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Ricky Claudon (he/him)

Ricky brings together his background as a tutor and paraeducator with his lifetime experience in music for an individualized approach to music education that focuses on memory, fluency, and music appreciation. As a working musician, he has spent time developing his skill by adapting and learning a variety of styles on piano and guitar.

In piano, he specializes in theory, memorization, performance, and improvisation has a deep knowledge of classical style, and teaches popular Baroque and Romantic repertoire. Ricky also teaches Blues, R&B, and Rock & Roll styles, and in general, encourages his students to explore a diverse range of music.

In guitar/uke/bass, Ricky enjoys teaching fingerpicking style, improvisation, and basic theory. He also teaches students who want to learn to sing, play and write their own music. He specializes in combining rhythmic and lyrical styles and teaches techniques on how to effectively memorize lyrics and changes in songs.

Erin Rubin (she/her)

Erin is the owner of Mode Music Studios and founder of Mode Music and Performing Arts. She teaches piano and voice. Erin started on piano at the age of four. At twelve, she was on stage with the local working musicians at various Seattle venues and festivals. She has written music for and performed with many Seattle bands including: Wesafari, The Exploding High-Fives, The Quiet Ones, People Eating People, Nouela, and Danny Newcomb. Erin has worked and currently works as a hired studio musician since the age of 17 in Bellingham, Seattle and Los Angeles areas. Erin found her calling as a teacher in her early twenties and believes a healthy balance of technique, theory, and arranging in the context of songs the student loves, is the fast track to any student’s success in music lessons.

Emily Jensenius (they/them)

Emily Jensenius was born in Issaquah, WA, into a family of music lovers that includes several pianists, an opera singer, and a zither player. As a teen, Emily played viola in the Seattle Youth Symphony and also performed on Classic King FM radio with their string quartet. Emily went on to study viola performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Rice University, and Florida State University. Their major teachers were Jeffrey Irvine and Lynne Ramsey, James Dunham, and Pamela Ryan. At FSU, Emily received assistantships to coach viola and chamber music, as well as to play with the College of Music's Eppes String Quartet, which collaborated with student composers on new works. The Eppes was coached by cellist Greg Sauer and mentored by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich.

As an orchestral musician in Florida, Emily played with many professional ensembles, including the Tallahassee Symphony, the Columbus Symphony, Sinfonia Gulf Coast, and the Albany Symphony. After graduation, Emily was fortunate to live in Oxford, England, for a few years, where they taught privately and performed as a member of the Oxford Chamber Orchestra and the Oxford Sinfonia. Emily currently lives near Washington, D.C., and teaches for Mode online.

Emily encourages students to be self-directed and will follow each player's musical interests while also fostering healthy technique and critical listening skills. A lesson with Emily will typically focus on the physical setup, pitch and rhythmic awareness, style and phrasing, and strategies for efficient practice. Emily's goal is for every student to enjoy being a musician and to feel increased self-confidence as they improve. Some of Emily's other interests are distance running, watching video essays, listening to oldies, folk, or pop music, and baking pies.

Tip Your Teacher! Venmo @ej_viola