Craig Sasson
Owner, Operator
Craig is a dedicated father, guitarist, passionate musician, and seasoned songwriter with roots in rock, blues, and metal. A high-energy bandmate with a performance career spanning two decades, Craig has taken the stage at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Irving Plaza for FUSE TV, and with Connecticut's premier cover band.
After 14 incredible years with School of Rock, Craig took a leap of faith, purchasing his own School of Rock and relocating his family to Franklin, TN. He’s now proud to lead the next generation of young musicians, sharing the magic and language of music every day at School of Rock Franklin.
Alex Fansel
Music Director, Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Alex is a studio drummer, music producer/engineer, and orchestrator based in Nashville. With a passion for developing new music and young musicians, he’s spent the last several years teaching, recording, and writing music across the US, Canada, Korea, China, Taiwan, and Serbia. Outside of School of Rock, you can usually find him recording in the studio, or writing music for orchestras, world instruments, and choirs. In 2019, Alex graduated from Berklee College of Music with a dual degree in Contemporary Writing & Production and Music Production & Engineering.
Abby Davis
Vocal Teacher, Guitar Teacher
Abby Davis has been singing and playing guitar for longer than she can remember. From starring in Berklee shows to playing music festivals, her folk/rock roots shine through with her acoustic guitar in hand.
Abby graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2023 with an undergraduate degree in Songwriting and has done private tutoring for her peers in subjects such as ear training, guitar, and voice. Abby is thrilled to be a part of the team at the School of Rock in Franklin, TN!
Alex Merrill
Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Alex Merrill is a musician, producer, and instrumentalist from Nashville, TN. He grew up in St. Petersburg, FL, and became interested in music when he started learning how to play the piano at 8 years old. Over the years, Alex has also learned to play guitar, bass, and drums. Some of his favorite genres of music include yacht rock, funk, R&B, soul, and disco, but he's comfortable working within any genre!
Alex writes, mixes, and masters his own music, as well as produces for other musicians all while being a music teacher, touring musician, and session musician!
Andrew Lucas
Guitar Teacher
Andrew is a guitarist, arranger, and music director hailing from Morristown, New Jersey. He is a former School of Rock student and explored many genres ranging from rock and metal to fusion and jazz, leading to his mastery of the instrument.
Andrew was a member of his school's House Band and was thrice selected to the School of Rock AllStars program, giving him immense experience in stage performance and life on the road. This led to Andrew's application and acceptance into Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he studied arranging and production, applying those skills to many scenarios. Having arranged for many artists, ensembles, and showcases at Berklee, Andrew has developed an immense understanding of the art, working on arrangements for big bands, contemporary ensembles, and string ensembles. Through experience on the stage, he has also used his technical proficiency in Logic X, Pro Tools, and Ableton to MD for up-and-coming artists in the industry, bringing lively arrangements and high-quality productions to their live shows.
Andrew was hired to play guitar for MARIS at the 2024 Boston Calling Music Festival, a gig he says he will never forget. Now living in Nashville, Andrew strives to be one of the most successful players in the industry, where he is focused on bringing the art and the passion back into music.
Ashton Eller
Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Ashton Eller is a Lexington, NC native and a 2018 graduate of Catawba College in Salisbury, NC where he received his BA degree in Popular Music and Music Business. While in college, Ashton studied under Adrian Crutchfield who is the saxophone player for Lionel Ritchie, CeeLo Green, Bette Midler, and the Late Prince. He also studied under Dolph Ramseur, who is the manager for the Grammy Award-winning group The Avett Brothers and founder of Ramseur Records.
Ashton has been teaching music professionally for quite some time and has a passion for helping students reach their highest potential through music. Outside of School of Rock, he is a singer/songwriter and performer and currently fronts and plays lead guitar for his own band. While Ashton teaches multiple instruments, he also plays mandolin and banjo and has experience in audio engineering. Ashton takes influence from an array of influential artists including The Beatles, John Mayer, and The Eagles. Ashton has written and performed many styles of music and has songs out on Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Music.
Chris Coburn
Drum Teacher, Keyboard Teacher
Chris was born in Los Angeles and moved to Nashville when he was four years old. Now at 21, he is passionate about teaching piano, and being a freelance producer, composer, multi-instrumentalist, animator, filmmaker, and audio engineer in his professional home recording studio in Franklin, TN. Chris attended School of Rock in Nashville in middle school. He is a Blackbird Academy audio engineering graduate and attended Lipscomb University, studying music production and animation. He was awarded a scholarship to Berklee School of Music for songwriting and was a member of the Curb Youth Symphony and MTSU Honors Orchestra for many years. Having had his own band and having been a member of multiple bands, Cris developed a great skill for performance and bringing the best sound to the stage.
Jake Handley
Drum Teacher
Jake hails from the island of Oahu. He is an instructor who is equally knowledgeable, passionate, and charming. After viewing the movie School of Rock, Jake embarked upon a lifelong journey to master the guitar; in the process, he has found an equal passion for bass, drums, and writing songs.
With many great mentors over the years—including but not limited to Coy Bowles of The Zac Brown Band—Jake has a strong foundation in blues, rock ’n’ roll, surf rock, and bluegrass. Some influences include Stevie Ray Vaughn, Dick Dale, Dave Grohl, and Billy Strings. With over 15 years of professional experience and collaboration in the industry, Jake is certified to inspire the minds of budding musicians.
James Weiss
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
James Weiss is a musician, guitarist, performer, composer, and educator from the DMV area. His playing and teaching experience span jazz, blues, rock, folk, metal, and musical theater. He graduated summa cum laude from George Mason University with a bachelor's degree in Jazz Studies in December 2021.
Following his graduation, James taught and performed locally throughout the DMV area for two years before moving to Nashville in September 2023. During his time in the DMV, he performed with cover bands, blues bands, jazz bands, rock bands, and musical theatre companies. His goal as an instructor is to inspire within his students the creativity, self-expression, and joy that music has given him.
Jason Powers
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Jason began playing guitar at the age of 15 after seeing a solo by Eddie Van Halen. That was and is the catalyst that has inspired his pursuit of the instrument to this day. At the age of 21, Jason attended the Atlanta Institute of Music with an emphasis on performance and theory. After school, he performed and taught guitar full-time for years. Most of his experience was as a studio musician where he was blessed to have worked with many notable artists in the R&B, Jazz, Rap, and Christian industries in Atlanta at that time.
After years of studio work, Jason decided to pursue engineering, mixing, and production. He was blessed to have worked in many of Atlanta's flagship studios during that venture. Jason's passion now is to continue to press on to become the best musician he can and to invest himself in others to help them to fulfill their musical goals, including his students at School of Rock Franklin.
Jason Smith
Drum Teacher
A native of Branson, MO, Jason W. Smith began playing drums at the age of 9 and playing in bands by age 12. He was active in the drum line, concert band, and jazz band during high school and was the winner of the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award and was selected as All-State Missouri Jazz band as an alternate. After high school, Jason attended Berklee College of Music and continued his education at UMKC in Kansas City graduating with a Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree concentrating on audio recording. After college, he dedicated his musical focus to an indie rock band, touring the country, and releasing albums independently. In 2014, as an employee of Sprint, he participated in the Fortune Magazine Battle of the Corporate Bands as the drummer for Cleyson Brown Unlimited. He won the Best Drummer award and the band first place honors after their performance at the prestigious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This experience prompted his move to Nashville in 2016 to further pursue his musical career. His time in Nashville includes freelance work with professional touring and recording artists, most recently with Twitty & Lynn, Dave Wilbert, and The Jason Lee McKinney Band.
Teaching has also been a passion for Jason. He began teaching in the greater Kansas City Area at Southland Conservatory in 2006 and Mobile Music Teachers in 2007 with students who were looking to sharpen their school band auditions and others who wanted to learn how to play beats on a drum set. Jason excels at finding ways to attach musical concepts to interests his students already have to facilitate quick understanding while curating enthusiasm for their instrument and music in general. A background in a State Award-winning school band program and the DIY rock band side of music afforded him a unique skill set that can cater to all backgrounds. No matter how the student has found their passion for music, Jason can facilitate relevant lessons to build a skill set that the student can use now and in the future.
Laney Lebovitz
Songwriting Director, Vocal Teacher
Laney Lebovitz is a lifelong vocalist and performer with a long history at School of Rock. Laney is a former School of Rock student who spent a decade taking lessons and participating in performance programs until her high school graduation. She spent many years in her school's House Band and was a four-time AllStar, which had a huge impact on Laney’s stage presence and performance philosophy. She graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2023 with a degree in Songwriting.
Laney’s influences span a variety of genres, from rock greats like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath to Motown/soul artists like Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin, and Stevie Wonder. She is game for any song that requires belting it out, although her songwriting influences take a departure from the loud, energetic style she loves singing. As a self-proclaimed “songwriting nerd,” Laney prefers to emulate artists with a softer tone like Fiona Apple, Hozier, Sufjan Stevens, or Kacey Musgraves, with an emphasis on lyrics and melody.
Laney can’t wait to impart what she learned from her time at School of Rock and beyond with her students. She is hopeful that she can extend her love for music and writing to the next generation.
Matt Drummey
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Matt Drummey is a musician from Kingston, MA. A versatile player, Matt is equally comfortable as a bassist or guitarist. Years of performing and teaching make him an excellent resource for any aspiring musician. His playing style is an exciting blend of a wide range of influences. Over the course of his time playing Matt has studied blues, classic rock, jazz, neo-soul, bluegrass, funk and many more.
Matt received a degree in Professional Music from Berklee College of Music in 2011. During his time at Berklee he studied under master guitarist Tim Miller. His time at Berklee also led to him being one of the co-founders of Boston jam band Skyfoot. During his time with Skyfoot Matt performed over 200 shows, spanning over 20 states. Skyfoot released their debut album "Eternal Bend" in 2011. This album features Matt on both electric guitar and bass. His deep understanding of both instruments gives him a unique perspective on playing and teaching. In the spring of 2016 Matt relocated to Nashville to continue to pursue a career in music.
As an instructor Matt’s goal is to make lessons a fun and engaging environment for students. His sense of humor and approachability make him a great fit for all levels of students. Matt puts a strong emphasis on helping students learn their favorite songs and discover improvisation. Matt can teach music theory, reading, ear training, improvisation concepts, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, electric bass, fretless bass techniques, various musical genres, songwriting and more.
Spencer Moore
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard Teacher
Spencer is a graduate of Belmont University in Nashville, TN, where he studied classical guitar and composition. He's a multi-instrumentalist with years of keyboard, percussion, guitar, and bass experience. He was a School of Rock student himself in the Philadelphia area where he developed a strong passion for music theory and an equally strong love of rock. Treating music as both a science and a beautifully robust language capable of infinite expression, Spencer dreams of a world where everybody plays an instrument, understands the music they create and hear, and strives to explore and experiment with the creation of music.
When he isn't playing guitar with Nashville-based psychedelic rock band, The Mango Furs, he is likely petting a cat or getting lost in a good video game with an inspiring soundtrack.
Tara Hagen
Vocal Teacher
Since she was young, DC native Tara has followed the path of music for as long as she can remember. As the daughter of musician parents, it was only fitting that she had a natural ear for music and a talent for performing. In 2016, she released her debut album Never Ending World under her artist name Tara Rose. After graduating from Elon University in 2018, Tara started working at the School of Rock in the DC area, teaching voice and directing shows for almost three years. In late 2020, she moved to Nashville in hopes of continuing to pursue that musical dream. She has shared the stage with peers and professionals, which has allowed her to develop her own sound and explore.
Compared to the likes of Adele and Demi Lovato, Tara has worked on everything from jazz to rock to dabbling in some (healthy) screaming. She is grateful to continue her work with young musicians at School of Rock Franklin to help them improve their skills and achieve their dreams.
William O'Rourke
Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Ukulele Teacher
William is originally from the PNW in Oregon. He has accrued several instruments over the years since he joined his school band at age 10. William fell in love with the guitar at the age of 13 and spent his teen years learning his favorite songs on the instrument. By the time he was 17, he formed a rock band with his friends with William taking on the role of lead vocalist and rhythm guitar. William studied Audio Engineering at Lane Community College and applied the skills he learned to help produce/engineer his band's first record. He also recorded a solo LP where he sang, played all the instruments, and mixed the record himself.
After years of musical experience, William entered the education field in 2021 while living in Portland, OR, and worked at Happy Valley Arts Academy. In pursuit of continuing a career in live music performance as well as education, William decided to take a leap and move to Nashville in July 2023. He plans on continuing his education here as well as teaching all while diving deeper into the Nashville music scene!
Lucas Vittore
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Lucas is a multi-instrumentalist and music educator, teaching guitar, bass guitar, and keyboard + piano. He’s currently studying Music Business at Belmont University, and is a former School of Rock student and three-time AllStar. His time there was foundational, sparking both his musicianship and his desire to help others grow through music.
Now based in Nashville, Lucas performs his original music across the city and East Nashville, and records as a session musician on Music Row. Whether he’s playing live, tracking in the studio, or working with students at School of Rock Franklin, Lucas is always surrounded by music—and wouldn’t have it any other way.
Jack Quigley
Bass Guitar Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Jack is a multi-instrumentalist from Nashville who began playing piano at age six and picked up guitar in high school. He recently relocated from Chicago, where he had lived and worked since 2019. In 2023, he began sharing his passion for music through teaching. Jack enjoys exploring and teaching genres of rock, blues, metal, and funk.
Jack is passionate about helping students at School of Rock Franklin build the skills and confidence to express themselves through music.
Salem Belladonna
Vocals Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Salem received her bachelors in Cello and Composition at the California Institute of the Arts (2018). As a teen, Salem studied cello in the high school program at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (2014), where she received her high school degree in cello.
Salem’s holistic approach to teaching encourages students at School of Rock Franklin to apply their newfound skills to their real lives, bringing lessons out of the practice room and into the world. In her 20+ years of training and experience, Salem has studied many approaches to habit-building, practice efficiency, and musical self-care. Salem focuses on building patience and self-awareness, so that when students are digging into new challenges, they have the inspiration they need to break through!
Walter Epting
Drums Teacher
Walter Epting is a seasoned drummer whose dynamic style and versatility have made him a sought-after musician for over three decades. A true student of the craft, Walter studied under renowned educator Jim Paxson Sr. at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, where he also had the opportunity to perform with jazz luminaries such as Michael Brecker, Mike Stern, Bob Mintzer, and Greg Osby.
Walter’s career spans a wide range of genres including rock, jazz, Latin, and funk. His ability to seamlessly move between styles has earned him a place in numerous live and studio settings. He was a long-time member of Delaware's beloved roots-rock outfit The Bullets, and currently holds the drum chair in the atmospheric indie band Palm Ghosts, based in Nashville.
Whether laying down deep grooves or navigating complex jazz arrangements, Walter brings both technical excellence and soulful energy to every performance. His enduring passion for rhythm and collaboration continues to drive his creative journey, including while teaching at School of Rock Franklin.