Phil Martelly
Owner
A graduate of the esteemed Berklee College of Music in Boston, his passion for music is unmatched by few and is a driving force behind his bringing School of Rock to the Southern Mass/Rhode Island area. He is the definition of the word musician as he plays not one but several instruments: guitar, bass and drums. Phil has played with a lot of the area's hottest bands including Pappy Chulo as the opening act for none other than Incubus.
Shawn Garrity
Owner
Shawn's musical journey began at age eleven when his dad handed him a guitar and taught him a few chords. As he grew, so did his love for music. At fifteen, he joined a band and began writing music and playing original and cover songs at venues throughout New England. He studied jazz and classical music at Western Connecticut State University and earned a B.A. in Music Industry from the University of New Haven. Shawn's original band VulGarrity completed three nationwide tours and shared the stage with Mike Doughty, Days of the New, The Misfits, King’s X, Sponge, The Joy Formidable, Sleeper Agent, Psychostick, The Prodigals, Ra, Robert DeLong, The Heavy, Ra Ra Riot and Electric Six. Shawn's cover band Inside Out can be seen rocking out on stages in and around New England regularly. While Shawn enjoys listening to and playing a wide variety of music, he is most inspired by all things rock.
Matt Earle
Music Director
Matt Earle is the Music Director at School of Rock Norwood and is currently a music production student in college. Matt began teaching drum lessons at School of Rock shortly after graduating from high school. He has also worked as a guitar tech at Noll Guitars and as a music instructor at the Boys and Girls Club in Warwick, RI.
Matt has performed with many groups but mainly performs with his original band, Indelego, and his cover band, Inside Out, around New England on a weekly basis. His musical influences include Jojo Mayer, Tigran Hamasyan, John Bonham, and Matt Cameron.
Nathan Wilcox
Studio Coordinator
Nathan’s passion for music began at the age of 3 after his dad first introduced him to the music of Paul McCartney. Throughout his childhood, Nathan taught himself how to play piano and drums but eventually began taking guitar lessons at age 14 at School of Rock.
As a multi-instrumentalist, Nathan has played across the East Coast with the School of Rock Seekonk House Band as well as with the prestigious Rhode Island cover band, Inside Out. Despite having played hundreds of gigs, teaching students and directing performance groups is very fulfilling for Nathan. Some of his musical influences include Paul McCartney, The Beatles, Steve Lukather, and John Mayer.
Matt Arenburg
Drum Teacher
Matt started playing drums at the age of 4 and joined the School of Rock in Seekonk, MA when he was 8 years old. He quickly became one of the youngest members of the school’s House Band and toured the east coast, playing over a hundred shows as a School of Rock student. Now an instructor, Matt plays shows with numerous bands and side projects of all genres. He is a fan of all kinds of music from prog to pop and his drumming influences include Neil Peart, Gavin Harrison, Marco Minnemann, Justin Tyson, and Stewart Copeland. His favorite bands are Rush, Porcupine Tree, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The Who, and Wilco.
Kyle Kelly
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Kyle started playing guitar and bass at age 15. A couple of years later, he joined his first band with our Music Director Matt Earle, and has been playing in various projects together ever since.
Kyle is a fan of all kinds of music from R&B to alternative rock. His guitar and bass influences include John Frusciante, Prince, Mark Tremonti, John Entwistle, Kirk Hammett, and Dean and Robert DeLeo. Kyle enjoys bands like Alice In Chains, Korn, Deftones, and Stone Temple Pilots.
Campbell Fackre
Guitar Teacher
Campbell started playing guitar at age 9, taking lessons from a local church pastor and joining Sunday afternoon blues jams at the church. Through middle and high school he played in jazz ensembles, attended a summer camp at Berklee, and began writing original music. Some of his inspirations include Jimi Hendrix, Derek Trucks, The Grateful Deal, Duster, and Vundabar. He currently fronts the mathy pop rock trio, Three Mandareens, and spends time performing as well as recording and mixing music for other artists.
Zack Stewart
Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Zack Stewart’s first memory of being interested in music was on a playground in the fourth grade. The song was "Shout at the Devil" and the minute school was over, Mötley Crüe was to be his first album purchase. Many rock, metal, and punk albums were to follow.
The first time Zack made music was when his best friend got a guitar, and they realized they could do this band thing too. So at 12 years old, Zack got a drum set, and they made their friend Jack Hanlon get a bass. The punk rock group Social MENACE was born! Jack eventually formed The Amazing Royal Crowns, who went on to become one the most successful bands out of Providence.
In high school music class, Zack got an Irish tin whistle and had an instant connection. He thought it would be cool to mix hardcore and Celtic music, so he formed a band called Paddy's Pig. They had vocals, drums, bass, guitar, banjo, accordion, and tin whistle. They were a seven-piece explosion who gigged all over Boston and Providence. One night in 1997, they played with a new band called Dropkick Murphys, who back then only consisted of the standard guitar, bass, drums, and vocals, and played straight-ahead punk. After the show, they said they were blown away by Paddy’s Pig, and a month later, Dropkick Murphys added bagpipes, banjo, and accordion and became the biggest band Boston has known.
Music has taken Zack all over the country, and he can't imagine a life without this creative outlet. He is excited to write the next chapter right here at the School of Rock in Norwood!
Sean Whitkens
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Sean fell in love with music at an early age. He began taking piano lessons in kindergarten and quickly became enthralled with composition. As his musical horizons broadened, so did his love for other instruments including bass, ukulele, and guitar. Writing songs frequently by 14, Sean joined his first band and started experimenting with music production. In school, he studied music history and played in the Jazz and Symphonic bands. He now performs across New England with his passion project “The Park Hill Romance.” Some of Sean’s biggest musical influences include Jack White, My Chemical Romance, Twenty One Pilots, Knocked Loose, David Bowie, Ghost, and Electric Light Orchestra.
Kayla Nastari
Vocal Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Kayla knew she had a passion for music since she was 8 years old. She listened to many different types of artists and went to as many concerts as possible, knowing that’s what she wanted to do someday. Her performance journey began with talent shows at school, random karaoke events, and singing the national anthem at many events.
Kayla began attending School of Rock at age 13 with vocal and piano lessons, and she joined the Performance Program shortly thereafter. Her love for music only grew, as she began feeling much more comfortable on stage, being around people with the same interests, and learning proper techniques. Some of her musical influences are Heart, Blink-182, and Paramore.
Kayla is ready to bring students at School of Rock in Norwood, Massachusetts, the same joy she felt walking through those doors for the first time, and is excited to teach them steps toward becoming a better musician.
Nick Moran
Drums Teacher
Nick’s drumming journey started at the age of two when he started banging on pots and pans in his parent’s kitchen in Buffalo, New York. After growing tired of the dented kitchenware, Nick's parents gave five year old Nick a drum kit for Christmas and enrolled him in drum lessons, where he would begin his love for the instrument.
While he would begin his performance journey by playing in talent shows and neighborhood parties, Nick joined his first band at 15. Having finally gained practical experience through playing gigs and learning covers, he would then audition for local rock and metal cover band Dark Water. Nick’s drums journey would continue when several Buffalo musicians put together Lost and Found, an 80’s arena rock cover band, and perform multiple times at the Rapids Theatre and around the Buffalo area. His time in Lost and Found would earn Nick a nomination for “Best Drummer” at the 2023 Buffalo Music Awards. After years of hard work, Nick received an acceptance letter from Berklee and enrolled in the school in 2020. Here, he would have the privilege to study under the world-renowned faculty and musicians that Berklee has to offer, allotting him experience with studio recordings and live performances around Massachusetts. He graduated in 2024 with a Bachelor of Music with concentration in Drum Kit Performance.
He is currently in Take Me Down, a Boston based cover band. He also performs with Indie artist Veronica Lewis. On top of that, Nick produces music with his friend Landon under the band The 716, teaches at School of Rock Norwood/Wapole in addition to giving private lessons, and continues to do hired gun work and studio recordings.
Jon Snow
Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Jon is a multi-instrumentalist specializing in rock, jazz, and everything in between. He has gained a rich understanding of music from his time spent at Rivers School Conservatory and UMass Lowell. As a former student of School of Rock, Jon understands what is needed to excel in whatever level of performance program his students may choose. His live experience ranges from weddings to school competitions to playing out original music at local venues. Jon has been playing music for close to half of his life and he strives to inspire the same joy music has brought him to students at School of Rock Norwood/Walpole.
Josephine Delongchamp
Vocal Teacher
Jo has always loved music and singing since a very young age. She started performing at the age of four where she started her journey in music and theatre. When she was ten years old she started her training in Bel Canto Opera and has been training in that format ever since.
She just recently graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy with an associates degree in integrated musical theatre and Opera and joins School of Rock Norwood/Walpole as a vocal teacher. Although her training is mostly in the classical technique she loves all different types of music. Some of her influences are Elton John, Ingrid Michaelson, and Noah Kahan.