Sarita Maxwell
PMA Band Director/Executive Director
Originally from Charlotte, NC, Sarita Maxwell has lived in Rock Hill, SC with her husband Jeff and daughter Zoe since 2004. She earned her Bachelor and Master degrees in Music Performance from Appalachian State University and later continued with post-graduate studies in music at USC.
Sarita served as Adjunct Professor of Euphonium & Tuba at Winthrop University from 2003-2013. She has taught music throughout the Southeast region for over 25 years to students of all ages and performed/traveled with US military bands, wind ensembles, and brass quintets. Currently Sarita performs with the Carolinas Wind Orchestra, Rock Hill Symphony Orchestra, and area chamber brass ensembles.
Sarita co-founded PMA in 2014 in an effort to provide instrumental music opportunities for her daughter and other home schooled children in the area that were eager to experience music in a band or string ensemble. She continues to share her love of music with the students at Piedmont Music Academy and other homeschooled students throughout the Carolinas.
Michael White
PMA Symphonic Band Director
(More information to come!)
Rachel Baer
PMA Head Strings Director/Cello Instructor
From a very young age, Rachel Baer was instilled with a love for music. She began taking piano lessons at the age of 5 and would continue for 12 years straight- later adding cello, guitar, singing, and songwriting.
Rachel first discovered her love for teaching by assisting her own music teachers as well as volunteering at summer music camps.
Classically trained, she graduated from Master Musicians School of Music and has been certified in the Mark O’Conner Method of teaching. She is a member of the South Carolina Music Educators Association and helps prepare students for Region & Allstate Orchestra.
She has played in multiple orchestras, weddings, church events, and studio recordings, and has participated in many recitals and scholarship competitions, receiving a Superior performance four years in a row.
Rachel is passionate about helping encourage each of her students to not only learn and appreciate all types of music, but to reach their goals of becoming the musicians they hope to be.
Caleb Baer
Violin Instructor / Strings Director
Caleb Baer started playing music at age five and settled on the violin at seven. He continued classical violin training into high school, as well as picking up other instruments along the way such as the mandolin and guitar. He enjoyed participating in orchestra, bands, and chamber music in high school, which led to his decision to pursue music full time in college.
Caleb has a degree in music from Morningstar University and a Certification in the O’Connor Violin Method from Gardner-Webb University.
Caleb currently teaches music students at Piedmont Music Academy, Cramerton Christian Academy, The Fine Arts Academy of Belmont, and Acorn Acres String Camps, as well as teaching privately in the Charlotte, NC area.
He is dedicated to helping students find the same enjoyment for music that he has!
Sarah Andrico
Suzuki Violin Instructor
Sarah Andrico has had a love for the violin and music since she was just a child, though she did not begin taking lessons until she was a young teenager. Beginning later than most Suzuki students, learning was quite challenging at times, but so often her challenges are what have made her grow and progress the most.
Sarah has had the privilege of teaching young children and teenagers in various settings and environments over the past several years. During this time her love of teaching grew more and more and it propelled her towards the path of teaching violin. Sarah has discovered how many different ways children learn and how important it is for them to be taught in a way that works best for their unique learning style. Sarah truly believes that “Every Child Can!” and her goal is to impart this truth to each student developing their skills and confidence along the way.
Sarah has studied under Elizabeth Ratchev since she originally began taking lessons. In 2019 she assisted Elizabeth Ratchev as an Intern, observing and assisting in classes. She has completed the Suzuki Every Child Can! training course, Suzuki Units One, Two and Three under Mrs. Linda Steig and Mrs. Amanda Schubert, as well as the Suzuki Principles in Action course under Ms. Beth Titterington. Sarah has had the privilege to play at a number of events over the past few years.
She currently teaches at several studios in the Charlotte and Rock Hill area.
Sarahʼs other interests include teaching swing and ballroom dance classes with her husband to both young children and adults, reading a good book, exercising, baking and taking care of her sweet Bernedoodle, Daisy Anne.
Lauren Hinkelman
Suzuki Violin Instructor
A native of Charlotte, NC, Lauren started playing the violin when she was 7 years old and continued playing and taking lessons throughout high school. After being homeschooled for the entirety of her primary and secondary school years, she attended Grove City College in Pennsylvania to pursue a music degree with concentrations in violin and voice. She graduated with her Bachelor of Music degree in May of 2021 and since then has been teaching violin and viola in the Charlotte area.
Lauren was trained using the Suzuki Method and uses that same method in her own teaching. In 2019 she completed the Unit 1 Teacher Training for the Suzuki Method at the Virginia Suzuki Institute with Libby Armour. She loves spreading a love of music to her students and is excited to begin teaching at Piedmont Music Academy this fall!
Hannah Bledsoe
Violin Instructor
She plays weekly in multiple church worship bands and performs at weddings, parties, and concerts, as well as the occasional street performance, in a duo with her brother, a cellist. She regularly performs with the Gardner Webb University orchestra and as a guest musician with the Western Piedmont Symphony and the Rutherford County Symphony.
Dr. Thomas Hildreth
Double Bass & Electric Bass Instructor
Tom Hildreth is a bassist (double bass and electric bass) who is comfortable playing in a wide variety of styles. He has performed with jazz greats Clark Terry, Marvin Stamm, Chris Potter, Bob Sheppard, Harold Danko, Rich Perry, Tommy Newsome, Bill Mays, Ross Tompkins, Buddy Morrow, Gene Bertoncini, Mundell Lowe, Bernard Purdie, Bucky Pizzarelli, Larry Coryell and Harry Connick, Jr.
Other artists he has appeared with include Earth Wind and Fire, The Eagles, Vince Gill, Linda Ronstadt, Dolly Parton, Bernadette Peters, Bela Fleck, Michael Feinstein, Sam Moore, Clay Aiken, Taylor Hicks, The Radio City Music Hall Rockettes, Roger Williams, Don Rickles, Sandy Patti, Phil Driscoll, Phil Keaggy, Sandy Duncan, Bobby Vinton, Christine Ebersole, James Maddalena, Jennifer Holliday, Jodi Benson and Tony Trischka.
As a pit orchestra musician he has played in over 3 dozen different national touring productions of Broadway musicals, backing performers like Jerry Lewis, Theodore Bickel, Rachel York, Molly Ringwald, Sandy Duncan, John O’Hurley, Gregory Harrison, Sally Struthers, Alan Ruck, Cathy Rigby, and Mackenzie Phillips.
His orchestral experience includes appearances with the Charlotte Symphony, the South Carolina Philharmonic, the Greenville Symphony, the Spartanburg Symphony, the Asheville Symphony, the Charleston Symphony, the Rock Hill Symphony and the Augusta Symphony.
Tom holds music degrees from the University of Georgia (DMA-Double Bass Performance), the University of South Carolina (MM-Jazz Studies), and Winthrop College (BA-Music and MAT-Music). He has taught at Winthrop University, UNCC, Gardner-Webb University, Central Piedmont Community College and Benedict College.
Gretchen B. Haney
Music Theory
Gretchen Haney is originally from Lafayette, Indiana. She participated in band from the 6th grade throughout college, including the Purdue University Concert Bands and Marching Band. Her primary instruments were the flute and piccolo but she also enjoyed playing the alto saxophone in her high school pep band. In addition to various music ensembles, she studied music theory as she planned to pursue a music degree in college.
Gretchen now resides in York, SC with her husband and 5 children whom she homeschools. She is beginning her 14th year as a homeschool teacher and has been Ortin Gillingham trained and tutors students with dyslexia and dysgraphia.
She has taught music theory with Piedmont Music Academy since 2019 and looks forward to adding some of the multi-sensory techniques to Beginning Music Theory next Fall.
Annesha Dib
Music Theory
My formal music education began at the age of five in Yamaha piano class. My earliest informal training was under my own mother who often taught voice lessons and directed children and adult choirs and sang constantly in our home and in the car. From an early age, my musical instruction included an emphasis on music theory, sight singing and ear training. I studied piano through elementary, high school and college (as a secondary instrument). I learned to sing harmony (by ear) with my family and learned to read an alto line in school choirs and singing traditional hymns in church. As a 6th grader, I chose oboe as my primary instrument in school band. I was a middle school drum major and played “Pit” percussion during marching band season.
I have a Bachelors of Musical Arts in oboe performance from Oklahoma Baptist University. I’ve also attended teacher training under the tutelage of Michiko Yurko in Units 1 and 2 of Music Mind Games (also created by Michiko Yurko with approval from Dr. Suzuki). For the past 14 years, I have continued my commitment to music education as home educator and Suzuki parent to 3 young talented musicians. In recent years, although I am grateful that I received extensive training in music reading, I’ve discovered the joy of playing piano by ear and regret that this was de-emphasized throughout my many years of traditional piano instruction.
My family and I serve regularly on our church’s worship team where we read from chord charts and collaborate with other musicians. I have a heart for equipping young people to use their musical gifts, talents and education in ministry, small ensembles, worship teams and youth orchestras locally. My family and I have been blessed to develop an extensive local network in music education and I enjoy connecting families to local private teachers, music ensembles, groups and classes.