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, began writing music and playing original and cover songs at clubs and 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. After college Shawn formed several bands which eventually resulted in the formation of his current band, VulGarrity. The band has completed three nationwide tours, signed an artist development deal with MySpace Records and won first place in 95.5 WBRU's 2011 Rock Hunt. Shawn has shared the stage with The Prodigals, Ra, Robert DeLong, The Heavy, Ra Ra Riot and Electric Six. Shawn continues to record music and tour with his sister and VulGarrity bandmate Tracy. With the use of loop pedals, the two play guitar, bass, drums and keys simultaneously while singing, often switching instruments during their shows, creating a unique live music experience. While Shawn enjoys listening to and playing a wide variety of music, he is most inspired by all things rock.
Scott Roddick Music Director
Scott started playing music at the age of ten. He studied jazz and classical music at Rhode Island College, and holds a Bachelors Degree in Music Composition. Scott has played in several groups throughout New England. Currently he plays with Hungry Freaks, Interplay and Take It To The Bridge. He has toured nationally and recorded on three studio albums with Gavin Castleton. Some of his musical influences are Mr. Bungle, St. Vincent, TV On The Radio and Primus.
Kevin Williams Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Kevin has well over 20 years of performing and teaching experience. He has had music featured on cable networks like The Discovery Channel, the BET network and others, and is best known as a blazing blues guitarist with Worcester, MA-based contemporary R&B act Blue Honey and his rocking blues combo The Kevin Williams Trio. He has toured and performed internationally and has been featured on several recordings as a guitarist, vocalist, bassist, keyboardist and as a producer.
Jon Pelzman Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Jon started taking piano lessons at age five and began studying guitar at age seven. He moved to Rhode Island from NY in 1980 and immediately started playing on the local music scene. He has been playing professionally in the New England area for almost 30 years, including lengthy stints with Studio C, High Definition, Harbour Lites, The Paul Borrelli Orchestra, Treasure Chest and many others. Currently you can find him playing with local show band Image, jazzing it up with Travis Colby & The D Street Band, playing classic rock hits with Fuzzy & the Fuzztones and going unplugged with The Laura May Duo. His biggest influences are Jeff Beck, Ritchie Blackmore and Eric Clapton. His repertoire includes jazz standards and hundreds of tunes from the 60s and 70s through today’s current dance and rock hits.
Jeanne Thibault Piano Teacher, Singing Teacher
Jeanne’s interest in music began at the age of seven when she listened to her mom sing in the church choir. She started private classical piano lessons by the age of eight and at 16 formed her first rock band, where she played keyboards and sang lead. Over the next decade Jeanne traveled with several different bands while touring the east coast and then spent a year playing in the renowned French Quarter in New Orleans. Upon returning to the New England area, her band The Fashion performed for several Chrysalis and Arista recording company showcases at The Channel nightclub in Boston. She most notably opened for Pat Benatar, Robin Lane and The Chartbusters and Aerosmith. Jeanne also recorded an EP with a band called English while playing full-time in southern New England with the popular band Fallen Angel, which was the only group in the area at that time with three female musicians/vocalists. She is currently playing in the local area with a duo called A Pair of Jeans.
Matt Earle Drum Teacher
Aside from teaching at School of Rock, Matt Earle plays drums and bass for multiple bands/songwriters. Matt Earle was also chosen to tour with School of Rock AllStars three consecutive years in a row which gave him opportunities to perform at numerous venues across the country including The Troubadour in Los Angeles, Hard Rock Café in Las Vegas, House of Blues in San Francisco, Rebel Lounge in Arizona, Rock n Roll hall of fame in Cleveland and so many more places and events like MoPop Festival in Detroit.
Nathan Wilcox Guitar Teacher
Nathan’s love for music began at the age of 3 after his dad first showed him the music of Paul McCartney. He began taking piano lessons but later picked up guitar at age 14 at School Of Rock. Some of his musical influences include Paul McCartney (Beatles & Wings) Steve Lukather (Toto) and John Mayer. He has played across the east coast with the School Of Rock Seekonk House Band as well as with his band Contusion.
Mike Perrotta Drum Teacher
Mike started playing drums at the age of 11 and was a former School Of Rock student himself. After graduating Mike began to play with many different artists and has toured and recorded music all around the country. His current gig is with the rock band 'Kingsmen' based out of Providence, Rhode Island.
Matt Arenburg Drum Teacher
Matt started playing drums at age 4 and joined School Of Rock Seekonk at age 8. He quickly became one of the youngest members of the school’s house band and has toured the east coast and played hundreds of shows as a member of the school as well as with various other side projects. Matt is also the 2016 and 2019 A.T.A.M. New England Drum Champion. Some of his musical influences include Neil Peart, Steven Wilson, Gavin Harrison, Justin Tyson, Marco Minnemann and Stewart Copeland
Ziggy Coffey Drum Teacher
Ziggy Coffey is a musician with many talents. As a drummer, he performs with the fuzz metal act Princess and the hypersonic surf rock trio The Z-Boys. He also has his own solo project as the moniker Ziggy Gnardust that incorporates garage rock, punk, alternative and psychedelic stylings into an energetic array of music that show off his talents on multiple instruments. As a performer, Ziggy has shared the stage with several national acts including Fishbone, KRS-ONE, Arrested Development and Deer Tick.
Sydney Murphy Keyboard Teacher, Singing Teacher
In addition to being a classically trained pianist, Sydney is an accomplished vocalist and multi-instrumental musician. She has performed throughout New England, first as a School of Rock student, next as a School of Rock instructor, and with several solo performances throughout. Her influences run the gamut from Bach to The Eagles to Alice Cooper.
Joe Krapf Drum Teacher
Joe is a multi talented musician. He started playing drums at age 9, and guitar and bass in his teens. He currently plays drums in the hard, groovy, funk rock band Northeast Traffic, indie, dreamy, psych band Beauquet, and reggae, bluesy rock band Blue Dream. He is also the guitarist and vocalist in the heavy psych rock band The Sonce. Joe has shared the stage with national acts such as Afro Man, Lionize, and Electric Six.
Joe studied the drum set with an instructor for 7 years and through college. He got his bachelor’s degree in communication and has worked in a few different industries such as TV news and in the title insurance field. Joe’s love for music has been the biggest driving force to leave the work force and focus on teaching, recording, touring and performing.