Meet the ukulele Staff

Liz Robbins has been singing and studying music for her entire life, thanks to her musical family and upbringing. She completed her Bachelor’s in Music Education at Berry College in Rome, GA, her home state. During this time, Liz studied voice and piano privately in addition to being the assistant choir director and co-teaching Kindermusik classes on campus.

Liz began working for RMC while completing her Master’s in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ. Here Liz found her true passion for understanding the singing mechanism and how to utilize it healthily for a variety of styles and genres. She is trained in and performs Classical/Opera, Musical Theater, Jazz, Rock, Folk/Country and Contemporary Commercial Music. Liz’s primary goal as a music educator is to help all of her students find and cultivate their passion for music, no matter what the genre or style!

John has been playing piano since the age of 6 and playing drums, bass, and guitar since the age of 10. John has been teaching and instructing students on these instruments for the past 3 years. John draws his influences from many genres and artists, including Led Zeppelin, The Police, as well as D’Angelo and James Jamerson. In his free time, John writes music in various genres including; R&B, Bossa Nova, Jazz, Hip Hop, and Rock. 
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John has studied under many teachers over the years for each instrument. Most recently, John studied under Carlos Vazques of Mason Gross College of the Arts at Rutgers University, where he focused on Conga Performance. 
This past year, John earned his degree in Education from Middlesex County College, and he will be going on to study English and Music Education at Kean University.
​John has found a passion for teaching students of any age, from beginner to advanced skill levels. His approach to teaching is student-centered: he focuses on the students' interests and needs. From there, he helps his students build the skills necessary to be able to play the genres and songs that interest them most. 

Jasni McGrail started her musical journey as a student at RMC and has continued as a member of our staff. Jasni has studied piano, french horn, bass guitar and is self-taught on guitar and ukulele. Her biggest musical inspirations and influences are Queen, Elton John, and The Beatles because of how they broke the rules of music and inspired real change in our music culture. 
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Jasni is an active member of the RMC Teacher Band, accompanying students on both piano and bass guitar. When she is not teaching or performing, Jasni assists with songwriting and recording projects with RMC students. She enjoys helping students find their passion and voice with their music, creating something that they can be proud of. 

Dustin Sebes is a New Jersey native musician, artist, and teacher who has been studying and playing music extensively for the last 28 years. He began teaching guitar lessons while attending Ramapo College of New Jersey in the late 1990's. Graduating with honors, he attained a Bachelor's degree in the fine arts with a concentration in music. 

Since then Dustin has gone on to perform and compose original music in numerous bands including, but not limited to Conformicide, The Green Room, Coma Ghost, Capita, Identity Debt, Missing Debussy, Youth League & The Spies, and now currently KSSH!, and Sister Ancestor. Dustin is also a singer-songwriter and performs his own music along with classic covers by popular artists on stage and at private events throughout the tri-state area and beyond. 

He currently teaches Guitar, Piano, Ukulele, Mandolin, Bass Guitar, in addition to band and ensemble mentoring. Areas of expertise include music theory, fretboard and keyboard theory, composition, creative songwriting, repertoire building, and improvisation, with concentrations in classical, jazz, rock, folk and pop styles.

Jesse brings 15 years of teaching experience. He studied piano and composition at Rutgers University on a scholarship. Jesse's musical training coupled with on-stage experience (Limelight, Knitting Factory, CBGBs) has helped him guide and inspire many musicians. 

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He focuses on building a strong technical grounding on the instrument. His lessons are tailored around the student's goals and musical taste. 

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In addition to teaching Guitar, Piano, Drums, Bass, Ukulele, & Voice, Jesse also teaches songwriting, music theory, and arranging. He has experience teaching all age ranges and levels. He has taught total beginners to advanced students. 

Anthony Alejandro Martínez (Tony) is a Music Composition post-senior at Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts. He is of Ecuadorian and Spanish descent. Although music composition and the curiosity to learn piano came to him later in life, he writes in various genres. His culture and knowledge range from jazz, blues, Latin jazz, South American folklore, waltz, Caribbean, hip-hop, r&b, rap, pop, Latin music, classical, contemporary, ballads, film scoring, and hints of soul and gospel. 

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He has arranged and performed as a pianist at local Latin Jazz festivals, for the former president of Ecuador Rafael Correa at St. Johns University, and some of his works are performed at Nicholas Music Center as well as other venues at Mason Gross. He currently plays and teaches piano, Venezuelan “cuatro,” “charango” (a 10-string instrument from Ecuador), electric bass, guitar, percussion including Latin percussion, ukulele, music composition, film scoring, songwriting including musicals, and music technology and production.