Drop-In Hours: Fridays, 9am-12pm

Zane Forshee serves as the Director of Peabody LAUNCHPad and is a member of the guitar faculty of the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University. He is also co-Chair of the Guitar and Harp department of the Peabody Institute’s Preparatory Division. Additionally, Zane directs Peabody’s annual Fret Fest, Summer Guitar Intensive. Zane’s work as an artist has led to appearances worldwide including: the Palacete de Amezúa (Madrid), the Joseph Joachim Konzertsaal (Berlin), the Library of Congress (Washington, D.C.), the New York City Classical Guitar Society, and the Chimei Museum (Taiwan). “As the old adage goes, those who cannot do, teach. Apparently Zane Forshee didn’t get the memo…do not miss out on the chance to learn a thing or two from the man who makes music his life in the classroom and on stage.” (Baltimore City Paper)

Available remotely by appointment

Aubree Weiley is an internationally recognized arts administrator and educator with extensive experience in social development and community engagement programs and curriculum. She currently works as a member of the faculty and manager of community partnerships at the Peabody Institute, where she develops and implements a groundbreaking multi-level curriculum in citizen artistry and community engagement. In this role, she has pioneered new institutional partnerships and oversees several programs in senior living communities, schools, civic facilities, community development organizations and at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Her prior work at the People's Music School in Chicago, as well as her residencies as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Africa and as a New England Conservatory Sistema Fellow working with music programs in Venezuela, Brazil, and Peru, have cemented her belief that sharing and learning through the arts brings great pleasure, deepens societal and personal development, and builds stronger, healthier communities.

Drop-In Hours: Tuesdays, 11am-2pm

Christina Manceor is a percussionist, educator, and arts administrator with diverse musical interests. In addition to her role as Assistant Director of LAUNCHPad, she has extensive experience in performing arts management, and actively performs as a freelance musician, pursuing artistic collaborations in chamber music, world music, orchestra, jazz, and improvisation.

Christina performs regularly as a member of The Kris Johnson Group, a jazz/R&B ensemble based in Detroit, and as a soloist, she was named winner of the 2015 PAS/Armand Zildjian Percussion Scholarship and the 2013 Black Swamp Solo Multi-Percussion Competition. She has additionally directed a few of her own performance projects, and enjoys bringing artistic collaborations to unexpected spaces. Christina earned her B.M. in Percussion Performance with a minor in Performing Arts Management at the University of Michigan, and completed a M.M. in Percussion Performance at the Peabody Institute.

Available remotely by appointment

Robin McGinness is an operatic baritone and career coach whose current interests include finding ways to use theater and games to facilitate professional development, self-management for performers, art song house concerts, and modernizing the operatic repertoire. An active performer, Robin is regularly engaged for both operatic and concert works groups including Pittsburgh Festival Opera, The Washington Chorus and Washington National Opera. Robin holds degrees in vocal performance from the Peabody Institute and Oberlin Conservatory, and joined LAUNCHPad in 2015.

Sarah Thomas is a Baltimore-based violinist and educator whose interests center around exploring new ways to engage the community with music. Sarah performs in a wide range of venues ranging from traditional concert halls to Baltimore brownstones, and has appeared on many concert series in Baltimore including the Evolution Series, Union Square Chamber Music Society, and Music on the Square. As a member of the Bergamot Quartet, Sarah is committed to performing new string quartet repertoire and has performed at venues including the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and the Banff Centre. Sarah also performs in several other Baltimore-based ensembles, including Chamber Encounters and Mind on Fire, and enjoys collaborating on new projects with other artists. During the 2018-2019 season, Sarah was co-director of the Peabody String Sinfonia, a student-run, conductorless chamber orchestra that performs in community venues in Baltimore. A dedicated educator, Sarah holds a private violin studio at the Chamber Encounters Music Academy in Baltimore, and in 2016 and 2017 directed the String Chamber Music Workshop in her hometown of Memphis, TN. In her free time, Sarah can be found reading, drinking coffee, or going on long walks with friends. Sarah holds B.M. and M.M. degrees in Violin Performance from the Peabody Conservatory with Violaine Melançon.

Concert guitarist and lutenist Zachary Grim is known for his innovative concert programs presented in modern contexts across the country. His unique approach to music has led him to performances in venues such as the Newman Center for the Performing Arts, Gore Recital Hall, Hamilton Recital Hall, Gates Recital Hall, Waldheim Park, and Ag Hall. Additionally, Zachary has appeared as an artist for organizations such as the Bethlehem Bach Choir, Pennsylvania Sinfonia Orchestra, Allentown Band, Wilmington Classical Guitar Society, Boulder Guitar Society, and Denver Guitar Workshop. While Zachary brings his music to the concert hall, his evangelical approach to music has lead him to concerts in living rooms, music therapy centers, and retirement homes to spread the guitar’s vast repertoire to all corners of society. As an award-winning musician, he has appeared on television, radio, and has been featured in print on numerous occasions.

An active teacher, Zachary has held a number of prestigious teaching appointments and has maintained a studio of private students since 2009. All of his students have become fine musicians and many enjoy performing careers of their own. As an academic, Zachary also gives lectures on a number of topics relating to the classical guitar and its repertoire. Previous topics have included transcribing the lute music of John Dowland, the lute music of the English Tudor courts, Baroque performance practice, and modern compositional styles among guitar composers.

Jacob Lyerly is a guitarist who aspires to bring beauty into the world using music. He has pursued this mission through many artistic avenues such as teaching, audio recording, and performing both solo and ensemble music. Most recently, Jacob was the recipient of the University of South Carolina School of Music’s 2017 Christopher Berg Guitar Award. This award is given to the student best exemplifying the qualities of creativity, humility, perseverance, and improvement in their study of the guitar and music performance.

Jacob received his Bachelor of Music degree in 2017 from The University of South Carolina where he studied guitar with Christopher Berg. He is currently pursing a Master of Music in Performance with an emphasis in Pedagogy from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, where he studies guitar with Julian Gray.

A versatile soprano performing opera, art song, and new music, Hannah Alexandra Noyes will perform this season at Peabody in Russian opera scenes, in collaboration with composer Michael Hersch's studio, with Now Hear This in Kaija Saariaho's Emilie, and as Lisette in La Rondine. In July, she debuted as Mozart's Donna Anna in the Estates Theatre in Prague, Czech Republic. As a vocalist in numerous world premieres, she was recently part of Peabody Conservatory’s Opera Etudes program where she created the role of the Younger Brother in A Madman’s Diary by Jun An Chew in April 2019.

At the LAUNCHPad, Hannah hopes to support students in their professional development. She is passionate about refining professional materials and building a supportive environment in which to foster creative thinking. She received her Bachelors degree magna cum laude from Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. She is a second year Masters student studying with Ah Young Hong towards a degree in Vocal Performance.