Lessons

Proven instrument instruction tailored to help students hone their skills and find their voice.

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Individual Lessons

No matter a student’s skill or prior music experience, our approach to individual lessons is designed to cultivate the skills, connection and curiosity needed to build a life-long love of music.

Ensemble Lessons

For non-beginner students looking to elevate their skills in a group setting, we offer ensemble lessons focused on group collaboration and shared creativity. Think family bands, jazz trios, Klezmer ensembles and more.

INSTRUMENTS

  • drums (all)

  • clarinet

  • saxophone

  • guitar & bass

  • ukulele

  • violin & viola

  • piano

  • composition

Our Instructors

HANNAH BUREAU

Founder & Executive Director

  • Hannah Bureau is a Chicago violinist and educator. She holds a degree in Violin Performance from the Boston Conservatory.

    As an active performer, Hannah can be heard around Chicago performing free improvisation, Jewish, and contemporary classical music. In 2014 she served as a member of the Apple Hill Fellowship Quartet and their Playing for Peace initiative.

    She has twice been a resident at Hewnoaks Artist Colony (2014, 2016) and in 2019 was an Artist in Residence at the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra as part of Focus Group LLC. In 2022, she performed the experimental opera "WASTED LIGHT" with Focus Group LLC at Steppenwolf Theater.

    Hannah has been teaching early childhood music and group/private string instruction since 2011. She strives to establish a community-centric classroom where students feel empowered and take ownership over their sound and ideas. She believes every teaching environment is an opportunity for compassionate and happy learning.

  • BM, Violin Performance - The Boston Conservatory, 2014

    Suzuki Book 1 Training, 2026

    Teaching Artist Training Institute, 2023

    Kindermusik Certification, 2018

  • Violin, piano, early childhood music

ETHAN T. PARCELL

Lead Instructor & Artistic Director

  • Ethan T. Parcell is a composer, artist and educator based in Chicago. His work explores ideas of smallness, hospitality, and union, and is realized primarily though composition and drawing. His compositions have been performed throughout the US and Canada by various soloists, ensembles, and youth organizations.

    A passionate educator and advocate for young people, Parcell has been a teaching artist with Sistema Ravinia, The Olive Tree Arts Network's Poetry Pals, New Music School, and many other Chicago institutions. He is the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra's first ever composer-in-residence, where he has developed a large body of experimental music for young musicians.

    He is an active performer in experimental music and theatre, and is the founder of both the opera ensemble Focus Group LLC and the comedic ragtime group The Duck Brain Anniversary Band. Parcell appears on dozens of recordings as a percussionist, clarinetist, guitarist and singer, both as a collaborator and leader.

    His handwriting, iterative drawings, and opera libretti have been exhibited in group shows in the US, Malta, and Mexico, and published in three literary magazines. Parcell is a two-time resident of Hewnoaks Artist Colony, and recipient of support from Pivot Arts and 3Arts Chicago.

  • BM Composition - The Boston Conservatory

  • Composition, voice, percussion, piano, guitar/bass, clarinets, saxophones, production

EMMA TAYLOR

Lead Instructor

  • Emma Taylor is a multifaceted musician, educator, and arts professional based in Chicago. Emma is a graduate of Millikin University (BM Music Business and Commercial Music) and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (MM, DMA). During her time at UIUC, Emma studied under the direction of Larry Gray and served as the Jazz Bassteaching assistant, teaching private lessons and running Jazz Band III, as well as the Classical Bass TA. For three years, Emma taught at Millikin University’s School of Music and School of Theatre and Dance. She has also taught at Purdue University, Wheaton College, and Richland Community College.

    Emma is an acclaimed bassist and bandleader, having received several awards such as the 2017 DownBeat Outstanding Performance and the 2020 Jazz Achievement Award. She is a sidewoman in the Central Illinois jazz scene and has played with notable musicians such as Carl Allen, Brian Lynch, Derrick Gardner, Jim Pugh, Troy Roberts, Frank Catalano, Joel Spencer, Tito Carrillo, Larry Gray, and Jim Snidero.

    Aside from playing in the US, Emma has also toured and taught masterclasses in Argentina, Chile, and Cuba, as well as in Mexico withWave Trio, a modern jazz group, which features two-time Grammy winning artist Adrian Terrazas-Gonzalez (The Mars Volta, T.R.A.M., Transient) on woodwinds. Most recently, Emma traveled to Brazil with Millikin University students for a week-long residency at University de Federal in Uberlandia.

  • Millikin University (BM Music Business and Commercial Music)

    University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (MM, DMA)

  • Bass, piano, dance

Our Approach

Music sticks when things get personal. Beyond cultivating technical instrument skills and musical fluency, we work closely with every student to follow their own curiosity, learn new skills, and express a musical voice all their own.

In-Home Chicago Music Lessons

If you’re within Chicago city limits, we can make just about any location work for lessons. We’ll come to you if busy schedules don’t have room for new destinations. We’re also happy to hold lessons in our studio in Lincoln Square. Let us know what works best for your family and we’ll make it happen!

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  • “Violin has given our child a huge confidence boost! Watching her perform has been incredible.”

    Parent of Violin student in Lincoln Square

  • “I'll never forget the moment I realized just how much impact the program was having. He wasn't just developing as a musician. He was growing as a person.

    - Parent of student in Ravenswood

  • "My son refused to participate in the recital, but I got him to agree to it if he would wear a full Spiderman costume. Ethan and Hannah completely rolled with the punches and didn't bat an eye at him performing in costume. This ability to meet students where they're at is one of their greatest strengths and why we keep coming back for more!"

    Mother of Spiderman / Secret Pianist

  • “I'll never forget the moment I realized just how much impact the program was having. When my student discovered that his growing artistic abilities could actually entertain and influence others. Seeing that light bulb moment – when he understood that music isn't just something you learn, but something you share – was incredibly special. He wasn't just developing as a musician; he was growing as a person."

    Parent, Waters Elementary

  • “He's developed crucial life skills that go far beyond music – learning to listen attentively, wait his turn, maintain precise timing, and work within a rhythm. These skills have transferred into other areas of his life in wonderful ways.”

    Parent of excitable drummer

Pricing Packages

  • Overture Package

    Four 30-min private lessons

    Single student: $170

    Sibling Rate*: $320

  • Intermezzo Package

    Four 45-minute private lessons

    Single student: $245

    Sibling rate*: $480

  • Primo Package

    Four 60-minute private lessons

    Single student: $320

    Sibling rate*: $620

Frequently Asked Questions

  • We do teach adults! Come one, come all. If you bring your instrument and a good attitude, we have a seat with your name on it.

  • We are flexible with cancellations as long as they are 12 hours before the scheduled lesson. If you have to cancel in less than 12 hours, the lesson will be charged unless a make-up lesson can be scheduled.

    If we have to cancel, the lesson will be made up. We will always try to let you know ahead of time, it is very rare that we cancel day-of.