Private Lessons

Abby Easterling is the Principal Flutist of the Dallas Winds, the Las Colinas Symphony, and the Mckinney Philharmonic, and Associate Principal Flutist of the Helena Symphony. Originally from Grapevine, TX, she holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and Rice University; her primary teachers include Bonita Boyd, Leone Buyse, Anne Harrow, and Helen Blackburn.

Abby has won honors in competitions across the country, including first prize in the Philadelphia Flute Society Young Artist Competition, South Carolina Flute Society Young Artist Competition, and the National Flute Association Orchestral Excerpt Competition. In 2018, she was the sole flutist selected as a winner of the Yamaha Young Performing Artist Competition.

Abby teaches privately across the DFW area and enjoys working with students of all ages and abilities. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, rock climbing, cooking healthy meals, and playing with her dog Harper.

oboeologist@gmail.com

Mr. Estes is second oboist with the Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra and currently performs regularly with the Texarkana andMarshall Symphonies. As an active freelance musician he performs with many different orchestras and other ensembles across the state of Texas. He is the current oboe professor at Texas Wesleyan and he maintains a small private studio in the Fort Worth area where his students have gone on to study at universities such as Oberlin, TCU, and SMU 

gmfrarey@gmail.com

Originally from Rochester, New York Grace Frarey is an up-and-coming jazz musician and educator. She holds Bachelor’s Degrees in Applied Jazz Saxophone and Music Teaching and Learning from the Eastman School of Music. While studying with renowned woodwind specialist Charles Pillow Grace learned the nuances of the flute and clarinet. She is now based in Denton, Texas where she is the Assistant Program Director of the Institute for Creative Music. Using methods that she studied with Dr. Christopher Azzara Grace enjoys teaching and learning alongside all of her students. 

tannerdeters@me.com

Tanner Deters is a DFW based jazz saxophonist and educator who draws on a multitude of musical influences to round out his artistry. Tanner brings over 10 years of saxophone experience to his performances and his students; as a performer he raps and plays saxophone, and as an educator he is passionate about guiding students to follow their own musical curiosities.During his time at the University of North Texas Tanner was a member of the Two O’Clock Lab Band. Outside of academia, he is the regular lead alto in Buddy’s Big Band, a big band performing monthly in Ft. Worth. He also plays saxophone and raps in the group Luna Sol, a Dallas based hip-hop/fusion group.Tanner has experience as a Saxophone Teaching Fellow at UNT, and he teaches jazz saxophone lessons at the beginner, the intermediate, and the collegiate level. In addition to lessons, Tanner also conducted and directed the Six O’Clock Lab Band, one of the 8 big bands at UNT. As a DFW area high school graduate, he has first-hand experience in the various TMEA activities that his students participate in, including the all-region/all-state and solo and ensemble processes.Tanner graduated from Southlake Carroll Senior High School in 2014. He proceeded to earn his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of North Texas in 2018. Tanner graduated with a Master of Music in Jazz Performance at the University of North Texas studying under Brad Leali in Spring 2020. 

darin.northam@icloud.com

Darin Northam has a Bachelor’s of Music degree in Music Education from the University of North Texas in Denton. He has been performing and teaching for over 20 years. Darin currently teaches trumpet and brass for Northwest ISD, Lake Country Christian School and Bethesda Christian School, and has helped multiple students achieve positions in District, Region and State bands. 

Cody Saucier is a trumpet player and music educator based in Denton, Texas. Originally from Florida, Saucier moved to Denton to pursue his bachelor’s degree in Jazz Studies at the University of North Texas’ esteemed jazz program. Since 2017, he has been performing with a multitude of professional groups including wedding bands, big bands, combos, pit orchestras, and church groups. While at UNT, Saucier studied privately under trumpet professor Rodney Booth and played in various jazz ensembles including the Six, Five, Four, and Two O’Clock Lab Bands as well as the UNT Zebras, a contemporary music ensemble. He also played in many jazz combos including the Banter, Harvest, Benny’s, and Steve’s combos. As a music educator, he is building and maintaining private lesson studios in both Carrollton-Farmers Branch and Northwest Independent School Districts. Saucier has professional memberships in the Texas Music Educators Association and the Jazz Education Network. In his free time Saucier enjoys finding great coffee shops, going on relaxing car rides, and taking his dog Max out for walks. 

dmanders323@gmail.com

jackson.courtright@gmail.com

Originally from Burnsville, MN, trombonist Jack Courtright holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the University of North Texas. Jack has been the winner of the International Trombone Festival’s JJ Johnson and Carl Fontana competitions, the American Trombone Workshop’s National Solo Jazz Trombone Competition, and the UNT/BAC International Jazz Trombone Competition. Under Jack’s direction, UNT’s trombone ensemble, the U-Tubes were the winners of the 2021 Kai Winding International Jazz Trombone Ensemble Competition. An avid composer and arranger, Jack’s works for big band and trombone ensemble are performed by high school, collegiate and professional groups across the U.S. 

JacobFulkerson@my.unt.edu

Jacob is a performer, teacher, and doctoral student at the University of North Texas.  

He holds a Master of Music degree from Bowling Green State University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts with honors degree from Carnegie Mellon University. His primary music instructors are Craig Knox, Dave Saltzman, and Donald Little. He is a licensed music educator, published composer, and Andrew Carnegie Society Scholar.

Jacob has been a musician in multiple ensembles including the Latin Grammy nominated North Texas Wind Symphony and the touring brass group The King's Brass. While on tour, Jacob's responsibilities would include performing music and choreography from memory, assisting in live sound, and other supportive roles. He can be heard on the North Texas Wind Symphony albums Respair, Closure, and The King's Brass album Festive Brass.

Originally from Michigan, Jacob enjoys spending time with family, friends, and playing fetch with his two dogs Buddy and Bear.

Website: JacobFulkerson.com

lesterrushin@gmail.com

Lester Rushin is a percussionist and music educator from Colleyville, TX. He completed his bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Texas Christian University where he studied with Dr. Brian West, Joey Carter and Jeffrey Hodge. During his time at TCU, he has performed with the internationally recognized TCU Percussion Orchestra, Percussion Ensembles, TCU symphonic band, string orchestra, marching band and both steel band ensembles.

Lester was a member of Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps front ensemble in 2018 and a cast member for finalist group Vigilantly Indoor Percussion on Xylophone/glockenspiel in 2022. He is an experienced teacher who has taught numerous high schools around the entire DFW metroplex.

He currently works as a front ensemble technician for Arlington Heights high school. Lester is currently in his second year as the percussion specialist for the Eaton High School cluster.

James Merritt is a well-rounded musician who is highly proficient in percussion and drum set and has been a musician since he was 11 years old. While he did not begin playing until he was in middle school, he comes from a very musical family and has been around music his entire life. His training as a musician began when he joined band at Finley Junior High and began to play drums at his church. As soon as he began playing, he instantly fell in love with drums and music.

James truly began to grow as a musician when he went to Waxahachie High School and was heavily involved in marching band, wind ensemble, and jazz band. During his high school career, James would receive plenty of very notable accolades. He was a member of the TMEA 5A All-State Symphonic Band in 2015 and 2016, and in 2017 was a member of the 6A All-State Symphonic Band. In the 2017-2018 TMEA Jazz All-State process, James was ranked 11th out of all of the jazz drummers in the state of Texas. He was also a semi-finalist in the Great Plains International Marimba Competition in 2017 and 2018. The highest honor that James received in high school was being selected to participate in the Juilliard Percussion Seminar, where he and 15 other percussion students were chosen out of hundreds of candidates to study at Juilliard with some of the most renowned orchestral percussionists in the world for two weeks in New York. James was also a main contributing member to Waxahachie’s winning recordings for the TMEA 2017 5A Honor Band and the TMEA 2018 Jazz Honor Band.

After graduating from Waxahachie High School, James went to the University of North Texas where he studied with some of the greatest jazz educators and performers in the world. While at UNT, James was a Finalist in the Fall 2018 UNT Concerto Competition, was a year long member of the Three O’Clock Lab Band, and spent his last semester at UNT as the drummer for the Two O’Clock Lab Band.

James received his degree in Jazz Drum Set Performance in the fall of 2022. He is now a private lesson teacher at Eagle Mountain Saginaw-ISD and Northwest ISD.