GreenHouse Studio

about us

Meet Sam

Sam was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA and moved to St. Louis after completing her studies at the Eastman School of Music and Cleveland Institute of Music, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in violin performance and master’s degrees in violin performance and pedagogy respectively. As she built her teaching and performance career, she pursued her goal of establishing a space that would combine her passion for performance art, music education, and community building. In 2018, she founded GreenHouse Studio. When she’s not playing violin, Sam is busy chasing her 60 lb. dog, Ashley, and playing fetch with her 20 lb. canine sister, Frazer Rose—both on staff at GreenHouse.

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TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

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studio

We offer an open and welcoming learning and performance environment designed to reflect our students and community.

Our waiting area includes snacks and beverages, toys and books, Wi-Fi, and study nooks. Students, friends, and family are invited to utilize this space before, during, and after lessons.

Multi-purpose interior and exterior spaces can be configured to support workshops and parties or converted to a 36-seat performance hall.

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FAQs

Contact us to schedule a complimentary intro lesson where we can meet, chat, and work together to be sure GreenHouse is the best fit for you.

GreenHouse offers group classes to beginning violinists and violists in preschool and early elementary school. Each 90-minute bi-weekly class combines music making with visual art projects and culminates with an end-of-semester group performance and art show.

Each GreenHouse program—including private lessons, group classes, and chamber music—hosts a community outreach event and a formal recital every semester.

Minimum: 3 years

Maximum: Does not exist!

About Our Coaches

Our coaching staff includes professional musicians actively performing in the St. Louis music community with organizations that include the St. Louis Chamber Soloists, Perseus and 314 String Quartets, St. Louis String Collective, Chamber Project St. Louis, The Muny, and St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. They are also experienced educators on faculty at Maryville University, Washington University, and Interlochen Center for the Arts.

COACH BIOS
COACH BIOS

Team GreenHouse

Ashley
Frazer Rose
GreenHouse Studio

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© 2024 GreenHouse Studio – All Rights Reserved

Sam Moraes

Positions

Maryville University, adjunct professor of violin 2017-present

GreenHouse Studio: a community space, performance venue & music school owner, violinist & teacher 2018-present

Community Music School at Webster University, private violin instructor 2016-2018

Chamber Music and Solo Experience

314 Quartet, second violinist 2023-present

St. Louis Chamber Soloists, violinist 2023-present

Maryville Faculty Recital with Peter Henderson and Andrea Jarrett Spring 2018

Guest Soloists with Spectrum Orchestra Mozart Violin Concerto No. 3 Summer 2017

Select Orchestral Experience

The Muny Orchestra Summer 2024

Metropolitan Orchestra of St. Louis, violinist 2018-present

Winter Opera St. Louis, violinist 2016-present

Firelands Symphony, first violinist 2014-2016

Festival Experience

National Repertory Orchestra Summers 2015, 2016

Aspen Music Festival and School Summer 2013

Music Academy of the West Summer 2011

Education

Cleveland Institute of Music, Master of Music, 2014-2016
Violin Performance and Suzuki Pedagogy
Primary Instructors: Ivan Zenaty, Carolyn Warner, Cavani String Quartet, Kimberly Meier-Sims

Eastman School of Music, Bachelor of Music, 2009-2014
Violin Performance, Take Five Scholar in Latin American History
Primary Instructors: Ayano Ninomiya, Juliana Athayde, Zvi Zeitlin

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Coach Bios

Andrea Jarret

Andrea Jarrett (violin) joined the second violin section of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in 2015 after earning her Master of Music from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University and her Bachelor of Music from the Juilliard School. In addition to her work as an orchestral musician, Andrea is an active chamber musician and has performed at festivals around the world, including the Taos School of Music, Pacific Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, Spoleto Festival, Astona International Academy, Heifetz Institute, and Interlochen Arts Camp, where she now teaches each summer. Following in her mother’s footsteps, Andrea also loves cooking and baking, and can often be found enjoying the outdoors with her dog, Chester.

Sam Moraes

Sam Moraes (violin) is the founder of GreenHouse Studio. You can find her full bio on the About Us page of this website. When it comes to collaborative programming at GreenHouse, Sam feels especially grateful to keep growing the studio family — inspiring, cultivating, and celebrating music alongside colleagues old (the CIM legacy runs strong here, Sam and Andrea go back to 2011, some Mizzou grads to 2009, and a handful of St. Louis natives grew up together!)  and new. She can’t wait to see what grows next.

Graham Woodland

Graham Woodland (violin) teaches Suzuki violin and conducts the String Ensemble at Webster University’s Community Music School. He is a founding member of the St. Louis Chamber Soloists, a string orchestra built on creative, multi-genre collaboration and leadership without a conductor. Graham holds an M.M. from The Hartt School and a B.M. from the University of Missouri, with extensive Suzuki training through the Suzuki Association of the Americas. He performs as assistant concertmaster of the Missouri Symphony Orchestra and subs with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra. A devoted educator, Graham loves sharing his passion for music and nurturing leadership in his students.

Hannah Frey

Hannah Frey (violin/viola) is an in-demand violinist and teacher based in St. Louis. She has performed as a soloist with the Metropolitan Orchestra of St. Louis, the National Repertory Orchestra, and the Spartanburg Symphony, and has played on stages across Europe, the Cayman Islands, and the U.S. Hannah is a founding member of the Perseid Quartet and performs widely, from symphonies and operas to pit orchestras at The Muny and Fox Theatre, as well as with artists like The Who and the Beach Boys. A dedicated educator, she maintains a large private studio, teaches at Washington University in St. Louis, and writes regularly for the American String Teacher Journal. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Carolina Neves

Carolina Neves (violin/viola) is a Brazilian-American violinist and violist based in St. Louis, known for her passionate, collaborative approach to music-making. A member of the 314 Quartet and principal violist of The Muny Orchestra, she inspires young players with her vibrant style and wide-ranging experience – from classical stages to performances with Michael Bublé and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Fun fact: her quartet makes agree her baking is almost as inspiring as her playing – and her fellow musicians happily benefit from her delicious treats and generous spirit.

McKayla Talasek

Mc Kayla Talasek (violin/viola) is a St. Louis–based violin and viola specialist who has taught students of all ages since 2011. She offers private lessons and teaches through Webster University’s Community Music School, Gateway Music Outreach, MStrong Studio, and Forsyth School. Mc Kayla earned her BA in Violin Performance and MM in Viola Performance, graduating magna cum laude at both the University of the Incarnate Word and the University of Nevada, Reno. An active performer, she plays with the Reno Philharmonic, Reno Chamber Orchestra, Missouri Symphony Orchestra, and ensembles across the country. Outside of music, she enjoys staying active, traveling, and spending time with her dog Hana Banana and cat Peaches O’Malley.

Laura Reycraft

Laura Reycraft (viola) earned her Bachelor of Music in Viola Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying with Jeffrey Irvine and Lynne Ramsey, and completed her studies at the University of Maryland with Daniel Foster and Michael Tree. Since moving to St. Louis in 2006, she has performed regularly as a substitute musician with the St. Louis Symphony. Laura is also Artistic Director of Chamber Project Saint Louis, which she co-founded in 2007 to share her passion for chamber music. A passionate educator, Laura especially values guiding students as they explore the fun, challenge, and sense of community that chamber music offers.

Ranya Iqbal

Ranya Iqbal (cello), St. Louis based cellist, maintains a busy, eclectic performance schedule. She plays regularly with Union Avenue Opera, the Metropolitan Orchestra of St. Louis, and the St. Louis Chamber Soloists, which she co-founded. She is also a founding member of the 314 Quartet, the city’s resident Candlelight string quartet. In addition to orchestral and chamber work, Ranya collaborates widely with local jazz, hip-hop, world, and folk musicians, and records as a session cellist throughout St. Louis. She also co-founded the St. Louis String Collective, an educational nonprofit that promotes creative, multi-genre string playing.

Tara Santiago

Tara Santiago (cello) is a teacher and freelance cellist based in St. Louis. She holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in music from the New England Conservatory where she studied with Natasha Brofsky and Cleveland Quartet cellist Paul Katz. Originally from Wisconsin, she has appeared as a guest soloist with the Milwaukee, Fox Valley, and Sheboygan Symphonies. Before moving to St. Louis, she was a member of the Florida Grand Opera. Tara now teaches cello at Webster University’s Community Music School and performs and records regularly with singer Erin Bode.

Matt Pankratz

Matt Pankratz (piano), a native of St. Louis, holds an MM in Piano Performance from Louisiana State University and a BM (summa cum laude) from Webster University. He is an adjunct faculty member at Webster University and its Community Music School, where he also co-directs the Chamber Music Encounter and leads accompanying for the Suzuki Strings program. Past teaching and accompanying roles include Louisiana State, the Performing Arts Academy of Louisiana, and Jackson Pianos, with performances as a soloist for groups like the Forte Chamber Orchestra. Matt focuses on healthy piano technique rooted in the Taubman Method, drawing on years of study with teachers such as Daniel Schene, Sheila Paige, and Michael Gurt.

Colleen Fitzsimmons-Wiviott (visual art), is the founder of Start With Art and an experienced art educator with over ten years of designing and leading student-centered arts programs for children and their caregivers. Through Start With Art, her classes blend inquiry-based discussion, interactive multi-modal activities, and hands-on art making to nurture creativity, self-expression, and meaningful connections. Colleen has taught in schools and institutions including the Museum of Modern Art, El Museo del Barrio, and the Saint Louis Art Museum, and her virtual program Wee Wednesday airs on NinePBS. She holds an M.S.Ed. in Museum Education and Childhood Education from Bank Street College of Education in New York.

Andrea Henry Tharian

Andrea Henry Tharian (visual art) is an artist living and working in St. Louis, MO. She holds a BFA in Enameling from the Cleveland Institute of Art and a Master’s in Secondary Education, along with K–12 Art Education Certification from the University of Missouri–St. Louis. Her teaching experience includes the Center of Creative Arts, the Saint Louis Art Museum, and local camps and private lessons. Andrea has received Artist Support Grants from the Regional Arts Commission to further her personal practice and her work with Coral Green Studios, a South St. Louis collective supporting historically marginalized artists. In fall 2023, she was selected as an Artist INC Fellow through Mid-America Arts Alliance and the Regional Arts Commission.

Team Bios

Ashley

Ashley

Ashley Moraes is our beloved GreenHouse studio dog. After spending a year on the streets of East St. Louis and several years in the kennels at Gateway Pet Guardians, Ashley completed her undergraduate degree in “how to live in a home with a family that loves her.” She will continue to receive on the job training for her role as studio dog while also working towards her Canine Good Citizen Certification.

Frazer Rose

Frazer Rose

Frazer Rose Moraes strutted into GreenHouse Studio in November 2024 after a dazzling career in the show ring. Now retired from the spotlight, she’s trading ribbons for tennis balls as she pursues her new passions: fetch champion and studio dog extraordinaire.