Ken Kramer
Owner, General Manager
Ken has always been passionate about music and an avid, aspiring guitarist. He's had his eyes set on starting his own music school for years which inspired him to open the School of Rock Williamsburg! It's a culmination of all the characteristics that he loves from building a business, being immersed in music, providing the highest quality music education and creating a fun, lively environment that is part of an exciting, growing and passionate community.
Prior to leaping into the rocking, shredding world of School of Rock, Ken worked in Information Technology for over 30 years, building state of the art computer systems. Starting as a software engineer, Ken worked his way up to designing, architecting and managing large projects and IT departments ranging from start-ups to large companies, including financial, media and government. All of this work ultimately led to Ken becoming a Chief Technology Officer.
Ken loves the diversity, energy and excitement of Brooklyn and has lived in Park Slope for over 20 years with his wife and two daughters. He has been an integral part of the community from coaching kids’ soccer teams, being a member of the New York City Community Education Council where he worked with the local public schools, city officials and parents to advocate for improved schools and education, and being a member of the local Civic Council promoting safer streets.
We strive to have School of Rock Williamsburg be seen as an integral part of the fabric of the community, with much to offer to all, so come join the band and rock out with us!
Jack Wagner
Music Director, Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Jack Wagner is a guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter from New Jersey. He moved to New York City in April 2022 after releasing his first full-length album as a solo artist under the stage name Jack Rangeley. Since then he has been gigging throughout the New York area as a guitar player and multi-instrumentalist for numerous bands as well as his own project.
Jack started playing classical guitar when he was in the second grade, and as he grew older his interest in different musical styles grew to the likes of rock music and jazz. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree with a concentration in Jazz Studies from Montclair State University. As a student at Montclair State University, Jack had the fortunate opportunity to study with great improvisers such as Dave Stryker and Marcus Printup and was exposed to a wide variety of performance opportunities from pit orchestra work to cover bands around the NJ area.
From his time playing gigs in middle school to now, Jack has accumulated a wide breadth of experience in the realms of making music with others and performing for others. He is grateful to be able to come to School of Rock Williamsburg each day to share that knowledge with his students.
Cecilia Case-Hernandez
Assistant Studio Coordinator
Cecilia is a musician, songwriter, and photographer from Mexico City and Dallas, TX. She moved to New York City to pursue a BFA in Photography at Parsons School of Design while also keeping up with the music skills she learned during her time as a School of Rock student in Texas.
As a School of Rock alum, Cecilia is super happy to be able to continue her love for music as a Studio Coordinator. She is inspired by all of the smiling faces that come to the school and loves getting to see the kids fall in love with music just as she did.
Jackson Kenny
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Jackson Kenny, a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, embodies a deep-rooted passion for music and education. Hailing from a long line of musicians and performers, music has been an integral part of Jackson’s life from an early age. Jackson found his ideal intersection of interests at School of Rock Williamsburg where he teaches and instills confidence through music, combining his love for performance with his commitment to education.
Before joining School of Rock, Jackson spent years in the vibrant world of touring and recording. He performed across the United States and Canada at premier venues like Terminal 5, opened for acclaimed artists such as St. Vincent and The National, and recorded with engineering legend Steve Albini. Additionally, Jackson worked in the regulatory compliance space where he built strong relationships with clients and stakeholders and honed his management skills.
Jackson serves as the Music Director and Manager for a rock-focused musical ensemble that has wowed audiences at prestigious NYC locations like Brooklyn Bowl. His professional performances have included many weddings and corporate and private events.
Jackson holds degrees in Music and Economics from The City College of New York where he studied music theory, conducting (under Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Del Tredici), and classical voice in the Swedish-Italian School, excelling in protective-singing techniques.
Dillon Wilkins
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Dillon was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. She was drawn to music at a very young age, even humming songs before she could form sentences. She began teaching herself guitar and piano at 10 years old. At 11, Dillon joined Girls Rock Dallas where she had her first experiences playing guitar and bass in a band. The following summer, she decided to take playing an instrument seriously and joined the School of Rock, where she remained a student for the next five years.
In the summer of 2016, Dillon began teaching guitar at Girls Rock Dallas and Girls Rock Fort Worth at the age of 14. At 15, she started her first band, Ting Tang Tina. They began playing shows in early 2017, gaining a following in the Dallas-Fort Worth music scene, winning best new artist from Fort Worth Weekly in 2018, and being invited to play local music festivals and SXSW. The band released their first EP, Love is Trippy, in 2018 and released their first full-length LP, HoneyBee, in 2020.
Dillon began teaching at the School of Rock in The Colony, TX in 2021 while pursuing a teaching degree. By 2023, she decided to move to Brooklyn to pursue her love for music. Today she plays shows regularly throughout New York.
Jared Pease
Drum Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Growing up in Richmond, Virginia, Jared Pease got his start playing in punk bands throughout the city, playing his first show at age 13. He would study music across all genres from rock and metal to jazz fusion and Indian classical, incorporating these genres into his playing style. Shortly after his first performance, he embarked on a US tour. Jared also took on his first drum student during this time, beginning his journey as a music educator. Deciding to pursue music as a career, he was accepted to Berklee College of Music.
Jared studied under many instructors at Berklee, including Kenwood Dennard (Maceo Parker/Jaco Pastorius) and Dave Dicenso (John Petrucci/Josh Groban). Continuing his musical exploration far beyond rock, Jared studied Caribbean, Native American, Afro-Beat, Bikutsi, Jazz, Latin, Fusion, and Indian Classical music. While at Berklee, Jared was able to perform with Paban Das Baul and Prithwiraj Choudhury, touring across the continental United States while simultaneously performing on film scores and albums.
Jared eventually moved to New York, where he would continue to tour and record, working with producers such as David Bendeth (Paramore/Breaking Benjamin), John Plenge (Pink Floyd), Godfrey Diamond (Jimi Hendrix/Aretha Franklin), Damon Whittemore (Paul McCartney), and Jeff Tomei (Smashing Pumpkins). Jared also opened a pre-production studio in Brooklyn focused on recording and mixing records. He is currently endorsed by Outlaw Drums and Soultone Cymbals.
As an educator, Jared’s priority is to make sure his students are having fun. If their goal is to play at Madison Square Garden, work in recording studios, or play in their homes, music is meant to be fun. As someone who has had the privilege of attending a college like Berklee, he feels it’s very important to pass down the knowledge and experience gained both from there and in his career as a professional musician.
Christian Cail
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Drum Teacher
Christian Cail is a guitarist, improviser, and composer. Although he primarily works through the jazz tradition, he also plays and enjoys a good deal of rock, singer-songwriter, extreme metal, and classical music—but only the stuff that could be described as “very good” by his own admittedly enigmatic yet resolute standards.
Christian descends from the ancient Blue Ridge mountain range and considers himself lucky to have attended UNCSA and UNC for education. He enjoys reading history in his idle time.
Dani Martinez
Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Dani Martinez is a multi-instrumentalist, film composer, songwriter, and recording artist hailing from East Brunswick, New Jersey. As soon as she could walk and talk, she found herself drawn to the piano and its endless storytelling possibilities. Years later, Dani found something similarly miraculous through the medium of singing and began accompanying herself as a one-woman band. Her solo songwriting and recording project, called Ohio Martinez, is a culmination of this love for musical storytelling, multi-instrumentalism, and musical experimentation. She composed, produced, performed, and mixed all three of her feature LPs, and looks forward to releasing more music soon.
Dani is a dedicated music educator and is committed to providing every student with an enthusiastic and encouraging musical environment, where they can feel free to experiment musically and take risks on their instrument. She believes that every music student, no matter how young, has a creative voice and a story to tell through their music.
Dani is currently earning her Master of Music in Screen Scoring at NYU Steinhardt, where she gets to live her childhood dream every day of telling stories through music and nerding out about the importance of horror movie soundtracks.
Madeline Yara
Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Madeline is a multi-instrumentalist and performer from Charlotte, North Carolina. Growing up in a very music-centered family, she has been a part of rock bands, choirs, and musical theatre productions all through her childhood. She is continuously working on solo projects and has released an EP, Top Shelf, with her previous band Ten Til Two, as well as a single titled Ivy (Demo).
Madeline graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 2022 and majored in Music (Composition) and Polymer Chemistry with a minor in Environmental Sciences and Studies. She studied voice under Dr. Eugene Galvin, was a part of the Charanga (Latin Jazz) Band, and regularly worked with student musical theatre productions on campus. When not writing or teaching music, she also works as an actor, puppeteer, and theatre technician with various companies and venues in the city. Madeline is currently in the development and rehearsal process for the multi-media and puppetry-centered Human Dream Project led by Admiral Grey.
Arë Seay
Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Arë is a dynamic vocalist and multi-instrumentalist based in New York City. You can find them performing in various parts of the city, playing the oboe, and singing.
Dr. Seay studied music with some of the most esteemed professionals in the United States and Europe, culminating in the completion of a PhD in musicology. Arë has performed with many orchestras including Atlanta Opera and Ballet Orchestras, Atlanta Philharmonic Orchestra, Greenville Symphony, Symphony of New Orleans, and New Orleans Gay Men’s Chorus. They also perform oboe with Broadway Bach Ensemble and Queer Urban Orchestra.
Arë lives with their partner and enjoys being a foodie and cinephile and catching as many concerts and shows as possible.
Wil Tecla
Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Wil Tecla is a drummer, percussionist, and educator with 15+ years of experience in the music industry. Growing up in Tampa, FL, Wil began working as a Drummer through the Straz Center Jazz Program while finishing high school. He then went on to attend Berklee College of Music to study with its world-renowned faculty.
After graduating from Berklee College and working on several musical endeavors in Boston, MA, Wil returned to Florida from 2017-2023 to continue his career. He eventually relocated to NYC in the summer of 2024.
Along with touring the US and Europe with numerous bands and independent artists, he has also worked in the pit and on stage for many musical theatre productions including Chicago, 42nd Street, The Prom, Shrek: The Musical, and Elf: The Musical.
Cory Cogley
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Guitarist, bassist, pianist, singer, and music theorist Cory Cogley hails from Spokane, Washington, where the proximity to wine country and mid-level rock and metal bands inspires a love and appreciation of various music styles. In between performing '80s covers, local originals, and everything else from Philip Glass to Reginald Smith Brindle to Sunn O))), Cory spends the rest of his time doing his favorite activity: teaching music to all who want to learn.
After learning classical piano and violin in his early years, Cory's self-driven interest in guitar led from the works of Metallica to progressively more complex music. Before moving to the East Coast, his musical focus carried on through Whitman College's choirs and jazz ensembles while priming him to teach music. Upon graduating in 2019, Cory has continuously taught music lessons and classes at several respected businesses and organizations.
Cory is currently expanding his music theory knowledge at CUNY's Hunter College, periodically performing and recording part-time (the best of which remains an independently-released guitar arrangement of Glass' "Metamorphosis"). When not teaching in Brooklyn, he also writes about an ongoing obsession with listening to new music on blogs and websites.
Ben Teters
Drum Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Brooklyn-based drummer, percussionist, and songwriter Ben Teters was born into a family of musicians and began honing his skills as a drummer when he was 7 years old, forming his first band at age 15. Ben is a 2012 graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston where he studied with Kenwood Dennard, Mike Mangini, and Mark Walker.
Since moving to New York City, Ben has been active on the NYC scene and maintains a busy touring schedule. His versatility, rock-solid groove, and free-flowing incorporation of Afro-Latin rhythms into contemporary music have led Ben to a host of musical collaborations, regularly writing, performing, recording, and touring with some of the finest artists from New York and beyond. These include Satsang, Sidney Mills (Steel Pulse), electric blues artist Seth Walker, America’s Got Talent finalist Cas Haley, legendary bass player Bakithi Kumalo (Paul Simon), Grammy Award winner Chris Berry, award-winning dance troupe Dorrance Dance, Afrobeat jazz group The Brighton Beat, and many others.
Ben is a founding member of Brooklyn reggae outfit, SunDub. Their sophomore album, Spirits Eat Music, was released in November 2022 on Easy Star Records.
Mark Crozer
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Mark has been the touring bassist with The Jesus and Mary Chain since 2013 and played rhythm guitar in the band between 2007 and 2008 and again in 2012.
Mark has released ten albums as an independent artist, booked tours for bands, produced and mixed records, organized and promoted concerts, and managed a rehearsal studio. He has also led rock school sessions for kids in the UK, recorded bass and guitar sessions for a wide range of artists, written music for TV, hosted a weekly radio show, and has even performed at WrestleMania.
Sebastián González
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Sebastián is a guitarist, composer, and music teacher born in Bogotá, Colombia. He studied music at the Javeriana University, El Bosque University, and the Cristancho Academy in Bogotá.
Sebastián became part of the Colombian project, Mauricio & Palo de Agua, a group signed exclusively to EMI Music, in 2001. The project has released three albums to date: Canto Caribeño, Contigo, and Viernes. The albums yielded a number of radio hits that reached the top of the charts for Latin American music and led to numerous nominations for the Shock and Nuestra Tierra awards in Colombia, winning the Golden Sigla Award at the Latin American Festival in Milan, Italy and two nominations for the Latin Grammy Awards (Best New Artist, Best Tropical Song). During Sebastián’s time in the band, he collaborated in the composition and production of these albums, and performed over 800 concerts throughout Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, the United States, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Poland and Germany.
Sebastián later moved to Australia where, over the course of two years, he performed over 1,500 shows on the P & O cruise line. Returning to Bogotá, he directed the project Moonetz and released the internationally acclaimed album, A New Direction, in 2014.
Sebastián has shared stage with artists such as Juan Luis Guerra, Fito Páez, Marc Anthony, Aterciopelados, Gilberto Santarosa, Juanes, Los Prisioneros, Fonseca, Cabas, and others. In addition to his performance, recording and touring experience, Sebastián has been involved in teaching both as a high school music teacher and privately. Currently living in New York City, Sebastián is performing with bands like Outernational, The Ritualists, and Axel Music Box, in addition to working on projects at Premier Studios in Times Square.