
MEET OUR INSTRUCTORS
Below you can find short descriptions about our instructors, the instruments they teach and a link to their full biographies. We encourage everyone to learn about our wonderful and highly qualified staff teachers. Your first private music lessons is 20% off, as well as any first lesson with another instructor. Lydian Music Studios believes that finding someone you enjoy working with is extremely important for student progress, motivation and a life long love of music. Please reach out if you have any questions or would like to request a specific instructor. We look forward to making music with you soon!
Nicholas Meyer
he/him
Co-owner, Voice & Piano
Nicholas Meyer, baritone, is a Portland-based, multi-faceted classical vocalist and pianist who maintains an active performing and teaching career in Portland, OR. Nicholas also teaches at Willamette University and serves on the board of Renegade Opera. As a voice/piano instructor, Nicholas has taught thousands of lessons, working with professional singers/musicians, rock singers, hip-hop artists, public speakers, treble voices and teenagers, hobbyists, karaoke enthusiasts and everyone in between. Nicholas works with students to create a positive and encouraging environment and caters his lessons to the unique needs of each student. Employing his extensive classical music training and over 30 years of piano playing, Nicholas thrives in teaching all styles of music and every experience level, from beginner to advanced.

Brigitta Teuscher
she/her
Voice & Piano
Brigitta Teuscher is a contemporary contralto vocalist with years of training and performance experience. She's toured internationally as a big band jazz vocalist, performed professionally in musical theatre, and is currently a mainstay in the Portland music scene. As a teacher, she helps her students develop their true voice and reach their maximum potential by teaching solid vocal technique, building confidence, and developing emotional depth within their musical repertoire. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BM in Commercial Music and has dedicated her life to musical training. She wants to help students make goals and reach their full potential. She is an expert of the contemporary voice discipline; teaching healthy belt and mix methods to add style and power to jazz, musical theatre, pop, country,R&B, and rock singing.

Miguel Hernandez
he/him
Guitar, Bass & Ukulele
Miguel Hernandez is a professional guitar and bass player who has played in the Portland music scene for five years. Miguel works with a diversified array of groups and genres, ranging from a fluid blend of jazz, blues, rock, neo-soul, pop, and indie. Miguel studied under renowned Portland jazz musicians Alan Jones and Dan Balmer. In addition, Miguel has multiple ties with the Portland State University jazz program, working with numerous musicians on their senior thesis, including duo singer-songwriter gigs and jazz combo performances. Miguel's teaching style prioritizes providing a welcoming, non-judgmental environment for his students to explore practical guitar skills and functional music theory.

Ross Garlow
he/him
Guitar, Bass, Upright Bass & Ukulele
Ross, a Philadelphia native, has been based out of Portland for the last 3 years. After earning his master's degree in music from Rutgers University, Ross spent nearly 4 years as a music director on cruise ships. Since then Portland has been where he calls home to a persistent performing career as one of the city's premier session bassists. You can catch him any Wednesday at the 1905 performing with the Christopher Brown Quartet or on a mountain riding backcountry powder on his splitboard. As a teacher, Ross enjoys working with students of all experience levels, from beginner to advanced. He believes in giving plenty of room for his students to openly explore music and find where they want their musical commitment to be.

Emilie Faiella
she/her/they/them
Voice
Emilie Faiella is an opera singer, actress, teacher and entrepreneur based in Portland, OR. They teach all levels and styles of singing, with a focus on vocal health. In addition to this, they are an expert in teaching performance preparation, range extension, ear training, stage comportment, breath control, musicianship, and diction. They are especially passionate about teaching students with ADHD, autism, and others who are neuro-atypical. Emilie has studied music specializing in singing since 2012, and maintains a soloist career with Portland Opera, Inland Northwest Opera, Eugene Concert Choir and others. They have been teaching since 2013, and most recently taught at Boston University. Emilie obtained their Master of Music degree in Voice Performance at Boston University.
.jpeg)
Jesse Preis
all pronouns
Piano & Voice
Jesse A. Preis is a tenor, pianist, and composer from Emblem, Wyoming who actively teaches, performs, directs music programs for churches, and composes in the Portland area. Jesse has taught a wide range of students from many different backgrounds, including students from ages 5 to 70 and beginners to college level musicians. Jesse believes in meeting students where they are and building off what they already know, including building confidence in performance, strengthening skills such as sight reading, ear training, and making learning music fun. Jesse holds a BM in piano performance and pedagogy and a BA in voice performance from the University of Montana, and an MM in voice performance from West Virginia University.
.jpg)
Katherine Goforth
she/her
Voice
Katherine Goforth is a prize-winning vocalist known primarily for her work in European classical opera. Educated at St. Olaf College and the Juilliard School, and a past member of the Opera Studio at Oper Köln, she has appeared locally with Portland Opera, the Oregon Symphony, Opera Theater Oregon, Portland Chamber Orchestra, and others. Katherine studied voice in seven countries and her teaching reflects this diverse background. Her teaching is based on the principle that it should feel good to sing. She works with students to develop body awareness and reduce tension so that they are able to express themselves vocally in any way they want. In addition to voice lessons, Katherine teaches beginning piano as well as ear training and music theory.

Guest Instructors