Mackey
General Manager, Vocal Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher
Mackey is a multi-instrumentalist, teaching vocals, keys, bass, and drums. His experience with music includes a bachelor of art in music from Keene State College as well as years of music education in the form of group and individual instruction.
Mackey has a background in Rock, Classical, Jazz, Funk, and everything in between, with some of his favorite artists being Linkin Park, Muse, and Silversun Pickups. He has a family history of education and strives to bring his own energy to the next generation of musicians.
Scott Rownin
Owner
School of Rock East Hartford’s owner, Scott Rownin, is an entrepreneur and inventor of the “SafeRide” mobile app to halt texting while driving, and a drummer of 35 years.
After being asked to accompany his daughter’s band in the fourth grade for a performance of Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five,” parents approached him about teaching their elementary school kids as well. “That was the spark,” he said. Right around the same time, Scott ran into an adult while living in Westport, CT, who was a student at a local School of Rock, and “it just dawned on me that this would be a great business.” When Scott got in touch with School of Rock, he learned that the company had been looking for someone to come into the Hartford area for a long time. Scott now lives in Simsbury with his wife Lauren, a local realtor, and their two kids who are both School of Rock students (of course).
Antonio
Vocal Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Antonio is a vocalist from New Britain, CT. He has been singing since he was 4 years old in his church and has used his voice to become very successful in his singing career. Anthony has performed on Carnival Cruises, at Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods casinos, and many others. His musical influences are The Temptations, Boyz II Men, and Luther Vandross.
Alisa
Vocal Teacher
Alisa is a Pop/R&B singer-songwriter from Northeastern Connecticut. She has written and performed her original music, fronted cover bands, and collaborated with artists from all over the world. Her soulful tone is influenced by powerhouse voices like Alicia Keys and Mariah Carey. As a self-taught musician, Alisa brings a unique aspect to her teaching and uses music as an outlet to channel pain, power, and passion.
Diego
Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Saxophone Teacher
Diego grew up in the rural Dominican Republic until the 7th grade. In his youth, he was exposed to American Folk and Rock and Roll by his father and Salsa, Merengue, and Bachata by his mother. In his adolescent years, he was exposed to Metal, Jazz, and Classical music. He studied Composition at Berklee College of Music, including Contemporary Styles and Jazz alongside his traditional compositional studies. While in Boston he wrote for and led an ensemble of about a dozen colleagues called the Mad Pop Tyccoons, with a surreal twist on Fusion.
After living in the Dominican Republic and spending some years studying and cataloging as many genres as possible, Diego returned to the States where he became a certified teacher and completed his Master's in Composition at the University of Hartford. While at Hartt, he wrote a number of pieces for chamber ensembles, electronics/mixed media, and the Composers Ensemble, a group of composers who wrote and played music that was often experimental and improvisational. His Thesis was a concept album lasting around an hour, including over 100 styles of music of original music, all recorded by Diego himself on about a dozen instruments.
Diego currently teaches K-12 General Music, as well as private piano and guitar students. He writes, records, and films himself performing musical experiments on his YouTube channel.
David
Drum Teacher
A diverse performer and devoted educator, David is constantly finding new, creative ways to communicate with his audiences and students. His studies have led to a broad education, personal music style, and performance experiences in symphonic, chamber, jazz, world, and popular music styles.
Currently, David is part of several local CT music projects: Auxiliary Percussion and Keys/Synth for The POSSM (Professors of Sweet Sweet Music), Drumset for Illuminous, and a little bit of everything for the production studio/duo, Street James Street, which he co-owns and operates.
David is also fortunate to be able to help promote and enhance the local music community through his involvement with the Hartbeat Music Festival.
Benjamin
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Benjamin is a guitar and bass teacher from Southwick, Massachusetts. He holds an associate's degree in jazz guitar performance from Holyoke Community College and a Bachelor of Music Performance degree in electric guitar playing from the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York. He has been teaching guitar and bass since 2018 and is excited to help students of all ages and skill levels navigate their musical journey.
Benjamin has spent considerable time throughout his years as a musician developing playing technique and works hard to instill this in his students from day one on their instrument. He has a diverse world of musical interests, but his favorite genres include hard rock, post-hardcore, heavy metal, jazz, and progressive rock. Some of Benjamin's favorite artists are Thank You Scientist, The Mars Volta, Consider the Source, Led Zeppelin, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, and The Fall of Troy.
Elijah
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Elijah has had an interest in both music and teaching from a young age. Primarily a guitarist, he also plays bass, drums, and piano, and enjoys experimenting with any instruments that come his way. He enjoys a wide variety of music and his favorite band is Steely Dan.
Elijah plays guitar in the Stanley Street Big Band. He loves connecting with students and finds their passion and excitement to be the most rewarding aspect of teaching.
Brian
Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Guitar Teacher
Brian is a multi-instrumentalist from Radnor, Pennsylvania. Before joining School of Rock, he spent over eight years teaching band, choir, general music, and marching drumline in public schools across Connecticut. In every lesson or rehearsal, he is committed to helping students understand and be proud of their musical progress. Brian’s favorite songs are by Queen or from the musical Hadestown, but he also enjoys a wide range of music from Stevie Ray Vaughan and Stevie Wonder to Paramore and The Police.
Brian has a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Susquehanna University, where he met his wife, a flute player, and music teacher. They later enrolled at the University of Hartford to earn their Master of Music in Music Education degrees. They live together with their preschooler, who rotates between playing flute, drums, and ukulele.
Anthony
Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Anthony is an accomplished pianist and guitarist who started playing at 12. His love for guitar began when he expected to be taking a middle school keyboard class (he began playing piano at 6), and the teacher declared that they would be learning guitar.
Anthony is a Berklee student and has completed the Berklee Professional Certificate program for music production. His numerous influences include The Clash, Bruce Springsteen, Smashing Pumpkins, Sevendust, The Deftones, Wilco, and The War On Drugs. He’s into skateboarding and surfing.
Pat
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Pat's musical journey started at the age of 13 with an instant love of the guitar. Since then, he has played in numerous original bands and tribute acts. Pat has recorded three albums with his main band and has also spent countless hours in the studio producing records. His bands have played all over the Northeast and spanning as far west as Ohio and as far south as Virginia.
Pat's love of music, in general, has roots in the very early stages of his life and has been growing since day one. That love of music and recording specifically carried onto college where he studied audio engineering. Along with playing music, he has been in teaching roles throughout his twenties working with elementary schools in Connecticut. The most rewarding thing to him is being able to teach music to our younger generation, including his daughter who is now starting her musical journey!
“If you get confused, listen to the music play!”
Ysanne
Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher
Ysanne attended the Greater Hartford Academy of Performing Arts as a voice major and then continued to revolve her education around music when she went to Dean College in Massachusetts. She graduated cum laude from Dean College in May 2012 with her bachelor's degree in Art and Entertainment Management: Communications.
Ysanne is a classically trained vocalist who has participated in numerous musicals, countless open mics and showcases, and has opened for big industry names. She starred in a one-woman show as Billie Holiday in the production ”Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grille” at The Rep in Portsmouth, NH in 2021. She won 2nd place in the semifinals for Hartford's Got Talent in 2022.
More recently Ysanne has been a recipient of multiple grants in the arts in and out of Connecticut to help with her personal music endeavors and her role as an artist in the communities she serves. She is glad to be working as a vocal teacher and keyboard + piano teacher at School of Rock in West Hartford, CT.