Ethan Sass Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Show Director
Ethan Sass is a NYC-based guitarist and songwriter who has been playing for over 10 years. He received a bachelor's degree from Berklee College of Music, where he studied with some of the top musicians in the country and immersed himself in diverse styles of music. After Berklee, Ethan moved to NYC, where he is now a dedicated teacher and plays in a few different bands as a songwriter and guitarist/bassist. As a guitar teacher, bass guitar teacher, drum teacher and piano teacher at School of Rock Brooklyn, Ethan teaches a variety of students. He is also our show director and group band leader. He keeps his lessons fun, informative and relevant.
Cory Sterling Guitar Teacher
Originally from Portland, OR, guitarist Cory Sterling moved to New York City in 2010 to attend The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. Cory has performed with Dave Weckl, Melvin Davis, John Stowell and Scott Whitfield, and has appeared at the Monterey Next Generation Jazz Festival, Port Townsend Jazz Festival and Mount Hood Jazz Festival. In 2009 Cory won the Berklee College of Music Battle for Berklee guitar competition in Boston, MA, and performed at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica, CA as a finalist in the 2010 Yamaha Six String Theory International Guitar Competition. In 2011 Cory won first place in the jazz category at the 2011 Yamaha Six String Theory International Guitar Competition, an all ages/genres event whose judges included Lee Ritenour, Steve Lukather, Gary Tallent and Scott Goldman of the Grammy Foundation. Cory is a guitar teacher at School of Rock Brooklyn.
Hannah Scholnick Studio Coordinator
Hannah is originally from Madison CT. She has been working with School of Rock Brooklyn as a studio coordinator for a little over a year, but she also worked for School of Rock in her hometown as a front desk assistant when she was in high school. She has always loved singing, and participated in various acapella groups in college. She also dabbles with the guitar, ukulele and songwriting. She is currently in graduate school to get her Masters in Social Work at Yeshiva University.
Kolby Koczanowski Bass Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard Teacher, Singing Teacher
Kolby Koczanowski, MME, MT-BC is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, and board-certified music therapist from Overland Park, KS. In 2014, he graduated from the University of Central Missouri with a Bachelors of Music in Percussion Performance and went on to complete his Master’s of Music Education & Music Therapy from the University of Kansas.
From 2012-2019, Kolby was a member of the professional NFL drumline of the Kansas City Chiefs, Chiefs Rumble. In 2013, Kolby won 1st place at the University of Central Missouri Concerto Competition and in 2014 won 1st Place in Collegiate Marimba Division at the Mid-Missouri Percussive Arts Trophy Competition. In 2015, he traveled abroad to Thailand to study music therapy at Mahidol University.
In 2019, Kolby released three albums and three EPs worth of original, self-produced music under the artist name Pair of Sloths. His original compositions can be heard on the Mushroom Revival Podcast, the Men of Doozy Podcast, and the parody web-series Chewie Chats. Most recently, Kolby can be heard playing drums on the live WXPN radio session with singer-songwriter Naheemah Maddox.
Michael Eliran Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Piano Teacher, Singing Teacher
Born and raised in New York City, Michael Eliran has been playing music for well over 18 years. A pianist, guitarist, bassist, vocalist, and songwriter, Michael's focus as a teacher is on applying technique, music theory, and harmonic analysis to encourage students to explore their own creativity and express themselves through music, in addition to learning songs that they like and will help them grow.
Samantha Stott Singing Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Keyboard Teacher, Drum Teacher
Samantha Stott is a singer and multi-instrumentalist, including guitar, drums, piano, and clarinet. She received her Bachelors of Vocal Performance from The University of West Florida and is currently in Graduate School studying Vocal Performance at Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music. Samantha also has a band called Lights With Fire that she fronts and composes the music for. Along with working at School of Rock, she is also cantering in churches around the city and continuing to pursue her passions.
Chris Veliz Drum Teacher
From Miami, Florida, Chris brings 9+ years of School of Rock teaching experience to the lesson room and rehearsals. Starting music as a School of Rock student himself, he brings a fun and exciting teaching style that puts progress and interest front and center. Inspired by drummers like Ringo Starr, Stewart Copeland, Jon Bonham, Neil Peart, and many more, Chris focuses on musicality as well as technical playing for his students. Chris provides insight from his own experience playing in bands with a wide range of musical styles and genres to give his students versatility and confidence in their playing. Some of his favorite groups include The Beatles, The Police, Elliott Smith, Elvis Costello, Frank Ocean, Bob Dylan, Wilco, and so much more.
Brielle Liebman Singing Teacher, Keyboard Teacher, Guitar Teacher
Brielle is a singer-songwriter originally from New Jersey. She graduated in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in music from William Paterson University where she studied performing, songwriting, music theory and ear training. While in school, she ran ensembles nearly every semester, and worked on arrangements and performances with these ensembles. She has been writing melodies and lyrics ever since she can remember, but started taking her craft seriously around age 13. She has been a dedicated singer and guitarist since then, and has been playing professionally (with bands, and solo) for around 10 years. She has held residencies at restaurants as well as playing The Stone Pony in New Jersey, to New York City venues including Rockwood Music Hall. Most recently, her focus has been collaborating with other songwriters and co-writing as much as she can with other writers and producers to make various kinds of music.
As a teacher, she has taught at five School of Rock locations throughout the years, as well as private schools and private lessons. She has worked as an instructor, ran Little Wing, Rock 101 programs, and Rookies, as well as being a show director. Her main focus is working with her students to develop knowledge and skill on their chosen instruments as well as cultivating creativity so that her students may one day become artists as well. She loves finding out what inspires each student, and meeting them there to build their musical foundations.
Micah Prussack Bass Guitar Teacher
Micah (they/them) has been playing in bands around NYC for over a decade. They believe that playing music with other people is one of life's greatest pleasures. Though primarily a bass player, Micah has branched out over the years to multiple instruments including drums, piano, and guitar. Through careful exploration of a myriad of genres and collaborating with some of the best musicians the city has to offer, Micah has a versatile and enthusiastic approach to playing and teaching all kinds of music.
Jada Preston Singing Teacher, Keyboard Teacher
Jada is a Houston native that began her journey into the arts from a very young age. Growing up listening to her grandmother sing and record herself every night, she would sit beside her and this eventually led her to do the same. After enjoying and thriving in dance and art throughout her youth, she soon began her musical theatre journey in High school, advancing to Nationals with perfect scores. She also had the opportunity to perform at the Tommy Tune Awards. After much hard work and experience, she decided to perfect her craft at Howard University. There she began her love for music theory and expanded her range for music! An avid Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Zappa listener, she enjoys learning and teaching all sounds.
Jason Ross Guitar Teacher
Jason Ross is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter who has been involved with School of Rock for over a decade. Attending both the Manhattan and Tenafly/Cresskill locations over a ten year period, Jason participated in 30 seasonal shows and was a member of both house bands. He also spent four years touring as a SOR Allstar, playing alongside artists such as Perry Farrell of Janes Addiction, Corey Glover of Living Colour and Robert Trujillo of Metallica. Jason recently graduated from Skidmore College in 2020 with a Bachelors degree in Music. He currently lives in Brooklyn and just released his debut album "We Buy Smiles" under the artist name “Moon Sand Land”.