Phil Martelly
Owner
A graduate of the esteemed Berklee College of Music in Boston, his passion for music is unmatched by few and is a driving force behind his bringing School of Rock to the Southern Mass/Rhode Island area. He is the definition of the word musician as he plays not one but several instruments: guitar, bass and drums. Phil has played with a lot of the area's hottest bands including Pappy Chulo as the opening act for none other than Incubus.
Shawn Garrity
Owner
Shawn's musical journey began at age eleven when his dad handed him a guitar and taught him a few chords. As he grew, so did his love for music. At fifteen, he joined a band and began writing music and playing original and cover songs at venues throughout New England. He studied jazz and classical music at Western Connecticut State University and earned a B.A. in Music Industry from the University of New Haven. Shawn's original band VulGarrity completed three nationwide tours and shared the stage with Mike Doughty, Days of the New, The Misfits, King’s X, Sponge, The Joy Formidable, Sleeper Agent, Psychostick, The Prodigals, Ra, Robert DeLong, The Heavy, Ra Ra Riot and Electric Six. Shawn's cover band Inside Out can be seen rocking out on stages in and around New England regularly. While Shawn enjoys listening to and playing a wide variety of music, he is most inspired by all things rock.
Christian Pearson
General Manager, Music Director
Christian Pearson studied Music Theory, Theology, and Film at Evangel University. Originally from the East Coast, he was in the Springfield, Missouri music scene between 2009 and 2015 and has played in multiple bands, including Call Me Beta, Skylines and Cityscapes, and Ships of Adamant. Now in North Carolina, Christian is a composer of progressive metal that is influenced by his classical training.
Christian has been with School of Rock for many years and teaches guitar, bass, keys, vocals, and drums, and directs multiple bands. He is our General Manager and Music Director at School of Rock Cornelius. He cites his greatest influences as Dream Theater, Haken, Devin Townsend, Ayreon, Opeth, Pain of Salvation, Arch Echo, Astronoid, Azure, Caligula's Horse, Tchaikovsky, Circus Maximus, Katatonia, Leprous, Symphony X, Vola, Kansas, TesseracT, The Stranger, and Voyager.
Kemaya Bryant
Studio Coordinator
Maya is working towards a bachelor's degree in Communication Studies, with a focus in Public Relations at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Maya has always been interested in community engagement, social media management, and marketing communication, so joining the School of Rock team was a natural fit. Maya loves being surrounded by music every day and is currently the Studio Coordinator at School of Rock Cornelius. Although she doesn't consider herself to be a vocalist in the slightest, Maya can't help but sing along to some of her favorite artists like Lauryn Hill, Drake, Adele, and Tems.
John Mooney
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard Teacher, Drum Teacher
When John Mooney was 14 he picked up a guitar and couldn't put it down. This is when his interest in music began to explode. He started reading up on theory and learning the ins and outs of everything that makes music what it is. Practicing and studying every day for hours became a habit. Every inch of his free time was given up for his passion of guitar and music. He also got very comfortable with other instruments like piano, bass and drums. His biggest musical influences are Children Of Bodom, Muse, Ozzy Osbourne, Opeth, Dream Theater and many others. He is a guitar teacher and bass guitar teacher at School of Rock Cornelius.
Joshua Marks
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard Teacher
Joshua Marks began playing the guitar at age 11, initially learning the music of The Beatles, Aerosmith and Phish. After studying with NYC jazz guitarist Peter Mazza as a high school student, he graduated with a Music Education degree from Berklee College of Music in 2003. He has taught and performed jazz and rock music ever since in many places from Augusta, GA to New York City. His musical theater experience includes "West Side Story," "Footloose," "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," "Grease" and "Annie."
Matt Carlson
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard Teacher, Drum Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Matt Carlson is a singer-songwriter who began writing and performing in bands during high school. A major influence of Matt’s passion for Rock was being in the first class to attend School of Rock when it opened in Charlotte. Matt performed on two SoR AllStars Tours during high school. Matt sang lead vocals with Falling Through April on their debut tour. He then formed Wild Domestic and released two EPs, Wild Domestic and Singular, followed by a Matt Carlson solo EP, Sirens. Matt sings, plays guitar, bass, drums and keys. Matt’s Alt-Rock music is influenced by a wide range of artists including David Bowie, David Byrne, Elton John, Queens of the Stone Age, Bon Iver, Radiohead, Nothing But Thieves, Mother Mother, The Dear Hunter, Twenty One Pilots, and The 1975. In addition to music, Matt has acted in numerous stage productions including AMERICAN IDIOT, ROCK OF AGES and THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW. Matt is a graduate of Catawba College, B.A. popular music.
Shavoree Buffington
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Drum Teacher
Starting his musical journey as a child, Shavoree found a passion for Bass and Keys early on. To further his studies, he attended and graduated Northwest School of the Arts, picking up a few instruments with a new passion for Music Education. He has been teaching and gigging ever since. His biggest musical influences include Prince, Return to Forever, and Thundercat.
Nick DeVaughn
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher
Nick DeVaughn got a guitar for Christmas when he was 12 years old and has loved playing it ever since. He joined School of Rock around the same time and quickly picked up bass guitar as well. Nick has played both guitar and bass with School of Rock and was also in his school's wind ensemble and their jazz band. He later started singing in his school's choir and learned drums and keys. Nick's main influences are Ayreon, Polyphia, Haken, and Dream Theater.
Kevin Goddard
Drum Teacher, Guitar Teacher
Kevin is a local drummer in the Charlotte area with several years of experience in live performance, studio recording, and songwriting. His introduction to drumming started in concert band and marching band, which gave him a solid foundation in rudiments, dynamics, reading sheet music, and playing multiple percussion instruments. Kevin transitioned his focus to the drumset in 6th grade when he began playing for multiple churches and bands. 11 years later, drums are still his passion!
Joe Smith
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Drum Teacher
A native of North Carolina, Joe began his musical journey at the age of 12. What began as a love of guitar, blossomed into a love of music. Along the way, that passion extended to the musical traditions of many different cultures.
Joe hopes to inspire others to explore while offering some insights into different musical styles, techniques, and musical systems to unlock a deeper understanding of music as a whole, no matter what instrument is being played.
Madeleine Roolaart
Vocal Teacher
Madeleine is a singer/songwriter born and raised in Charlotte, NC. She fell in love with singing around the age of 5 but started taking it seriously at the age of 10 when she started vocal lessons. She has been singing and training ever since. Literally non-stop singing :)
Through voice lessons, Madeleine was able to find her true sound and flourish. She’s able to sing a variety of genres and styles and has spent a lot of time studying the different types of voice and how to apply that to whatever song she’d like. She loves helping others find THEIR true sound so that they’re able to flourish in their own way too. Voice lessons should be fun and rewarding, and she aims to make it just that.