Mentors
For our Online offering, each mentor is unique, with their own fees and offerings. To learn more, reach out to us to discuss your creative goals.
Nadia Kudiarskyj
Nadia brings a wealth of experience from a variety of industries and has developed her profile as a leading advocator for student and teacher wellbeing in education via her work in the health and fitness industry, creative arts industry, tertiary and early education centres including schools for students with autism and learning difficulties.
Nadia specialises in professional development programs for teachers, students, parents, corporate and health professionals in areas of performance coaching, stress and anxiety management, behaviour change and healthy lifestyles.
In the early years of her career Nadia worked in the UK as a Fitness coach, Yoga Teacher and Freelance Movement Teacher teaching choreographed exercise to music. Nadia understands how learning some very simple and practical skills through the body - to increase body awareness - enhances a person's experience of life on a day to day basis and in their chosen profession.
Thanks to Nadia’s natural and honest style, presentations are practical, engaging and humorous; bringing lightness to often challenging topics and complex issues.
Michael McLennan
Michael McLennan is an Australian-based writer/director whose short films include 'Standby', 'A Tea Party for Sad People', 'Go Quickly', and the films of the Secret Film Society. He was Head of Production and Head of Film at Sydney Film School, where he taught Screen Language, Writing, Post-Production and Creativity, and supervised over 400 short films made at the School. He is currently in development on a number of short and long form projects, while teaching screen production at the Academy of Film Theatre and Television, AIT, AFTRS and Bradfield Senior College.
Tom Marland
Tom Marland is a producer, multi-instrumentalist, music director and teacher who has been using Ableton Live since 2007 to deliver significant results for some of Australia’s biggest names in music. In a performance context, he uses Ableton Live to create and provide consultation for some of Australia’s biggest music acts, including Peking Duk, Hayden James SAFIA, Tom Thum, Cosmo’s Midnight and Panama, amongst many others. With an abundance of touring experience, Tom’s expertise in incorporating Ableton Live into performance has set him aside as one of Australia’s most in-demand music technology consultants.
As a producer, he has released original music and remixes through labels such as OneLove, etcetc with Sydney based trio, The Nights, and tours around Australia performing live with Ableton Live and Push as the backbone of the show.
Tom also holds an MMus. (Composition) from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and also a BCA (Sound Composition & Music Production) from the University of Wollongong.
Simone East
Simone is a passionate songwriter and orchestral composer with over 15 years experience delivering and designing courses in composition, songwriting, music theory and music history. She has taught at The Sydney University Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Australian Performing Arts School, The Australian Institute of Music and is
Composer-in-Residence at Trinity Grammar School.
Simone’s experimental instrumental works have been performed at national and international festivals including the Gaudeamus Muziekweek, International Young composer’s Meeting in Apeldoorn and the Australian Orchestral Forum. Her works have been performed by leading Australian and international new music ensemble’s such as Ensemble Offspring (AUS), Ixion (UK) and orkest de ereprijs (NL). In the past decade, Simone has been fascinated with the interplay between words and music and has been performing as a singer-songwriter. Simone is currently putting the finishing touches on her debut album Stealing Time recorded in Lyttelton, New Zealand with producer Ben Edward’s (Julia Jacklin, Marlon Williams, Aldous Harding).
Teacher Links
Nick Toth
Nick has been heavily involved in the local music industry as a promoter, DJ & Electronic Artist, producer, radio host and educator. Over the course of his career, he has performed at major Australian festivals and live venues, a wide range of corporate / media events and has been booked in the US, UK, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Tahiti.
Nick was the first hip hop DJ in Australia to sign a major label deal for a DJ-mixed album ('Blazin' Vol 1 / Universal Music, 2003) and has since released a number of DJ albums, compilations and singles.
As part of the hip hop trio Foreign Heights he was nominated for an ARIA award in 2007.
He has toured / shared the stage with a multitude of artists such as Kanye West, Justin Timberlake, Chronixx, De La Soul, Johnny Osbourne, Common, Michael Franti, Talib Kweli, Pharrell Williams, Missy Elliott, Jungle Brothers, 50 Cent, The Roots, Run DMC, Xzibit, JBoog, Public Enemy, Ice T, Beatnuts, DJ Krush, QBert, Grandmaster Flash, MixMasterMike, Jungle Brothers, Lyrics Born, Sean Paul, Cypress Hill, ColdCut, Jazzanova, Black Eyed Peas, Scribe, Roots Manuva, Slum Village etc and has been booked for celebrity / industry events like Donna Karan's birthday and Justin Timberlake's private party at the Sydney Opera House.
Teacher links:
Jess Nitties
(aka Sparrows)
Jess Nitties is a passionate songwriter who writes/produces and performs music under the moniker 'Sparrows'. A regular on the airwaves, including Triple J, Jess is a touring performer, educator, an innovative artist!
Courses:
Electronic Music Artist, Electronic Music Producer, Original Artist, Songwriter
Teacher links:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Youtube
Priscilla Abdallah
Priscilla is an experienced Graphic Design and branding expert, specialising in marketing for business and creative arts schools including the Australian Institute of Music.
Mark Ashton
With over 10 years experience in the music industry, Mark has made a career out of working with clients, brands, artists, performers, and stakeholders to deliver exceptional outcomes. He currently consults with artists/bands and startups on marketing and branding, audience development, and ‘go to market’ strategy.
He has previously operated a boutique Artist Management & Label Services company, where he managed artist’s careers, booked tours, planned and staged events, as well as marketed new releases. Prior to this he founded and launched a tech start up in the live music sector, successfully marketing and growing the business within the Australian market. Additionally, he has event management experience from The Sydney Opera House, where he worked on some of Australia’s most prestigious festivals.
Teacher Links:
Lisa Forkish
Singer. Songwriter. Performer. Educator. Vocal Coach. Arranger. Music Director. Community Builder. Artivist. Love Warrior.
Based in the US, Lisa Forkish is an award-winning singer-songwriter, arranger, educator and self-described “Love Warrior,” infusing all she creates with fierce authenticity and heart. Based out of Oakland, CA, Lisa has released four solo albums of original music to date, and is currently putting out a new original song on Patreon every month. Her latest record combines her lush, dissonant a cappella arrangements with her honest and soulful songwriting: "Love Warrior EP" is a collection of songs about the triumph of love and the power of the human spirit, and features Lisa's vocals in layers of expressive harmony.
Since 2011, Lisa has been Vocal Music faculty at Oakland School for the Arts where she is the founder and director of five-time national champion a cappella group, Vocal Rush, also seen on NBC’s “The Sing-Off.” Known for their unique arrangements, soulful performances and commitment to music for social change, Vocal Rush was recently awarded as one of the “YBCA 100” alongside artists and activists Janelle Monae, Rafael Casal and Tarana Burke. Over the course of the past 15 years, Lisa has led six different a cappella groups to place in competitions around the country. She has been a guest instructor and clinician at numerous festivals and universities including SING! Texas, the National A Cappella Convention and the London A Cappella Festival. Lisa is also the recipient of the Mason McDuffie Education Foundation Award for "Outstanding Educator" and the co-founder and Executive Director of the Women's A Cappella Association.
Before beginning her professional career, Lisa’s stint as director of her college a cappella group Divisi was the inspiration for the box office hit film “Pitch Perfect." Her latest vocal music project HIVE is a group of 5 humans making music with just their voices and some crazy sound effects - all while trying to make the world a better place.
Combining music and social justice, Lisa founded and chaired Musicians Against Sexual Violence, for which she received a Berklee Urban Service Award, and led the community in their first ever “Take Back the Night” rally in 2010. She continues to use her songwriting, performing and teaching as a vehicle for social change, and believes in the power of music to transform, uplift, empower and build connection.
Maria Alfonsine
Composer and Lyricist Maria Alfonsine provides an intriguing place for her audience to escape across genres such as jazz, folk-pop, film music, orchestral, musical theatre and experimental contemporary styles. Her starting point and focus is always "It's all about the story", no matter what medium or style she is working in.
Trained in Sweden at Ingesund’s Music School and Wendelsberg’s Theatre School, Maria then obtained a Bachelor of Music (Composition and Music Production) from The Australian Institute of Music in 2015, and an Honours in Composition from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in 2019.
In 2017, Maria received her third Best Composer Award (Sydney Film School). She was also the recipient of the Screen NSW/AGSC/Church Street Studios/Clandestine Beyond composer's attachment with Guy Gross, and located to Church Street Studios, Sydney. Recent work include composing for the ABC series "Black Comedy", composition and sound design for Hilary Bell’s adaptations of Shakespeare’s “Take Two: Comedy of Errors” at Riverside Theatre and Molière’s "The Hypochondriac" at Darlinghurst Theatre Co., and composer and songwriter on the Australian feature film “Akoni” (One Love Films). Maria’s work as a songwriter has featured in the ABC drama series "Pulse", in the musicals "The Song of A Princess" and "Dr McCarb's Independent Surgical Hospital On The Hill", as well as numerous short films and web series. Other credits include dance performance piece "Mens Rea: A Shifter's Intent" (Raghav Handa), Lea Kannar-Lichtenberger's installation “Deception”, and vocalist and music editor on Stephan Elliott’s (The Adventure of Priscilla - Queen of the Desert) feature film “Swinging Safari”.
Damian de Boos-Smith
Receiving an APRA nomination in 2017 for most performed screen composer in Australia, Damian's recent composing work includes prime time TV shows The Block, Lego Masters, The Force, My Kitchen Rules and TVCs for NRL, AFL, Telstra, Qantas, FedEx, Wrigleys, McDonalds, Pepsi, LG, Toyota, Ford, Westfield, ING, ANZ & Blackmores. Damian is also a session multi-instrumentalist in high demand, with guitar and cello being his main instruments. He is a founding member of contemporary flamenco group Arrebato Ensemble, with whom he has recorded and released three albums.
Ben Romalis
Originally a student of Industrial Design and heading for a career in furniture manufacturing, Ben then changed course and began working with Cricket NSW during the 2001/02 season as their Chief Performance Analyst. It was in this unique and high-pressure occupation that Ben began honing his critical thinking, communication and content generation skills.
From a young age, Ben had also been developing his passion for music into a career focused on guitar, contemporary composition and performance. He completed a Bachelor of Contemporary Music and then a Post-Graduate Diploma in Composition for Film and Television before founding Silamor Studios, a boutique studio specialising in Composition, Recording and Video Production. Born from the same name, Ben’s collaborative brainchild Silamor has matured into a series of multi-platform collaborations www.silamor.com
Ben is also one of the founding members of alternative-folk outfit The Green Mohair Suitswww.facebook.com/GreenMohairSuits/. For the past 13 years, the Mohairs have been entertaining audiences with original compositions from their 4 studio albums, touring extensively around Australia and the US. It was during the early stages of this band that Ben fell in love with Lap Steel Guitar playing and has since made it one of his primary instruments, recording extensively on various sessions and albums.
Eager to step into the business world, Ben became an Executive Director and Director of Content for Affectors PTY LTD in 2014 – a business specialising in creative content and workshop facilitation with a focus on problem solving, emotional intelligence and culture. A regular speaker at VIVID Festival, Ben then turned his facilitating skills to education, accepting lecturing positions at the Australian Institute of Music and JMC Academy. Over the past few years Ben has developed and delivered content in Song Writing, Music Theory, Advanced Compositional Technique, Production and Composition for Screen and Production.
Most recently, Ben has become a member of HUBB (Humans United by Business where he operates as a business coach and workshop facilitator - aiming to elevate the performances of individuals and teams within small and medium-sized businesses.
Ben continues to work as a freelance composer creating both lyrical and instrumental pieces for various film, gaming and VR projects. He also co-writes extensively and contributes to production libraries through his agreement with Big Bang and Fuzz.
Keppie Coutts
Keppie is a performing songwriter, with almost 10 years of teaching and course design expertise, spanning faculty positions at the Berklee College of Music, The Songwriting School of Los Angeles, The Australian Institute of Music, and the JMC Academy.
As a professional songwriter, I work in collaboration with many artists—from Indie bluegrass Canadians, to major label pop acts, and even heavy metal. As long as a songwriter shares my passion for creating meaningful lyrics, style and genre are no boundary at all.
John Mayer says Keppie’s “voice is beautiful, just gorgeous. She’s like a contemporary female Nick Drake…and her guitar playing is so beautiful, so raw…”
The Boston Globe says “Coutts’s songs marry soul and folk so gorgeously, you’ll cheer when they get stuck on endless repeat on the jukebox in your brain.”
Courses:
Songwriter, Producer Manager, Original Artist
Website
LinkedIn
Sam Korotkov
Sam Korotkov has 15 years of experience in music and entertainment in Australia.
He started out in marketing and logistics for national touring festivals in the mid 2000’s to touring over 150 musicians across every capital city in Australia and New Zealand. In 2010 Sam produced The Wall, a weekly club night in Sydney, which remains one of the longest standing and most successful club nights Sydney has ever seen, before helping Your Shot, a DJ training initiative, expand across Australia in 2011.
Sam’s innate understanding of how millennials consume entertainment has helped launch the careers of numerous young musicians and event promoters alike. With an eye for ideas that connect and an obsession with digital marketing strategies, Sam has spent his recent years as Agency Director at Jaden Digital devising campaigns for household names including Jimmy Barnes, Guy Sebastian and many more.
Sam’s deep understanding of the strategies that convert consumers to lifetime fans can be applied to artists and brands alike.
Michelle Barry
Michelle Barry is a professional producer/sound engineer/educator with over 20 years’ experience in audio production. Starting her career in the 90’s she first learnt how to use big analogue machines and to record anything from Grunge hits to Jazz ensembles as in-house assistant/engineer at Paradise Studios. She saw the rise of digital audio and implementation of the ever-growing recording options while continuing her career in London and New York. Highlights along the way included US indie artists Jessie Murphy In The Woods, Julian Verlard, The Pierces. UK funk from RnB Junior and G-Nation, and Sydney Hip Hop artists Maya Jupiter, Ebony Williams. Currently living in Sydney she recent projects have included folk group The Charm, singer/guitarist Max Gencher, her own initiative Noisygirls, as well as skill sharing through teaching at SAE.
Lauren Neko
Lauren Neko has worked as an electronic music artist, entrepreneur and music educator for over a decade. She is a DJ, vocalist, and the rainbow force behind her UV Sound System - LUV’D UP. From 2019,Lauren is the Program Coordinator for Electronic Music Conference. As former Entertainment Management Program Leader, Lauren has worked with some of the music industry's best to shape the next generation of industry managers, leaders, and professionals.
Teacher links:
Daniel Archer
Daniel is a highly experienced songwriter and educator, including the development and management of the Songwriting, Composition and Music Production department at The Australian Institute of Music.
He is an active songwriter and performer, with songwriting credits among the progressive rock band ‘Shake Your Blood’.
Mark Havryliv
Mark is a highly experience composer and software programmer; having programmed and designed the River Road Interactive Learning App, and the highly successful composition software ‘Score Addiction’, currently licensed exclusively by Universal Music.
Mark is a multi-instrumentalist, with deeps roots in Jazz and classical music, with modern influences driving his unique sound,
Courses:
Patrick Nellestein
Patrick has over 15 years' experience in higher education, including being Head of Composition & Music Production at the Australian Institute of Music, where combined with his research into innovative learning and course design, it puts him as a leader in music education. More recently he has expanded his skill set into Higher Education Quality and Compliance.
Patrick is also a highly experience film and TV composer, fusing electronic and acoustics sounds to create a unique blend of atmospheric music. His portfolio includes music for Channel 10’s ‘The Project’, SBS’s Room 101.
Teachers links:
LinkedIn
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