Little Bears - Meet the Teachers

Overview :: Schedule + Tuition :: Class Descriptions :: Registration :: Free Classes

Keta Bill is a talented San Francisco musician, educator, and performer. For more than 16 years Keta has taught music and movement to young children through the Toddler Tunes music program, sponsored by SF Parks and Rec. Keta also teaches music in preschools throughout the Bay Area, including Montessori Children's Center, Slippery Fish Initiative and Silverspot Nursery School. Keta also teaches chorus and singing in San Francisco public schools through the Arts and Education Project. For 30 years Keta has performed for Bread and Roses and still occasionally performs for Teatro Zinzanni and the dance band Big Bang Beat! Heard on many national commercials including Rice-a-roni and Taco Bell, Keta is truly a "San Francisco Treat"!

Multi-instrumentalist and educator Daniel Fabricant lives for teaching children music through playful songs, games and activities. A graduate of SF State's Music Education Program, Daniel considers teaching young people his "passion and calling." He uses guitar and ukulele as his primary instruments for teaching children, but in the adult world is well known for his professional performance as a classical, jazz, world music and rock double-bassist. Daniel brings his professional musicianship skills as well as his high energy and youthful spirit to the Little Bears classroom, guaranteeing a good time for all.

Rachel Hoiem, a San Francisco native, has worked with children for more than 15 years in multiple settings, from being a nanny and camp counselor to directing school musicals and volunteering in local classrooms. She studied piano for more than 20 years and earned her B.A. in music from SF State. Rachel is excited to join the Blue Bear family and looks forward to sharing her love of blues, jazz, and rock 'n' roll with both children and their parents. She continues to record and perform with local artists and is currently working on two albums with her bands Bellavista and Madelia.

Barbara Murphy has been singing and writing her own music for more than 10 years. Her powerful voice, positive energy and diverse repertoire will keep you singing long after class is over. Parents and children will learn songs ranging from old spirituals to folk classics, jazz standards, Spanish songs, original numbers and, of course, good ol' rock 'n' roll! Barbara plays guitar and piano and emphasizes voice, tone, movement, rhythm and basic musical concepts in her classes.

Dr. Julia Hunt Nielsen, a classically trained soprano, pianist and harpist, has been a music educator in the Bay Area for more than a decade. As an early childhood music educator, she is the music specialist at Cow Hollow School (a preschool), and a music consultant to Stretch the Imagination (a multi-disciplinary arts studio for young children). A member of the San Francisco Girls Chorus faculty since 2000, she has taught voice, ear training and musicianship to choristers in the advanced and pre-professional levels. And in her private voice studio, she has taught dozens of individual singers, both children and adults, to develop healthy vocal technique.

Julia Norton, VMTR, is a singer, performer, teacher and composer who hails from the UK, and has been living in the San Francisco Bay Area since 2000. As well as teaching people of all ages how to free their voices, she writes music for theatre and circus and is a teaching artist for the San Francisco Opera Guild. Julia's award-winning CD, Lullaby Island, combines traditional and original songs, fairylike vocal harmonies, harp, guitar and sounds from nature to create a truly magical bedtime journey. To listen to songs, read reviews or purchase, visit lullabyisland.com.

Jody Richardson is a San Francisco native who is happy to return home after six years in Boston, where she received a bachelor's of music from New England Conservatory and a master's of Arts in Education from Harvard University. Through teaching toddler and preschool classrooms and music classes, Jody has found an outlet for her zany side via engaging young children, and their parents, in their inner musical creativity. She continuously expands her repertoire from classical violin and dance to the realms of Appalachian folk music, traditional English sea chanteys, Hindustani classical singing and contemporary improvisation. With her violin and mountain dulcimer serving as regular components of every music class, Jody delights in introducing her students to new and exciting musical experiences that will inspire them to sing, dance, create and play.

Amy Sparrow has been facilitating children's learning and growth in language, music, dance and drama for more than 25 years. The former Director of SF Music Together, Amy is a mom who fosters music appreciation and fun using a blend of interactive learning techniques. Her travels have informed her music understanding and passion - from Nepali songs and Indonesian gamelan in the East to Swiss yodelers and French chanteuses in the West. A singer-songwriter and guitarist, Amy uses many other instruments - ukulele, autoharp, recorder, guitar, kalimba and more - to add depth and variety to an engaging music-making experience for children and adults alike.