Faculty & Staff

Natasha Pasternak

Natasha Pasternak

Director, Popular Music Conservatory

natasha.pasternak@ocsarts.net

Ms. Natasha Pasternak is an artist in the most honest sense of the word. As a songwriter, composer, producer, and performer, to a professor and founder of her new company, Desert Dream Creative, Ms. Pasternak has fully embodied what it takes to be a successful musician and entrepreneur in today’s music industry.

Classically trained at the Randolph College for the Performing Arts in Toronto, Ms. Pasternak went on to excel in the local music scene with various projects. In 2010, she co-founded the acclaimed Toronto indie-pop band, Hands & Teeth. One part Broken Social Scene, one part Arcade Fire, Hands & Teeth dominated festivals across North America (SXSW, POP Montreal, Halifax POP, CMW, M for Montreal and NXNE to name a few). Their songs found homes locally and internationally, featured on various radio and television stations including the CBC, BBC, Much Music and MTV. And featured in various publications, including a 5/5 star review in NOW magazine for their first release. In 2016 Ms. Pasternak lent her vocals for Warner Bros. official trailer for The Legend of Tarzan, now with over 16,000,000 plays.

Ms. Pasternak is an active committee member for Women In Music L.A (WIM LA) and a juror for FACTOR Canada. She recently launched her own songwriting workshop/ master class business, Desert Dream Creative. Over the years she has been selected for various prestigious workshops and mentorships, including ASCAP’s Harold Adamson Workshop. Ms. Pasternak worked one-on-one with top industry professionals (Mr. Hudson, Autumn Rowe, Jayson De Zuzio, Nicole Morier, Andrew Cider and Daniel Werman). For the past 3 years Ms. Pasternak has been building programming and lecturing at UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. This past June she acted as Assistant Director, program designer and lead instructor for UCLA Herb Alpert school of music’s Teen Summer Songwriting Intensive. She is currently in her summer appointment at UCLA and will be heading back to take up her role as professor this fall as well. On top of lecturing at UCLA, Ms. Pasternak splits her time working for the non-profit, Jail Guitar Doors, bringing songwriting and music into correctional institutions as a part of their rehabilitation. There, she teaches guitar and songwriting, designs programming and organizes concerts with her students. For more information head to www.desertdreamcreative.com or www.natashapasternak.com.

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Rebecca Bishop

Rebecca Bishop

Instructor

rebecca.bishop@ocsarts.net

Ms. Becca Bishop is a singer and songwriter from Fresno, California. She began singing before she could talk, and grew up in a family of talented musicians who got her started singing in church at a very young age. In school, she played the French horn, sang in the choir, and performed drama. At the young age of nine, Ms. Bishop picked up a guitar and immediately started writing songs and showing the world,or whoever would listen. At age 10, she began learning the piano, about how music works and what makes it meaningful. Today, she is a staff singer for the Pacific Chorale, singing major works every month. Ms. Bishop also works as a private vocal instructor with her own private studio of multi-instrument students growing every day. She sings at the beautiful St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church of Newport Beach each Sunday, and has performed with artists such as The Rolling Stones, The Who, Billy Idol, Alfie Boe, Josh Groban, Sarah Brightman, and 30 Seconds to Mars. Ms. Bishop continues to write and perform whenever and wherever she can.

Tom Dante

Tom Dante

Instructor

tom.dante@ocsarts.net

Mr. Tom Dante attended the famed Dick Grove School of Music for Drumset Studies. He also attended and was involved in music programs from Fullerton College and California State University, Fullerton.  

A large amount of his work is with Matt Mauser in the Sinatra Big Band, with Pete Jacobs in his bands, and with Tony Guerrero for worship music, live jazz, and various sessions. As a bandleader, Mr. Dante leads his Tom Dante Trio at a long-running weekly house gig called R&B Gospel group Alva & Praise for their Gospel Dinners, as well as his own jazz-fusion group known as the Dante Set. Additionally, he plays with jazz artists Dean Grech, Greg Vail, and Jay Gore. Mr. Dante also records with his original rock/punk band Human Haggis.

Mr. Dante plays worship music at Journey Church in Irvine, California. He previously played at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California for 14 years, primarily in the Praise Gospel venue, but also for many recording sessions, live events, and broadcasts.

Mr. Dante also plays and records with Tom Brooks of Integrity Music, David Pack of Ambrosia, and has done some travel dates with John Tesh. He works as a clinician for Yamaha Worship Resources. He has recorded and performed with Abe Laboriel, Paul Jackson Jr., Michael Landau, Sheila E, Larry Carlton, Bob Somma, Baby do Brazil, Morris Chapman, Melvin Davis, Charles Billingsley, Rick Tatum, and many more. Mr. Dante is excited to have joined the Popular Music Conservatory at Orange County School of the Arts as a music teacher for their Jr. High Ensemble and drum classes.

Baba Elefante

Baba Elefante

Instructor

Teaches: Bass I/II

baba.elefante@ocsarts.net

Freelance Bassist and composer Mr. Baba Elefante was nominated as one of the nation's top bass players in a Bass Player Magazine poll. He has released two solo CDs, known as Watch For One and an all bass Christmas CD titled Bassic Christmas. In addition, he collaborated with Eric Marienthal, Ronnie Ciago, David Jennings and Dave Murdy on two other CDs with Toxic Jazz.

Mr. Elefante has been the bassist for The Ron Kobayashi Trio for more than 21 years. The group members, Ron Kobayashi, Steve Dixon and Baba Elefante have recorded four CDs, starting with the self-titled Ron Kobayashi Trio, second release Exotic Places, third release No Preservatives and fourth Be Bop and Swing.

Mr. Elefante’s studio work spans television, movies, and records including the Universal Pictures’ movie The Hunted in 1995. He has recorded and performed with jazz trumpeter Roy Hargrove, saxophonists Tom Scott, Pete Christlieb, Justo Almario, Eric Marienthal, Brandon Fields, Yes/Moody Blues keyboardist Patrick Moraz, Lee Osker of the band War, and Kansas lead vocalist John Elefante, Jazz legend Ron Eschete, Paul Gilbert, Duke Robillard, David Garfield and actor/recording artist Frank Stallone.

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Tyler Francavilla

Tyler Francavilla

Instructor

tyler.francavilla@ocsarts.net

Mr. Tyler Francavilla studied acting at Marymount Manhattan College and worked as an actor for over 20 years. He has been a series regular on several television shows and guest starred on many more including Mad Men, NCIS, The Mentalist, and Criminal Minds. Additionally, he has appeared in many national commercials.

Ted Greenberg

Ted Greenberg

Instructor

Mr. Ted Greenberg plays 12 instruments and has several concurrent successful careers as a musician, music producer, audio engineer, film and television composer, acoustician, and teacher. He graduated from the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts in 1981 earning a Bachelor of Arts degree. In 2003, Mr. Greenberg won two Grammys (Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Pictures, Television or Other Visual Media and Best Female R&B Vocal with Chaka Kahn), and two Tec awards (Technical Excellence) for producing and mixing the soundtrack for the movie Standing In The Shadows Of Motown. In the same year, he moved to Los Angeles and opened three world-class recording studios in Hollywood within the Cello Studios complex (now East West Studios). He started working in 2007 for the Art Institute of Los Angeles until December of 2014 and started teaching audio production for UCLA Extension in 2015. In 2008, after Mr. Greenberg became the keynote speaker at the graduation ceremonies for the Musicians Institute of Hollywood, he started teaching audio production there and received the Instructor of the Year award in 2009.

Robert Jacobs

Robert Jacobs

Instructor

robert.jacobs@ocsarts.net

Mr. Robert "Jake" Jacobs studied with Paul Price from the Manhattan School of Music, and attended Ithaca Music Conservatory. He received his degrees in performance and music education. Because of his versatility as a producer, educator and performer, Mr. Jacobs has had the opportunity to perform live and/or record with artists such as Natalie Cole, Al Green, Three Dog Night, Solomon Burke, Clarence Clemons (Bruce Springsteen), Bobby "Blue" Bland, Ollie Woodson (The Temptations), and The Young Dubliners just to name a few. His television, motion picture, and gaming credits include Judging Amy, The Rachel Ray Show, Dr. Phil, Sony PlayStation Games, Quest for Camelot, Recess: Schools Out and commercials for Buick, Budweiser, Boston Market, Toys “R” Us, Nissan. As a performing artist, Mr. Jacobs is endorsed with Drum Workshop(ow), Sabian Cymbals, Latin Percussion (LP), REMO and Vic Firth. The most important quality about Mr. Jacobs that you should know is that he is extremely passionate about education. He has taught Drumline, Percussion Ensemble and Percussion Pedagogy at Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach, and additionally, he has a 20 year private practice teaching 30 students ranging in ages from 6 to 65 years old. Mr. Jacobs dedicates himself to his students, and because of his experiences and background, he's able to share those experiences and energize the learning experience. Mr. Jacobs is inspired when he can witness a student developing as an artist, and looks forward to meeting and working with future students.

Jessica Lipman

Jessica Lipman

Instructor

jessica.lipman@ocsarts.net

Ms. Jessica Lipman has been performing and teaching in Los Angeles and surrounding areas for the past 10 years. She holds degrees in trumpet performance, music education, and a minor in music industry from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). From a young age, Ms. Lipman has always had a passion for music and teaching. Growing up in the classical world of music and then later on discovering the songwriting and business industry in current music, she has a unique understanding of both sides of the industry and how they function―both musically and from a business standpoint.

Having studied under Natasha Pasternak, Jeffery Jampol, Tiffany Naiman, Jens Lindemann, Mike Zonshine, Tom Hooten, Jennifer Marotta, Catherine Provenzano, and others, Ms. Lipman has had a vast array of experience learning from every side of the industry. 

Since graduating from UCLA, she has taken these experiences and applied them to pursuing her current careers. As a musician, Ms. Lipman freelances as a trumpet player and vocalist both inside and outside of recording studios―playing in all genres of music including, but not limited to classical, klezmer, and rock. She can be heard playing trumpet on songs through Sony Music, Coco Jadad, and Nick Annunziata. As a songwriter, she collaborates with other songwriters, as well as script writers and is pursuing a solo and sync career under the artist name “Jess Elise.” As a music industry professional, Ms. Lipman is currently working to co-launch a record label collective with Odd Zounds Productions, assists with 4th Street Recording Studios in Santa Monica, and does live sound for temples in Culver City. As an educator she works in the Popular Music Conservatory at OCSA and CSArts Academy, and also as teaching private lessons to students in grades 2 through 12.

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Ron Kobayashi

Ron Kobayashi

Instructor

Teaches: Keyboards II

ron.kobayashi@ocsarts.net

Pianist and composer Mr. Ron Kobayashi has performed with a variety of musical artists including Mel Torme, Kenny Burrell, Peter Frampton, Tom Scott, Margaret Whiting, Peter White and Najee. For five years Mr. Kobayashi served as musical director for the Hollywood Diversity Awards where stars such as Chris Rock, Mark Ruffalo, and George Lopez were honored. He has made numerous television appearances including on The Johnny Yune Show, The Jerry Lewis Telethon, American Stars, the CBS Television series All Rise, the TVONE Network series Life After with Jackee Harris, and upcoming on the Netflix series Brother's Sun airing in 2023. In 1992, Ron performed for President Bill Clinton. Ron has taught at the Orange County School of the Arts for more than 10 years.

Lawson Madlener

Lawson Madlener

Instructor

lawson.madlener@ocsarts.net

Mr. Lawson Madlener is a composer in the media industry, as well as a musician, music technology specialist, teacher, and Founder of Stomping Giant Studios (SGS). He was introduced to music at a very young age and has been studying violin under Mari Haig since he was three. As a multi-instrumentalist, he also plays and teaches viola, ukulele, mandolin, guitar, and bass guitar, with an emphasis on classical, jazz, and bluegrass.

Mr. Madlener specializes in providing the music to video games, film, and television, both as an independent and also as the founder of SGS. He also teaches Film & Game Scoring and Music Theory at Orange County School of the Arts. Some of his other accomplishments include the Pacific Symphony Orchestra performing a commissioned piece titled “Soaring” which debuted in 2019 at Segerstrom Hall in Orange County, along with winning first place in the 2016 CINE Marvin Hamlisch Film Scoring competition and second place in the 2015 CAIFF Film Scoring competition. Mr. Madlener covers a variety of styles in his compositions with an emphasis on orchestral and jazz, but he enjoys scoring all genres. 

Mr. Madlener’s music appears on television networks such as CBS, TLC, Discovery Channel, and National Geographic, and in games from publishers such as Storm8, Frima, and HuuugeGames.

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Mark Massey

Mark Massey

Instructor

mark.massey@ocsarts.net

Jazz pianist-composer Mr. Mark Massey was born and raised in Lynwood, California, where he showed early talent on piano, trombone, and drums. During high school, he studied classical piano and played in various groups, jazz combos, and big bands. Mr. Massey studied music composition under Dr. Philip Westin and took music classes at the Cerritos College Music Camp during various summers. He played in the Pico Rivera Stage Band, which won first place at the Hollywood Bowl Battle of the Bands. He graduated from California State University, Long Beach with bachelor's and master's degrees in music. Mr. Massey was a recipient of the Carmen Dragon Fellowship for composition and was dubbed "A Young Giant" by the National Association Of Jazz Educators.

Colleen McCandless

Colleen McCandless

Instructor

colleen.mccandless@ocsarts.net

Ms. Colleen McCandless is a performer and writer from Long Beach, California. Born in a musical family, she grew up singing in choirs and in six-part harmony with her family (affectionately nicknamed the “McCandless Family Singers''). She earned her Bachelor of Arts in theatre arts, performance from California State University, Long Beach where she studied acting, playwriting, and directing. Her play Fledgling was awarded the Kennedy Center's John Cauble Award in 2016, and her self-produced debut EP Carry My Heart Over the Waves was recorded and released in 2021. Her annual Christmas show All In One Night raises funds for charity every year with a full reading of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol interspersed with 13 original songs.

Baltazar Montoya

Baltazar Montoya

Instructor

baltazar.montoya@ocsarts.net

Mr. Baltazar Montoya is an electric and double bassist in the Southern California area with an impressive performance credit list that includes Jeff Hamilton, James Morrison, Joe Porcaro, Emil Richards, Joey Heredia, Dave Weckl, and more. He thrives on sharing his joy of music through performing, teaching, and sharing his eclectic listening catalog.

Mr. Montoya is originally from Placentia, California. Growing up, he was exposed to an enormous amount of world music that centered around traditional Cuban and Mexican music. With the deep rhythms and beautiful melodies of these cultures, he jumped head first into the contemporary music world as a young man. Mr. Montoya began working as a musician at the age of 14 in a jazz combo consisting of his classmates from his high school jazz band. With mentoring and on-the-bandstand training, he was able to secure a full scholarship to the Los Angeles College of Music in 2016 and graduated in 2020. 

Today, Mr. Montoya is a part of various recording and performing projects and has toured in the United States and China. He also teaches and hopes to share his love of music to as many students as possible.

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Ryan Navales

Ryan Navales

Instructor

Teaches: Junior Rock Ensemble, Junior Guitar

ryan.navales@ocsarts.net

Mr. Ryan Navales is one of the jazz and contemporary guitar specialists at Orange County School of the Arts. Mr. Navales graduated from California Institute of the Arts with a master’s degree in jazz performance. He is a freelance musician based in the Los Angeles area. As a performing artist, Mr. Navales has shared the stage with several jazz luminaries, including New York Voices, John Hollenbeck, John Clayton, Poncho Sanchez, Joe LaBarbera, Vinny Golia, and Alphonso Johnson. In addition to his live performance work, he has also recorded at Capitol Records for CalArts and performed on a track with Freda Payne. Mr. Navales currently teaches for The Garn Family Jazz Studies Program and Popular Music Conservatory at OCSA. Mr. Navales teaches Junior Rock Ensemble and Junior Guitar for the Popular Music Conservatory. He is also adjunct faculty at Fullerton College and Chapman University.

Lauren Real y Vasquez

Lauren Real y Vasquez

Instructor

lauren.realyvasquez@ocsarts.net

Ms. Lauren Real y Vasquez is a singer, songwriter, and vocal coach located in Los Angeles. She has been singing and performing since the age of 5. Ms. Real y Vasquez graduated from the Berklee College of Music with a bachelor’s degree in professional music. She has been the apprentice of esteemed vocal coach Steve Real and is so excited to bring that knowledge to OCSA. Ms. Real y Vasquez has performed background vocals for Olivia Newton John and has had guest performances with Chris Isaac and Kelly Clarkson.

Brandon K. Rivera

Brandon K. Rivera

Instructor

brandon.rivera@ocsarts.net

Mr. Brandon K. Rivera is an accomplished award-winning composer and instrumentalist based in Los Angeles, California. A musician of over 20 years, he has spent many years perfecting his craft. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in music theory and composition, and has a great deal experience in performing and composing for media. Over the course of his career, Mr. Rivera’s music and projects have been heard all over the world; through his film scoring, touring with various bands, writing and producing music for notable artists, recording and engineering studio sessions, and running his own sync/publishing company, he has built a career that spans all across the music industry.

Mr. Rivera also had the pleasure of being a part of the music team for many big studio productions, such as Marvel’s Inhumans and BBC’s Planet Earth. Before starting his own publishing company, he worked at Hans Zimmer’s studio called Remote Control Productions and assisted Dominic Lewis on the score for the feature film Money Monster, starring George Clooney. Most recently, he's done some arranging and orchestration work for the Grammys. When Mr. Rivera is not writing music, you can find him either eating sushi, lifting weights, or getting mad at sports teams.

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Julian Rymar

Julian Rymar

Instructor

julian.rymar@ocsarts.net

Mr. Julian Rymar (IM, ‘15) is a Southern California native and proud OCSA Instrumental Music alumnus! He’s a classically trained clarinetist with a Bachelor of Music in performance from DePaul University and a Master of Music in performance, as well as an Artist’s Diploma from California State University, Fullerton. Mr. Rymar’s primary teachers include Burt Hara, Håkan Rosengren, Julie DeRoche, and Anthony Parnther. He’s also worked with many renowned clarinetists such as Steve Williamson, Larry Combs, Andrew Lowy, and Michele Zukovsky among others.

Mr. Rymar is an aspiring orchestral musician and lover of all types of music both new and old. He grew up hearing his dad play classic rock on guitar and piano, attending his mom’s musical theatre rehearsals, and studying classical music ranging from centuries old masterpieces to contemporary, experimental art music. He enjoys learning new instruments and has always been motivated to develop a broad musical appreciation to be the best collaborator he can be.

Mark Wein

Mark Wein

Instructor

mark.wein@ocsarts.net

Mr. Mark Wein has been performing and teaching music in Southern California for over 30 years. He holds degrees in both commercial music performance from Fullerton College and jazz performance from California State University, Fullerton. As a performer, Mr. Wein has worked steadily playing jazz, blues, soul, reggae, calypso and rock music with groups such as the swing band The Scot Willy Combo, The Ken Foerch Group, Panjive, New Originals, Kingsize, and The Metropolitans; as well as rock groups such as Felt and Jennifer Corday; and the cover bands All Star Trio and The Automatix. In 2014, he released his first solo blues album Black Market Hearts and was recently featured on Norwegian country and western artist Randi Marie’s album The Heart Wanders.

As owner and operator of Premier Music, a full-service music school in the city of Orange, California from 2004 to 2016, he taught private lessons, clinics, and performance classes. Mr. Wein is the author of the books Foundations for Guitar and Expanded Blues Guitar, produces instructional and review content for JaxGuitarTrax on YouTube, and is also a featured guitar instructor on Truefire.com.

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