A faculty member at Marin Community Music School since 2018, drummer Sean Nelson became the school’s fifth currently serving Trustee in May 2024.
Nelson earned his Bachelor of Arts degree at Boston’s Berklee School of Music and moved to the Bay Area in 1996, where he established himself as a sought-after instructor at the Community Music Center of SF, Marin Country Day School, and New Village Music. He is also an active performer in jazz, rock, and pop settings in Northern California and beyond.
“I’m excited to play a role in Marin Community Music School’s governance and planning new and better ways to serve our community. There is so much more we can be doing to encourage music making among Marin County residents of all ages and interests.”
Fourth-generation San Francisco native and long-time Marin resident Tara Flandreau is a violinist, violist, composer/improviser, and conductor. She graduated from College of Marin and Dominican College, earning Bachelor and Master of Music degrees, and did doctoral work at Columbia University. Tara has an extensive career as music educator and performing musician. She was chair of the Music and Performing Arts Departments at the College of Marin for many years, where she taught music theory and composition, ear training, strings, computer music notation software, chamber music, and conducted the COM Symphony Orchestra. Currently, Tara teaches string lessons and chamber music classes at MCMS, and plays in the ECHO Chamber Orchestra and the Marin Symphony.
Besides classical repertoire, Tara enjoys playing a wide variety of music, from performing at the Monterey Pops Festival recreation of the entire Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper Album, to a SF concert series celebrating the 100th birthday of composer John Cage. She has performed and recorded with many improvising orchestras and free-jazz musicians. Among her compositions is a short opera about SF eccentric Grimes Pozikov, the “Human Jukebox” who performed songs on his trumpet in a phone-booth sized box at Fisherman’s Wharf during the 1960’s – 1980’s..
Tara has also created an extensive music theory resource website called www.musictheoryteacher.com which has helped music students from around the world to better understand music theory.
Sean Nelson attended the Rotterdam Conservatory of Music Jazz Studies Program under Bob Brookmeyer in Holland, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Berklee School of Music. Since moving to SF in Fall 1996, Sean has had 24 years of professional teaching experience in the greater SF Bay Area, at the Community Music Center of SF, Marin Country Day School, and New Village Music. He joined the faculty of the Marin Community Music School in 2018.
In addition to being a teacher, Sean is also a professional musician performing in many different musical settings with a wide variety of musicians and groups. During his professional drumming career, he has shared the stage with many fine players and composers over more than 30 years playing drums professionally.
In his lessons, students will get a well-rounded approach to drumming and drum set playing. They will learn the four fundamental drum strokes and the 26+ standard rudiments which make up a great deal of the language of drumming. They will study stick control exercises and snare drum reading fundamentals. They will also study drumset coordination using the rhythm concept of CLAVE (the rhythmic “key”) present in almost all music that has drumming and dancing. Students will learn about the different rhythmic characteristics of style in music like Jazz, Rock, Funk, Afro-Cuban, Blues, New Orleans 2nd Line, Reggae, etc., and how to make beats and play songs. And we will also practice how to improvise, confidently creating rhythm in the moment and expressing our ideas on the drums.
Janet Lewis’ expertise in financial management makes her a valuable addition to the MCMS board. She received her MBA from the University of California at Berkeley, and has worked in local non-profit financial management for many years. Janet’s children were among the first students to study at the Marin Community Music School when it opened in 2009. Janet plays the cello and enjoys playing chamber music – especially playing in a trio with her fellow board members, violinist Lois Lane and pianist Adrienne Roth.
Lois Lane is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a longstanding psychotherapy practice in San Anselmo where she sees individuals and couples. She was also supervisor of Children’s Services for Marin County Community Mental Health. Her other longstanding avocation has been playing music. She was fortunate enough to study violin from a young age at Third Street Music Settlement School in Manhattan. In a public high school in New Jersey she participated in a regular orchestra, a string orchestra and played in a string quartet. This early enrichment led to a life long love of playing the violin, taking lessons and making music with others. She is very grateful to participate in the Chamber Music Program at MCMS. Her goal as a Board Member is to strengthen the music programs at MCMS so other children can have the opportunity to discover the joys of making music.
In her spare time she is an avid gardener, with a large organic vegetable garden.
Long-time San Anselmo resident Adrienne Roth has had two careers, one in education and another in real estate, as well as a life-long passion for music. As an educator, she aided in the development of the California legislation that enabled the California Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program and subsequently administered the GATE program for the San Anselmo schools. She moved into real estate sales with Merrill Lynch, and has been a broker with Frank Howard Allen, now Coldwell Banker, since 1985.
Adrienne earned her Bachelor of Arts degree at Brandeis University, majoring in psychology and minoring in music, and her Master of Education degree at Harvard University. She plays the piano.
music lessons, chamber music coaching, and performance for students of all ages.
