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About Us

The Suzuki Music School of Lincoln Park offers a success-oriented, step-by-step approach to learning a musical instrument through the Suzuki method.

Our school has provided quality music instruction since 1978. We are located inside the Parish Center of St. Michael in Old Town in Lincoln Park. We encourage a positive, non-competitive environment in which student, parent, and teacher may work together and enjoy the wonders of music.

For the youngest children (18 months to 5 years), we offer early childhood classes. For children ages 4 1/2 and older, we offer Suzuki instruction on cello, piano and violin.

The Suzuki Music School presents solo recitals and other performance opportunities throughout the year. In addition, students perform at special events such as our Halloween (“Spooky Group”) and Holiday parties. 

 

OUR INSTRUCTORS

Janet Janz Cello/Early Childhood

Jan is the owner/director of the Suzuki Music School of Lincoln Park and teaches cello and early childhood classes. She is also on faculty at the Merit School of Music where she teaches cello, early childhood classes, and directs the Stradivarius Strings Orchestra. Jan holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from DePaul University.

Jan has taken Suzuki teacher training for Cello Books 1-10, and has taken the courses Every Child Can, Suzuki Principles in Action (SPA), and the Cello Practicum. She currently performs with the Lakeview Orchestra, and also performs as a soloist and chamber music musician around the Chicago area.

Nina Saito Violin

Nina is an enthusiastic Suzuki violin teacher.  She is registered through Book 7, having studied with Nancy Jackson and Edward Kreitman.  Nina also studied with Mimi Zweig at her summer institute at Indiana University. She teaches at the Suzuki Music School of Lincoln Park as well as privately.

Nina has performed throughout the country touring as a member of the New York City Opera National Company and Western Opera Theater (San Francisco).  She formerly played with the Sarasota Opera and with the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida.  Nina has played many summer festivals including the AIMS Orchestra in Graz, Austria and the Spoleto Festival both in Spoleto, Italy and Charleston, SC.  She is an active freelancer in the Chicago-area.  Some of the groups with which she plays include Milwaukee Ballet Orchestra, Light Opera Works and New Philharmonic Orchestra. Nina was invited to perform a solo at Preston Bradley Hall with the Chicago Chamber Orchestra.  She received her BM from Northwestern University and her MM from the University of Houston.

Cynthia Papierniak Piano

Cynthia has taught at SMSLP since 1987. She earned a B.A. in Music Education from Montclair State College, NJ, and an M.S. in Biology from IIT. She spent two years in the Navy and twenty-three years as a medical research technician at Michael Reese and Rush hospitals. She has studied Suzuki pedagogy through Book VII having studied with Yasko Joichi, Carole Bigler, and Valery-Lloyd Watts. She also teaches in her home studio in Oak Park. Cynthia is a member of CAMTA, National Guild of Piano Teachers, and SAA. Her husband, Michael, plays the French horn, and her daughter (an SMS alumna) teaches violin in Baltimore. She is the pianist at her church and is a student of Dr. Michael Fritsch of Wheaton. Cynthia is an amateur composer.

Linda Veleckis Violin, Piano

A dedicated teacher, Linda Veleckis teaches violin & piano at the Suzuki Music School of Lincoln Park and serves as Director of Orchestras in Orland Park, Illinois, where she conducts four orchestras serving over 200 young musicians. Her private studio in Chicago focuses on developing strong technical foundation and preparing students for competitions and auditions. 

Linda has performed as a soloist, chamber and orchestral musician throughout the United States and Europe. Orchestrally, she has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera Orchestra, Chicago Sinfonietta, Elgin Symphony, New Philharmonic and currently serves as principal second violin with both the Illinois Philharmonic and Heartland Festival Orchestras.

Her dedication to the musical life extends beyond the concert stage and teaching studio: Linda has served as Executive Director of several orchestras and is in demand as a consultant for symphonic organizations.  Her doctoral dissertation, “Beyond the Podium: the Leadership Traits of Symphony Orchestra Conductors” is often cited as the first study of conductor viewed through the lens of organizational behavior. She has presented papers at the national conferences of the Organization Development Institute and the American String Teachers Association (ASTA).

Mikayla Jang Piano

Mikayla Jang is a passionate pianist, violinist and educator, who was born in South Korea. She studied piano, violin, and composition in her hometown, and studied both piano and violin with on a full scholarship at Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU). She completed her Bachelors in Piano Performance in 2020 and a Masters of Arts in Piano Pedagogy in 2022. A sought after performer, she was a winner of the 2022 Elyse J. Mach Awards Concerto Competition and the assistant concertmaster of the NEIU orchestra. She also performs solo, collaborative, and chamber music recitals regularly at Northeastern Illinois University. Passionate about teaching, Mikayla finished her teacher training in Suzuki Piano Book 1 and 2, and completed her teacher’s certification in Irina Gorin’s teaching method for young pianists “Tales of Musical Journey”. She is also working as a program coordinator for the Chicago Chamber Music Festival.

She says, “Teaching piano is something very precious to me because rather than just imparting knowledge, I feel as though we are building a relationship together through music. Playing piano was more of a hobby earlier in my life, but is now a passion and a dream. If my students can experience even a small amount of the joy and passion for music I have felt, it would be an amazing accomplishment for me."

Diego Tapia Piano

Diego Tapia was born in Argentina, moving to the United States in 2013 where he accepted a position as a music instructor at the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. He founded the Vamsi School of Music to inspire music education in his community and produced an album for the Vamsi School Children’s Choir, and developed his performance career by performing and collaborating with musicians of diverse musical genres.

For more than ten years, he has taught piano and Indian percussion to students at all levels. He gives lessons through the Community Music Program at Northeastern Illinois University to a wide variety of piano students. He also teaches group piano for the City Colleges of Chicago’s Continuing Education Program at Truman College and at the Suzuki Music School of Lincoln Park.

Diego holds an MA in Piano Pedagogy from Northeastern Illinois University. He studied piano with Dr. Susan Tang and Dr. Kay Kim and he is a recipient of the merit McGowan Scholarship Award 2019-20, the Diversifying Faculty in Illinois Fellowship 2021-2022, and the Dean’s Research and Creative Activity Graduate Assistantship 2021-22. Diego also presented his research The Use of The Piano in Argentine Music at the Illinois State Music Teachers Association Annual Conference 2022. In addition, Diego is the winner of the Dr. Elyse Mach Concerto Competition 2021-22. He also received his Suzuki training certification studying under the guidance of Caroline Fraser and Aubrey Faith-Slaker. Diego plans to pursue doctoral studies in music to propel his career toward new horizons.

Bev Spangler Administrative Assistant

Bev Spangler started working at the Suzuki Music School in 2011. Besides helping with events and administrative tasks, Bev is a lifelong music aficionado, especially classical music and opera. So she enjoys being in the audience, listening with keen interest to the students at recitals. Watching their delightful progress from year to year, it's easy to become their ultimate cheerleader.