Pete is a registered Music Together^® teacher and co-founder of Hootenanny Art House, along with his partner Kira Smith. He has spent the last twenty years playing music from his native Pennsylvania to his adopted homes of San Francisco and New York City. His musical inspiration ranges from punk rock to country to the blue plastic trumpet inspired jams his three year old daughter Zoe initiates in the morning to wake up the sun. He’s thrilled to be doing a lot more teaching in his Brooklyn neighborhood and looking forward to sharing his guitar strumming passion with new and old friends. Pete is also anxiously awaiting a whole new cycle of sleepless nights when his second baby arrives in October. Also, keep your eyes open for Pete playing his guitar and singing in the new film, 'The Nanny Diaries'. Don't blink or you'll miss it!

Jennifer Hopkins is a veteran singer and dancer, having performed professionally in musical theater locally and nationally. She is also a dance teacher who has taught ballet tap and jazz to children of all ages.
Her current music and movement muses are her three daughters ages 10, 8 and 4. Jennifer has been teaching music and dance in the Windsor Terrace area for the last twelve years.

Having never quite abandoned the kid in him, Nikolai Moderbacher's enthusiasm in class is usually only superceded by that of a child or two. His earliest memories of music involve sitting on the back of his mother's bike, singing folk songs. He now plays guitar and percussion, dabbles at the ukulele, and has always enjoyed "hammin' it up", as his wife Pyeng kindly puts it.

He discovered his love and talent for making music with children while teaching Bilingual Kindergarten in the Bronx through Teach For America. Ever since then it's been "a moo-moo here and a quack-quack there". This is especially true since Nikolai became a father in March, 2004 to his lovely daughter Luna. Having a child has taught him a great deal about the depth of interaction adults can have with infants and toddlers, particularly through music.

Over the past two years, Nikolai has also completed an MFA degree in Wood/Furniture from California College of the Arts (CCA). Not surprisingly, the concepts of play and experimentation feature prominently in his artwork, echoing the innocence and honesty of children. But, as Nikolai proclaims:"Gallery owner's cheeks usually aren't chubby enough and I can never get them to sing "gaa gaa, goo goo" with the proper spirit!"

Stephen Taylor grew up in Boston, MA and graduated from Middlebury College, VT with a degree in Economics. Besides teaching Music Together for the past five years, he has been blogging and creating music and video which can be seen and heard on his website, www.supergood.org. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two cats.

Aria is a Brooklyn native and has two little ones of her own. She is Waldorf educated and received her BFA from Purchase College. She is currently obtaining her Masters degree in Creative Arts therapy. Aria has always seen art making as a way to integrate all the many facets of her life. Aria is trained in photography, printmaking, painting, collage, and numerous other mediums. Aria also has a background in Flamenco dance, Yoga and early childhood education.

Kira runs Hootenanny Art House with her partner Pete. She learned everything she needed to know about her new adventures in business and motherhood from her ten years as a modern dancer. Well, at least the she’s got the spinning part down. Kira has also studied yoga, women’s spirituality and creative arts therapy. She is thrilled to get to hang out with so many smart and dedicated parents and their rebel-rousing kids

Gwynne is a Brooklyn artist with a BFA in painting
from Bard College. She has been showing her paintings based on dream imagery for many years in NYC and has curated several group shows.
She has a mural in the subway at the Clinton-Washington stop on the G line in Brooklyn, and she was featured in the LA Times for her painting 'Empress' in the show "From the Ashes" following 911.
She exhibited her work at Hootenanny Art House this past spring.