Freddy Epstein General Manager
Born in London and raised in Philadelphia, Freddy found his calling in music at a young age studying under Assistant Principal Bassist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Neil Courtney. Jazz soon became his focus and he began performing professionally at the age of 14. After graduating from Manhattan School of Music for Jazz Performance, Freddy’s love of music grew beyond any single genre. From singing at Showtime at the Apollo, to performing on Warped Tour for 3 years with his band IONIA, to traveling through Europe with Brooklyn-based Americana band, The Defibulators - the art is in the adventure! Freddy has spent the last 20 years in New York City as a musician, producer (Blood + Sand, ANML) and theater artist in NYC’s downtown experimental scene where he performed in numerous critically acclaimed productions including FUTURITY (Ars Nova/Soho Rep), The Infinite Hotel (Prototype Festival) and Animal Wisdom (Bushwick Starr). He believes music is medicine for the soul and is grateful to be at School of Rock Watertown as General Manager (and occasional show director)!
Paz Docmanov Music Director
For as long as he can remember, music has been an integral part of Paz's life. By age 7 he was playing piano and studying classical voice and by age 14 he was performing all across Romania as a bassist in rock bands and classical ensembles. Music wasn't just a hobby for him, it was a refuge. At 18, he was awarded a scholarship to study at Berklee College of Music where he graduated with a Bachelor’s in Music Composition, under the tutelage of bassist and Grammy nominated artist Victor Bailey. Paz has toured both nationally and internationally and is actively involved in the Boston local music scene. He also collaborates with multidisciplinary artists across the country as a session musician, multi-instrumentalist and Music Director. Paz specializes in bass, as well as guitar, keyboards, music theory and composition.
Chris Narainen Drum Teacher
Chris Narainen was born and raised in the Republic of Mauritius in East Africa. A self-taught drummer, Chris started playing drums at the age of 11 and has never looked back. After moving to the US in 2004, he attended UMass Boston for Finance before becoming a drum instructor and performance director at the School of Rock Watertown for the last 6 years. Chris plays with multiple bands, touring both nationally and internationally. Current groups he performs with include JazzFirst, Proplydz (EDM), JD-MadMartian (Hip Hop), Lord Almighty (Metal), Vinal (Jam Band). Chris is a true music love who’s passionate about the drums and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Music Business at Berklee School of Music.
Matt Sullivan Guitar Teacher
Matt Sullivan started playing guitar at the age of 12 and quickly made a name for himself by receiving the Louis Armstrong Award for Jazz Improvisation. After high school he attended Musicians Institute, a private college of contemporary music in Los Angeles. He's had the pleasure of studying with instructors like Danny Gill, Scott Henderson and Joe Diorio, and has attended seminars with Joe Diorio, Al DiMeola, Paul Gilbert and Steve Vai. Since graduating, he's taught music in Massachusetts for 25 years. He's done session work, international touring and plenty of local gigs, including the Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra. Matt has taught at School of Rock Watertown for the last 5 years and specializes in Rock, Blues, Funk and Jazz.
Liam Compton Guitar Teacher
Liam Compton graduated Magna Cum Laude from the Berklee College of Music with a Bachelor’s of Music in Guitar Performance. During his time at Berklee, Liam studied with David Tronzo, Ned Rothenberg, Jeffrey Lockhart (and more), honing his playing across a myriad of styles. He currently performs and records with the Boston-based band, Tipling Rock. Liam has taught guitar for over 5 years and teaches bass and advanced guitar at School of Rock Watertown and specializes in Rock and Jazz.
Gaby Cotter Singing Teacher
Gaby Cotter is a Panamanian singer, songwriter, and music educator. Her music portrays the greatness of Latin-American sounds with a touch of jazz, pop, and R&B. Fusing powerful messages with her unique attitude, Gaby is currently working on her first studio album "Volver A Empezar", as well as recording with her band The Timba Messengers, a Cuban Salsa band. As an educator, her teaching specialties include voice, early childhood development, and piano, and guitar for beginners. Her approach is based on the maxim "every student can learn if they have a passionate teacher,” with fun, personalized lessons taught in a non-competitive and nurturing environment.
Bruno Cabrera Drum Teacher
Dr. Bruno Cabrera was an Adjunct Professor of Music at Taylor University and drummer and percussionist for The Ball State Department of Theater and Dance and Muncie Civic Theater, performing an average of 6 musical theater productions per year. As a Master’s student, Dr. Cabrera worked at Indiana University’s Latin American Music Center as a performer, arranger, lecturer and coach for the Latin American Popular Music Ensemble where he shared the stage and wrote arrangements for Grammy award winners Gonzalo Grau (Venezuela), Adam Del Monte (Spain), Grammy award nominees Pablo Aslan (Argentina), Jovino Santos Neto (Brazil), and Michael Spiro (USA). Bruno has also recorded as a guest artist on "Latin Love Songs" by Grammy award winner Sylvia Mcnair.
Dr. Cabrera started playing drums when he was 3 years old. Dr. Cabrera loves performing, teaching and is always seeking new ways to teach the art of drumming. During his doctorate he researched music psychology, music cognition, and motor skill development, which provided him with tools to develop a methodology to optimize the skill development and musical knowledge of young students.
Mike Woods Guitar Teacher
Most notably known as the lead guitarist for the band Damone, Mike Woods was also the primary songwriter and co-producer for their critically acclaimed Island-Def Jam release, "Out Here All Night," as well as the follow-ups, "Roll the Dice" and “Moon & Stars”. He has shared stages and recording studios with a large variety of successful artists including Andrew W.K., Candlebox, The All-American Rejects, Tom Hamilton (Aerosmith) and Juliet Simms. His music has been featured in movies, television and video games, including The CW, Veronica Mars, “Stick It," George A. Romero's remake of the zombie classic "Day of the Dead," "Madden NFL '07," "Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam" and "Rock Band." Woods is currently a member of the L.A. based commercial writing team, Ritual Productions, and the songwriter behind the New England Revolution’s official theme song. Mike teaches guitar, bass, songwriting and runs our audio production program.
Jordyn Elliott Singing Teacher
Jordyn is what happens when you mix a passion for music and child-like curiosity. Coming from a musical household and family, she started singing at the tender age of 2 in churches. She began performing when she was 6 years old with vocal training from her mother who is also a singer. She started receiving music lessons at age 8 with the flute and the clarinet at age 11. She would then move to receive formal vocal training from age 13-19. During that time, she started developing her music teaching chops by working with the younger vocal students in high school Appomattox Regional Governors’ School for Arts and Tech. Jordyn then started coming up with techniques to bring formal training from the classical music world into the contemporary world.
She is trained and has performed certain genres such as: Gospel, Blues, Soul, Rock and Alt- Rock. She started teaching students of all ages in a variety of settings and holding vocal workshops focusing on vocal health and techniques effective across genres. Jordyn's motto is “Since music can be infinite, as musicians, so should we”. School of Rock is grateful to have her teaching vocals, composition and our Little Wing program.
Sander Bryce Drum Teacher
Sander Bryce grew up in New Jersey and started taking drum lessons at age 12. He was playing in bands by age 14 and was performing around New Jersey at various local venues, such as the Stone Pony, and competing in various Battle of the Bands contests. After entering Berklee College of Music in 2010 he started a band, I Kill Giants (Math Rock/Emo) that would take him touring around the country by 2011. Sander graduated in 2013 with a degree in professional music and shortly after moved to Austin, TX where he played drums for a band called Boyfrndz (Prog Rock). With them, he toured with the band Palms (Chino Moreno of Deftones) and Trail of Dead. He then moved back to Boston where he started his teaching career at various music schools. He also played in his own group, Really From (indie/jazz), opening for acts such as The World Is…and Kamasi Washington. Sander also produces and performs under his own project H A U N T E R (Hip Hop/Jazz). His love and passion for drumming and teaching translates to students of all levels.
Robbie Pate Singing Teacher
Robbie was born and raised in Baltimore Maryland. He found his love of music through the gospel scene at an early age, then went on to study classical voice at Baltimore School for the Arts where he also took piano classes.
In 2011, Robbie moved to Boston where he studied at Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory for Jazz Voice.
He currently plays with multiple bands in the Boston area, plays with and leads multiple wedding bands in Boston, and has most notably toured with the Alexey Podymkin Jazz Quartet in 2018.
Robbie also has recorded with artists such as Alexandra James, The Matt Savage Groove Experiment, GLX, Cspring, and the Acronauts.
Nick Lees Guitar Teacher
Inspired by classic rock bands and cartoon soundtracks, Nick Lees began playing guitar and writing songs at an early age. Growing up, he took leadership roles in local bands, provided accompaniment for musical theater and dance, and began experimenting with recorded music.
In 2015 he was accepted to The Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, where he learned to arrange and compose for a variety of ensembles including big band and orchestra. He played the part of Cory Wong in Henry Godfrey’s Vulfpeck Ensemble, and opened for Jason Aldean with local country singer Catherine Roche. In 2019 he earned his degree in Contemporary Writing and Production summa cum laude. He hopes to encourage students to listen, analyze, and interact with their favorite music.
Alex Pickert Drum Teacher
Alex Pickert has been behind a drum set since he was 10 years old. What started as a hobby in his parents garage in Pleasanton California turned into a fully fledged career and passion, taking him across the country numerous times to stages such as the House of Blues, Bottom of The Hill, and Paradise Rock Club. His rock band, Animal Flag, has shared the stage with the likes of Thursday, Sorority Noise, Basement, Dispatch and Touche Amore.
Alex received two degrees at Berklee College of Music in Drum Set Performance and Music Business Management. While at Berklee he has studied under Rod Morgenstein(Winger), Dave DiCenso (Josh Groban, Duran Duran, Cro-Mags), and Sergio Belotti (The Platters and owner of Massachusetts company 247 Drums).
While drumming is his passion, Alex has always had a knack for the art of booking shows, starting his own booking company “Coach and Sons Olde Time Family Booking” in 2011 booking hundreds of DIY shows and festivals throughout Boston. After his touring and DIY days, Alex worked as a Talent Buyer for the Middle East in Cambridge and Crossroads Presents / Live Nation, booking acts such as Orville Peck, Cindy Wilson (The B-52s), Jojo Mayer, Knuckle Puck, and countless other local and national acts. You can hear Alex drum on recordings from Animal Flag, Leaner, Yeehaw!, A Guy Named Guy and more. Alex loves drumming and believes there is nothing quite as therapeutic as channeling your energy behind a drum kit, he’s excited to pass on his passion and skill to the next generation of drummers.