Little Notes Teaching Staff

Little Notes for Little Fingers

Meet our Teachers

Andrea L. Valcuha

Andrea Valcuha the owner and director of the Little Notes Music School. Her love for music and the need for passing her passion on to students of all ages and ability levels became the main philosophy of the Little Notes Music School. She has a Master's Degree in Liberal Arts and Science and Musical Education from the University of Presov, Slovakia.

Andrea has over 20 years of teaching experience in violin, viola, cello, string orchestra, and piano. One of her specialties is working with very young beginners, ages 3 to 6, in violin and piano. She also works with children with special needs: ADD, ADHD, Autism, and Music Synesthesia are all part of her teaching expertise. She continues her education by attending workshops, seminars and national conferences. As a member of ASTA (American String Teachers Association) she holds a certificate in Solo Adjudication. Andrea is a licensed Kindermusik teacher. She is also a very active musician and performs all over the USA.

Big Jeff

Many children across the metro area heard their first live guitar and vocal music with a very tall guy known as "Big Jeff." Jeff DeSmedt has been performing under that name full-time for the past 25 years at preschools, libraries, birthday parties, family concerts and the occasional "grownup" show.

He's sold over 10,000 CDs, played over 10,000 shows, and has a couple of family music awards to his name. His instruments are guitar, ukulele, bass (acoustic, electric), drums, voice. He's proud to be bringing his experience working with young people to the Little Notes teaching staff!

Amalia Ryvkina

Amalia Ryvkina began her musical journey at the age of seven when she entered the prestigious Gnesin Academy of Music, one of Russia's leading and internationally recognized music institutions. She later earned her degree as a music educator, along with professional certification as a pianist and accompanist. Soon enough, Ms. Rykina began a new chapter of her life in the United States, where she expanded her artistic path to include a singing career. She has performed numerous times at Carnegie Hall and has guided her students to achieve outstanding results in the prestigious Little Mozart competitions multiple times.

For more than 13 years, Ms. Ryvkina has been sharing her experience and passion at Little Notes Music School, serving as a dedicated piano teacher, vocal coach, and accompanist. Deeply committed to her students' success, she continuously improves her skills by actively performing and presenting her singing and piano artistry at various local venues.

Isabella Valcuha

Isabella Valcuha began her violin studies at the age of four under the guidance of Elizabeth Faidley at the Manhattan School of Music. Throughout her musical journey, Isabella has participated in numerous festivals and competitions worldwide. Her performances have graced esteemed venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and Baruch Center in the United States, as well as international stages like the Cremona Music Festival in Italy and the Presporsky Paganini festival in Slovakia.

In 2015, at the age of 10, Isabella was recognized as a winner in the “Le Petit Orchestre” competition, highlighting her exceptional talent at a young age. She now dedicates her time to teaching her students at Little Notes Music School, while studying psychology at Montclair State University, she also performs alongside Andrea Valcuha with their band Pajtáŝi.

Seth Mandel

Seth Mandel has been teaching at Little Notes for 12 years. He is well known for an exceptionally sensitive way of teaching young adults and mature learners on guitar, mandolin, piano, keyboard, violin, electric violin, trumpet, music theory, song writing and rock band music. He studied at Rutgers University and County College of Morris in New Jersey. Seth is currently pursuing his teaching degree at Montclair State University. He also performs in a variety of bands and groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Maros Kocerha

Maros Kocerha is our teacher for advanced level piano students. Maros has been a very important member of our school for 6 years now. His style of teaching—analyzing, paying attention to the details and following through make his teaching style very effective and unique.

He holds a Master's Degree from the Technical University of Kosice, Slovakia and a Performance of Arts Degree from Adelphi University, NY in Piano and Music Theory. He is also a General Manager at Astoria Soundworks, music rehearsal studios, Astoria, NY. Besides managing and teaching he is a performer too. His teaching experiences include:  piano, keyboard, cimbalom (hammered dulcimer), accordion, guitar, music theory, composition, recording and rock music.

Sean Brody

Sean Brody is a versatile New Jersey-based musician, producer, composer, songwriter, session musician, music educator, and SAG-AFTRA actor, rooted in the Pompton Plains / Pequannock / Montclair area of the New York metropolitan region.

A lifelong pianist, Sean began playing at age 6 under mentors including Mitchell Schecter and graduated from Montclair University. He has taught piano and music for over 15 years (including at School of Rock, Shamrock School of Music, and Pioneer Academy) and continues private instruction. Sean is the newest addition to our Little Notes team.

Juraj Kukan

Starting in July, he will be teaching Double Bass classes.

Now Hiring Music Teachers

Position: piano, violin, cello, guitar, & voice instructors.

Week days and weekends available.

Contact: Andrea

For More Information Please Contact Us