Alex Walker
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Show Director
Alex is a guitarist, composer, producer, and music educator of over 20 years. He holds a master's degree in Classical Guitar Performance. Alex has appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien, and as an artist-in-residence at Utrecht Conservatory in the Netherlands. He has performed at Lincoln Center in New York City, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, and CMT. Alex’s original music recently appeared in the 2022 Lexus RX Hybrid national commercial. Alex also has original music in film and television.
Jordan Elcess
Drum Teacher, Music Director, Show Director
Jordan started music at the age of 15. First introduced to guitar, he played in a metal band for a few years until his band needed a drummer; so he thought, “I’ll learn drums!” Self-taught, Jordan became decent but needed more to become great. He studied jazz drums in high school, which took him to the next level. Jordan’s band went on to play live shows with some big names, playing large music festivals worldwide, and national tours.
Jordan’s band went on to get signed to a label and even had Hansi Kürsch of Blind Guardian provide guest vocals on one of their records. Jordan believes that anything is achievable in life if you work hard and have others that support you in your journey, so he wants to give back to the youth in his community as an instructor at School of Rock.
Ally Riehle
Singing Teacher, Music Director, Rock 101 Teacher, Show Director
Ally has been singing for as long as she can remember and has always been passionate about expressing herself through music. She was in every talent show, competition, and performance in school, which helped her build confidence on and off stage. Ally has performed at churches and open mics with friends, and she gigs regularly with her Chicago Blues band, Heavy Sugar. Ally aspires to inspire through vocals which help to convey things that words when spoken simply cannot.
Ryan Lake
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Rock 101 Teacher
Ryan has been playing guitar since he was 12 years old. He was self-taught (he broke a lot of self-taught bad habits, so you don't have to!) but as a teen he took lessons and learned the proper way to play! Ryan is a self-proclaimed music theory nerd who loves to teach theory and many different musical styles. He has played on hundreds of stages all over Phoenix with multiple bands. Ryan can also sing, play and teach bass, keyboards, and drums. He’s composed and written many songs out in the world for all to hear!
Betsy Morisset
Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Betsy began her musical journey at the young age of 4 years old when she began taking piano lessons. While attending middle school, Betsy was introduced to Jazz styles through her school’s Jazz band. In high school, she enrolled in one of the nation’s top high school marching bands: The Upland Highland Regiment. While in this prestigious marching band, Betsy performed with her Regiment in front of the largest audiences possible of almost 100 million people at the 2011 Rose Parade!
Betsy continued practicing and learning alternate piano concepts while earning her bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology in 2016. Her teaching skills developed when Betsy pursued a master's degree in Education in 2022, where she learned how to incorporate musical teaching methods for students of all ages. When not teaching high school science and jamming on the keys, Betsy enjoys listening to and analyzing music, particularly the EDM, Ska, punk, and progressive metal genres. She loves attending live concerts and playing video games in her free time!
Adam Toerpe
Drum Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Rock 101 Teacher
Adam began his musical career when he started taking piano lessons as a 5-year-old. He moved onto the guitar at the age of 8 and then finally made the move to drums at age 10 and has been playing in bands since he was 12 years old. He has been on stages all around the west valley including the Lakeside Music Festival in Estrella Mountain Ranch when he was just 13 years old!
When Adam was in high school, he was in the marching band and participated in percussion ensemble competitions all over Arizona. All of these musical experiences have brought Adam to the decision of making music his career. Adam is currently a student at ASU in the Popular Music Program. When he is not on stage with his band, The Memo or The El Sloan Band, he’s playing, jamming, and subbing with multiple other bands all over the valley on drums and bass. Currently, Adam is writing and recording an EP of original music where Adam is playing all of the instruments including singing. More to come!
David Rodenbach
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Drum Teacher, Show Director
David has been performing on stage (singing and acting) since he was 4 years old. His rock music journey started at the age of 12 when he picked up his first guitar and started to learn his favorite records, soon realizing that this passion would turn into his career.
As a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, David has honed his skills for over two decades. He has performed as a solo artist and in bands at venues and festivals across the U.S. and as far as London, UK. Highlights of his career include performing with The Wailers, Huey Lewis and The News, Berlin, Blues Traveler, the John Butler Trio, and Grace Potter and The Nocturnals.
In addition to his skills as a performer, David is also a talented producer, studio musician, and sound engineer. His ability to create, record, and produce music has helped him to collaborate with other artists, bringing their visions to life.