Who We Are
Jane S. Kramer, Ph.D., Executive Director
Jane Kramer started the recorder at age 7 with early music specialist Arnold Grayson in Miami, Florida. She has taught recorder to over 100 children and adults. She plays oboe and English horn with the American Philharmonic/Sonoma and has been a soloist with the Mill Valley Philharmonic and College of Marin Orchestra.
With a Ph.D. in urban policy and planning from the University of California, Berkeley, Dr. Kramer has worked as a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, and as a consultant for public sector and non-profit organizations.
After being awarded a grant to pursue a passion from an anonymous donor at Vassar College, she returned to her musical roots to fulfill a dream of replicating the vision of the Fine Arts Music Conservatory of Miami which she attended as a child.
Susan Maudière, Associate Director
Susan Maudiere has worked in the Development and Fundraising field for 10 years. She graduated from The Ohio State University with a dual degree in Business and Japanese. She is a beginning recorder student and hopes to be as good as the ELM kids some day.
Faculty
Robin Nzingah Smith has studied at Boston's Berklee College of Music and Rutgers University. Nzingah currently plays with Infinite Kin and B-Free, and is the lead alto-saxophonist in Oakland's Count Basie Tribute Band. She teaches music at the San Francisco School, Head Royce, San Pedro Elementary School, and the Oakland Public Music Conservatory.
Lichi Fuentes attended the University of Chile Music School, in Santiago, where she studied voice, guitar and music theory. While at University Lichi formed Conjunto Amanda, the first all-women ensemble in Chile. Lichi was a member of Grupo Raiz for five years, touring and performing in North and South America, and Europe. She takes part in a wide variety of activities ranging from South American children's music with Colibri, to Caribbean dance music. She is also a public schools music teacher and the musical director of La Pena Community Chorus. Her new CD, QUIEN SOY (Who I Am), produced by Wayne Wallace, has just been released.
Kurt Huget is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter who has been a performing and teaching around the Bay Area for many years. He enjoys playing a wide variety of musical styles (e.g., rock, country, bluegrass, big-band jazz, etc.), and has performed and recorded with members of many legendary SF rock bands. He also teaches a weekly guitar class at San Quentin Prison.
Interns
Griffin Stoller is a 15 year old alternative string violinist and guitarist who spans the musical genres of Classical, Jazz, Fiddle, Rock and Blues. He is four time California State Fiddle Champion and has won numerous other contests, awards and scholarships including the Gershwin Award in 2008, the National ASTA award for Alternative Strings in a Traditional Style and "Best Male Entertainer" at the National Fiddle Championships in 2005 and 2009. He performs nationally and locally in such venues as the House of Blues, Yoshis and Slims. He is a Sophomore at Branson and plays for their Basketball team.
Advisory Board
Chus Alonso
Director, Mission District Young
Musicians Program
Community Music Center
San Francisco, California
Jonathan Fischer
Associate Principal Oboe
San Francisco Symphony
Kurt Huget
Faculty, Enriching Lives through Music
San Rafael, California
Leslie Leslie
Program Officer, Fred Gellert Family Foundation
Tiburon, California
David Lusterman
Publisher, String Letter Publishing
San Anselmo, California
Sammi Madison
Associate Director, Education Programs
San Francisco Symphony
San Francisco, California
Tom Wilson
Executive Director, CanalAlliance
San Rafael, California
