at music educati...

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Jake Schubert Program Coordinator / Drums / Piano
Jake Schubert
Program Coordinator / Drums / Piano

Jake Schubert is a percussionist from Milwaukee, where he completed his degree in classical percussion performance from UW Milwaukee. He has toured throughout Wisconsin playing jazz fusion and musi...

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Early Childhood Music
Zakara York Voice
Zakara York
Voice

Zakara’s musical journey began at home, with musician parents and siblings. She started writing songs soon after picking up the guitar at age 11, singing in her school choir throughout childhood. A...

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Guitar & Bass
Jerad Tomasino Guitar
Jerad Tomasino
Guitar

Jerad Tomasino is an American born composer, producer, and teaching artist from K.I. Sawyer, Michigan, living and working in Kansas City, MO. He graduated from the University of Missouri-Kansas Cit...

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Micah McCuistion Guitar / Bass
Micah McCuistion
Guitar / Bass

Micah is a guitarist and band leader raised in the town of Chanute Kansas. Micah began playing guitar at the age of 15 and has since toured and performed with multiple bands and artists ranging in ...

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Matt Elton Guitar / Bass
Matt Elton
Guitar / Bass

Hailing from Kansas City, Kansas, Matt began playing string instruments at the age of 10, and was playing professionally by the age of 12. After graduating from Turner High School, he pursued a deg...

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Lilah Cottrell Guitar / Bass / Ukulele
Lilah Cottrell
Guitar / Bass / Ukulele

Lilah Cottrell is a multi-instrumentalist and recording engineer from Kansas City. Lilah got her start in education at Kansas City Young Audiences, first as a student, then going on to lead their "...

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Dodi Wiemuth Drums/Guitar/Bass/Ukulele
Dodi Wiemuth
Drums/Guitar/Bass/Ukulele

Edoardo (Dodi) Wiemuth has been playing guitar, drums, and bass for over twenty-five years. He is originally from Tuscany, Italy and graduated from the Music Conservatory of Perugia in percussion. ...

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Aiden Jensen Guitar / Bass
Aiden Jensen
Guitar / Bass

Aiden Jensen is a working guitarist and bassist born and raised in KC. He was first introduced to music at age 13 in a school guitar class, then moved on to private lessons and gigs shortly after. ...

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Jon Self Program Coordinator / Guitar / Bass / Ukulele
Jon Self
Program Coordinator / Guitar / Bass / Ukulele

Jon Self is a guitarist, trombonist, educator, and composer from Kirksville, MO. Having started as a self-taught guitarist, Jon understands a wide variety of musical perspectives. Recently graduate...

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Logan Contino Guitar/Bass/Ukulele
Logan Contino
Guitar/Bass/Ukulele

Logan Contino, a Johnson County native, graduated from Selkirk College in British Columbia with degrees in music composition, music production, and guitar. As a Music House alum, he spent multiple ...

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Piano
Alex Dergal Winds / Piano
Alex Dergal
Winds / Piano

For the past year Alex Dergal has been living in Overland Park while teaching in the Blue Springs school district. Directing most of his energy at Brittany Hill and Paul Kinder Middle Schools, Alex...

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Ryan Deimerly Piano
Ryan Deimerly
Piano

Ryan Deimerly is a multi-instrumentalist originally hailing from Minnesota. He started playing piano when he was five years old, and soon began to play music by ear. His interests broadened to guit...

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Yuli Almonte Piano
Yuli Almonte
Piano

Yuli is a passionate music educator with over 16 years of teaching experience. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Music Education, and is certified in both the Kodaly method and Orff process. Over th...

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Jen Hoover Voice / Piano / Flute
Jen Hoover
Voice / Piano / Flute

Originally from Topeka, KS, Miss Hoover has spent the past 14 years living & teaching in the New Orleans metro. After graduating from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary with double master...

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Daphne Hootman Piano / Flute
Daphne Hootman
Piano / Flute

Daphne Hootman is a Kansas City native who has been teaching in the area since 1995. “My teaching philosophy is to give students the important tools they need to learn,” says Daphne, “while also gi...

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David Olson Piano
David Olson
Piano

David has been a professional musician for over 20 years, with vast experience teaching piano/keyboard, bass, guitar and voice. Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, David was surrounded by music a...

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Audrey Lena Baughman Piano / Voice
Audrey Lena Baughman
Piano / Voice

Music is Audrey's number one love language. With over 15 years of teaching experience, Audrey finds great joy when she inspires her students and helps shape them to become the artist they desire to...

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Ernest Douglas Piano
Ernest Douglas
Piano

Ernest Douglas is a Kansas City based multi-instrumentalist, audio engineer, producer, composer and teacher specializing in Rock, Soul, Blues, and film scores. As a second generation musician, Erne...

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Jake Schubert Program Coordinator / Drums / Piano
Jake Schubert
Program Coordinator / Drums / Piano

Jake Schubert is a percussionist from Milwaukee, where he completed his degree in classical percussion performance from UW Milwaukee. He has toured throughout Wisconsin playing jazz fusion and musi...

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Stas Heaney Piano
Stas Heaney
Piano

While growing up in the Midwest, Staś had a knack for chancing upon world-class musical experiences as he studied piano, voice, violin, and percussion. He picked up a number of other instruments al...

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Andrew Ouellette Piano
Andrew Ouellette
Piano

Andrew Ouellette is a Kansas City pianist, composer, and educator. Originally from Hannibal, MO, Andrew has taught piano lessons for over 6 years. He had the privilege to study under the world-reno...

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Charles Hoeft Piano
Charles Hoeft
Piano

Charles Hoeft is a versatile pianist and a devoted educator. Originally from Minnesota, he moved to Kansas City in 2014 and has enjoyed teaching at Music House since 2015. He loves to teach people ...

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Voice
Shamika Franklin Voice
Shamika Franklin
Voice

Shamika Franklin is happy to be joining the Music House School of Music as a vocal music teacher. She has prior teaching experience as an elementary teacher, tutor, teaching artist, and Music Toget...

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Connor Rich Voice
Connor Rich
Voice

Growing up in St. Joseph, Connor Rich has been around music all of his life. In school he participated in church choir, band, jazz band & choir, and university choir. He received his Bachelor’s...

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Jen Hoover Voice / Piano / Flute
Jen Hoover
Voice / Piano / Flute

Originally from Topeka, KS, Miss Hoover has spent the past 14 years living & teaching in the New Orleans metro. After graduating from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary with double master...

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Evelyn Wouters Voice
Evelyn Wouters
Voice

Evelyn Wouters grew up in the small town of Pleasant Hill, Missouri, and was raised with a deep appreciation for music. Most evenings her families house was filled with the sound of her dad jamming...

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Zakara York Voice
Zakara York
Voice

Zakara’s musical journey began at home, with musician parents and siblings. She started writing songs soon after picking up the guitar at age 11, singing in her school choir throughout childhood. A...

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Audrey Lena Baughman Piano / Voice
Audrey Lena Baughman
Piano / Voice

Music is Audrey's number one love language. With over 15 years of teaching experience, Audrey finds great joy when she inspires her students and helps shape them to become the artist they desire to...

Read More