Skiles Kelley

Owner
Guitar Instructor

Aly Haddad

Director
Piano Instructor

Aly Haddad is currently the Music Director and member of the piano faculty at Rockin' Robin Music Lessons and River Oaks Music School. He began taking piano lessons at the age of 5 and went on to attend the High School for Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, Texas with a focus on piano performance. He then continued to earn his Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Houston Baptist University and his Master of Music in Music Production, Technology, and Innovation from Berklee College of Music, Valencia, Spain campus. 

He has taught music lessons for many years and is able to mentor students at any learning level and create lasting relationships with them. Having studied music for many years, Aly understands that a music education grows not only a skill, but also a well-rounded person.

Melissa Rangel

Office Manager

Melissa is a strong spirited mother with studies in cosmetology and pharmaceuticals. At an early age enjoyed music and dancing.

Her days off are spent on the football field with her family. She has begun her journey to combine her love of music and children to further advance her knowledge and passion for music and bringing people together. "When we nurture a child's whole being, we open the doors to endless possibilities".

Dan Barfield

Guitar | Mandolin | Banjo | Ukulele | Songwriting

Dan is a native Houstonian, attended the University of Houston and resides in the The Heights.

Inspired at 11 yrs old by his older brother, Mike Barfield, of the Rounders, The Hollisters, and Mike Barfield Band in Austin, TX. He played in rock bands at parties, dances and teen clubs starting in Junior high school with his brother and continues to perform to this day.

Dan studied music theory and guitar under Steve Coleman and Herbie Buzbie. In addition to leaning how to read music, Herbie inspired Dan by focusing on not only rock and pop music, but  jazz, blues, and R & B. A study program immersed in the Micky Baker Jazz Guitar methods and Ted Greene music theory books and many others.

Playing for over thirty years and teaching for 9 years. Dan teaches pop, R&B, rock, blues, Celtic, bluegrass, country, and more.

A teacher with good people skills, Dan profiles each new student and develops a teaching program to fit each student’s music objectives.

He is married and has two daughters who are talented musicians.

Sam Villano

Voice | Piano | Composition

Sam Villano is a classically trained pianist, baritone singer and composer. He is experienced in teaching classical voice, piano and music composition, as well as musical theater/broadway and art song, and opera repertoire. He has been teaching music since 2020 and is a member of the Houston Symphony Chorus and a Choral Scholar at First Congregational Church of Houston. 

He graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University with a Bachelor of Music in Composition, cum laude, in 2020. In 2019, he was invited to attend the New York University Summer Film Scoring Workshop and the NYU/Broadcast Music International Television Scoring Workshop. 

Regardless of your age or experience level, he believes learning music should be fun and exciting. As a teacher, he encourages all students to explore their creativity when playing and gives them the foundation to develop a lifelong passion for making music.

He has performed around the world, including in Chicago; Las Vegas; Orlando; Barcelona, Spain; Montreal, Canada; Poznań, Poland; throughout Scotland, and Cape Town, South Africa.

When Sam isn’t teaching, he enjoys attending performances of the Houston Symphony, the Houston Grand Opera, Theatre Under the Stars and many other arts organizations in the Houston area. 

Dustin Cunningham

Violin | Piano

Dustin Cunningham is a locally grown Houston area violinist. He was born in Salt Lake City, Utah before his family relocated to Texas quick as they could, opening the door for him to begin studying the violin in school at the age of 10. Since then, he has been inseparable from his violin and making music, having played in orchestras and ensembles throughout Houston and the United States, including on such stages as Sarofim Hall, Jones Hall, the Moores Opera House, and The Grand 1984 Opera House, at Lincoln Center Square in New York City, and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. He recently gave a solo recital at the University of Houston in November 2022.

He got his feet wet teaching violin by volunteering as a beginner group instructor in the Klein ISD 5th Grade Strings program while in high school, continued on with the Touch of Music Program in 2017, and has taught his own students since 2015. He has studied with Dr. Jackson Guillen of Terra Nostra Ensemble, Dr. Javier Pinell, professor of violin at Sam Houston State University, and currently with Dr. Kirsten Yon at the University of Houston. Dustin has performed in masterclasses with James Dunham, Will Fedkenheuer, and the Formosa Quartet, and regularly performs at various private and public events throughout the city. He loves playing small-ensemble chamber music, watching a good musical (or playing in one), singing along in the car, eating chocolate covered almonds, and relaxing with a nice glass of chocolate milk after a long day.

Joshua Elton

Drums | Guitar | Piano

Josh Elton is a professional musician based out of the great Houston area. Josh has been playing music on various instruments since he was in elementary school. After starting out on piano, he moved to guitar and other stringed instruments. Since then, Josh has been performing live at countless venues all over the country and has almost 15 years of experience playing music. He began privately teaching lessons in high school and has been teaching private lessons for about 10 years now.

Zack Frank

Voice | Piano

Zack Scott Frank is a Wisconsinite and baritone who received his BM in Music Ed. from UW-W and his MM in Voice from LSU-Baton Rouge. Recently, Zack has been performing regional mainstage roles, concerts, and outreach for Opera Louisiane, Shreveport Opera, Opera Leggera, and Lone Star Lyric opera. He looks forward to continuing to perform and teach in the Houston area.

Hanna Hrybkova

Violin

Violinist Hanna Hrybkova has established herself as a world class young artist who has a beautiful sound full of color and temperament suited to the vernacular of composers. Hanna has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in Belarus, Russia, Europe, and the United States. She has been a prize winner of international competitions, among which are the Manhattan International Competition, the Rudolf Barshai International Competition, Samuel Fordis Young Artists Concerto competition, Schwob School of Music Concerto Competition, and UCLA “All-Star” Concerto competition. She has recently appeared with the UCLA Philharmonic performing on the legendary “Duke of Alcantara” Stadivarius violin and has also recorded two world premieres on the CD with the VEM ensemble.

Scott Lee

Voice | Piano

A native of Statesville, North Carolina, baritone Scott Lee has been praised for his “...substance and velvety voice” by the Winston-Salem Journal. In recent years, he has performed with Merola (San Francisco's young artist program), Piedmont Opera, The Princeton Festival, Opera Theater of the Rockies, Magnolia Baroque, and Pensacola Opera as a Jan Miller Studio Artist (formally known as the Artists in Residence Program).

His recent engagements include Jigger in Carousel (Pensacola Opera) and Papageno in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (Merola), where he was “The star of the evening... giving a silly, lovable, and vocally resplendent performance as Papageno... Lee kept the audience laughing without ever stinting on musical
values.”(The San Francisco Chronicle)
Lee also showed his dynamic range performing the role of Antonio in Donizetti’s Linda di Chamounix, where “singing such as Lee’s is still rarer not only in student production but upon all the world's stages.” (Voix des Arts)

In 2020, Lee received the Ron Payne Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in Charlotte, N.C. Lee received his Bachelor of Music degree and Master of Music degree from University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) where he studied music and vocal performance. In addition to performing, Lee is a seasoned teaching artist, having served as a member of UNCSA’s ArtistCorps, teaching in schools, and having his own private studio. Teaching ages from pre-k to people suffering from dementia and everyone in between.

Tim McBreen

Virtual Lessons Only

Piano | Trumpet | Saxophone | Clarinet | Flute | Trombone | Composition

Tim McBreen is a "retired" Elementary Band Director. He proudly served HISD for 10 years at Oak Forest Elementary School and is now focusing on spreading his passion of music through private lessons. He has 12 years of experience teaching private lessons. He studied Music Education at the University of Houston and Houston Baptist University.

He focuses on the FUN in music and loves to see his students fall in love with music. He encourages taking song requests from his students and spends time outside of lessons to arrange songs at the student's current learning level. He has arranged 300+ songs over the past 3 years and is looking forward to more. He is actively developing his own beginning method book series for piano, wind, and string instruments!

He thrives the most when teaching beginning lessons. He loves making music easy for each of his students and feels quite accomplished when students have their "aha" moments.

He is a brand new father to his son Theodore. He loves spending time with "Teddy" and watching him grow up.

Ruthie Morris

Guitar | Piano

Ruthie studied and preformed on guitar since age 17 and has been a musician since age 12. She teaches all styles and has 15 years experience teaching children and adults.

Troy Nicar

Drums

Houston drummer and drum teacher Troy Nicar is a veteran to the music business and brings over 35 years of teaching, recording and performance experience into each lesson taught.

In the mid seventies Troy attended Blinn Jr. College for two years where he took private lessons under Jerry Vanderbruenhorst and earned his Associate Arts Degree in Music Education.

From there, he attended Sam Houston State University for three more years where he studied Music Education, took private lessons under Chuck Corbett, and played in the Sam Houston State University Symphonic Band under the direction of Dr. Ralph Mills. This is when Troy got his start as a drum teacher and began performing professionally to help pay for school.

During this time Troy played drums in country bands on the weekends (Tony Tolliver in Huntsville), and in the orchestra pit of Conroe Little Theater (Annie Get Your Gun musical).

In the early eighties, Troy did an extensive eight-week DOD-USO tour of Korea, Japan and Hawaii with the pop band Scott Saint John and Nightwatch. Also during this time, Troy played on numerous studio demos and 45 RPM singles in the Houston area and stayed busy as a drum teacher.

The middle to late eighties had Troy playing in soul bands and opening shows for such national acts as Sister Sledge (We Are Family) and blues great Johnny Taylor. From then up until the present, Troy has played in a wide range of styles in local Houston bands. Troy has played everything from country (Brian Black) to blues (Low Down Brown) to R&B (Green Onions). In addition to drumming in his classic rock cover band Crop Circle, Troy also carried a third of the lead vocal duties a night.

Being in demand as a player still has Troy performing in a wide range of styles. He is currently playing in one of Houston's premier private party/corporate bands, 5th Avenue, which is a 10 piece horn band that plays everything from Chicago to The Eagles to Donna Summer to Sinatra. On sundays, Troy will get the occasional call to sub in the orchestra at Dr.Ed Young's Second Baptist Church.

Being in demand as one of the top drum teachers in Houston keeps Troy's teaching schedule full. Troy is well known for producing numerous first chair drummers for local middle and high schools in and 
around the greater Houston area. Troy's teaching style appeals to a very wide range of student from kids to adults, beginners to professionals. His roster has included high profile adult names such as Local 2 KPRC news anchor Dominique Sachse.

Jeremy Nuncio

Piano | Guitar

Jeremy Nuncio studied jazz piano at the Moores School of Music with New York jazz pianist, Robert Boston. He has since then been in the local jazz circuit. He also employed by Houston's most successful wedding band, Drywater Band. His longest professional relationship has been with Julia and The Standards in which Houston's  David Craig and Paul Chester are members.

Arianna Perroots

Voice | Piano

Known for her poised and dynamic performance, soprano Arianna Perroots brings a vibrant, bell-like voice to every stage. In addition to her position as a Singing Gondolier at the Venetian, she is pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where she studies voice with Dr. Kimberly James and piano with Maria Kolesnyk. In 2019, she appeared as a selected member of the Illinois Wesleyan University Collegiate Choir, singing with Andrea Bocelli at the Universtas Cantat concert in Poznań, Poland, and the UNLV Concert Singers, singing with The Eagles in Las Vegas, Nevada.

As an educator, her chief aim is to inspire a lifelong love of music in her students. She is experienced in both opera and musical theatre. Recently, she appeared in Orpheus in the Underworld and Hansel and Gretel with UNLV Opera, Le nozze di Figaro with Vegas City Opera and Candide with the Henderson Symphony Orchestra, in addition to productions of The Music Man and Little Women.

A decorated performer, she won first place at the 2019 National Association of Teachers of Singing competition in Nevada, and was a finalist in the 2018 Schmidt Vocal Competition, as well as a semi-finalist in the 2017 Classic Singer Competition, and is the recipient of the 2017 Maddy Summer Artist Award from Interlochen Arts Camp. She attended a young artist program at the Oberlin Summer Vocal Academy and worked with baritone Nathan Gunn and director David Paul.

Sara Zare

Voice | Piano

Sara Zare was born in a family with musical interests in Iran. Growing up, she would always listen to her father sing professionally and she developed an interest in Persian classical music. She started her professional vocal training after graduating from her first degree in Iran. Her passion for singing was constantly growing until a point when she decided to pursue singing more professionally and enter an academic voice program. Due to the ban on female singing in Iran, she started to apply abroad and managed to get admitted into the music program of Georgia State University in Atlanta and continued to do her postgraduate studies at the University of St. Thomas in Houston.  Throughout her years of education she managed to win the 2nd and 3rd places in the NATS which is a series of competitions that celebrates the art of singing. She has not neglected producing her own music and has published eight single tracks so far which are available on all major music platforms worldwide. In January 2020 she won the silver medal of the Global Music Awards and is hoping for more outstanding awards and performing on more prestigious stages in the future. 

Kodey Saldaña

Saxophone | Piano | Drums | Woodwinds

Kodey Saldana is a Houston-based Saxophonist, Composer and Educator. Kodey Saldana is a Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts Alumnus, and is currently studying for his Bachelors of Music with a specialization in music education at the University of Houston. Kodey has had the opportunity of learning and performing with many established artists and musicians such as Greg Fishman, Clay Jenkins, Paul Meyers, John Yao, Josh Allen, and Jesse Mcbride to name a few. Along the likes of these artists Kodey has worked and performed with many of the big names of Houston such as Tex Allen, Kyle Turner, Woody Witt, David Caceres, Harry Sheppard, David Craig, Marcos Varela, Jerome Gillespie II, and Armir Lee. Kodey is working to share his love of music through Composition, Performing, and Educating and passing it on to established and future generations to come. 

Joseph Tran

Violin

Joseph Tran is a violinist that has been playing for nine years. Currently, he is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas.