Profile Type: Staff
Toby Williams, MA, MT-BC, LCAT, AVPT
Toby has led the music therapy program at The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music since 2011. After completing a bachelor’s of the arts degree in psychology from the University of California at Irvine with a music minor, Toby moved to New York City to pursue a career in jazz singing. Like many musicians attracted to music therapy,…
Marie Lewis, MA, MT-BC, LCAT
Marie is a board certified music therapist and licensed creative arts therapist born and raised in NYC. She is an adjunct faculty member at New York University and the clinical coordinator for BKCM’s music therapy program. Relationship and collaboration have always been at the root of her love for music which began in early childhood,…
Aaron Van Heyningen
From: Issaquah, WashingtonI started teaching music in…1997I started teaching at the Conservatory in… 2013My inspiration: Dr. Suzuki. He lived through turbulent times and still managed to work tirelessly to create a more beautiful world through education, compassion, and music.Few people know that I… enjoy high-tech cooking, and I dream of turning my brown thumb into…
Lisa Vidas Consolacion
Lisa Vidas Consolacion was born in Vancouver, BC Canada and raised on the other end of North America in Houston, Texas. She grew up in her parents’ music school, first playing the violin and then singing. Lisa is a proud alumnus of Houston’s GRAMMY Award winning High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. As…
Brian Drye
Trombonist and pianist Brian Drye is an integral part of NYC’s creative music scene. Brian has spent the last two decades exploring and performing the vast array of music that is available in the NYC area which Includes Jazz, Rock, Funk, Salsa, Gospel, Reggae, Balkan, Pakistani, Mexican, Haitian, Brazilian Forro, And Klezmer. Brian is currently…
Nora Friedman
Currently the Suzuki Program Director, Nora Friedman has been part of the Suzuki violin faculty at BKCM since 2011. She served as Violin Department Head from 2015-2023. She attended Wesleyan University, where she received her B.A. in Latin American Studies, and holds a Masters in Violin Performance from Montclair State University and Brooklyn College, jointly. She…
Sheri Gottlieb
Sheri Gottlieb is Associate Director of the Music Partners Program at BKCM Music. She joined the team in 2000 and personally developed sequentially sequenced programming for PreK through 3rd grade students. Among her tasks, she is most proud of her work as mentor and curriculum developer. She created “Play Practice~Practice Play”, a series of Seminar/Workshops…
Renee Shohet
Renee Shohet is a graphic designer, vocalist, and actor based in NYC. She joined the Conservatory’s marketing team in 2022 as a graphic designer, where she creates institutional and programmatic communications, event materials, and social media graphics. Renee is a graduate of New York University, where she studied Vocal Performance, Graphic Design, and French. She…
Ivanna Palacio
Ivanna is a musician, music producer, and psychologist, originally from Queens, New York, and later raised in Bogotá, Colombia. She gained recognition as the lead singer of the shoegaze band Encarta 98, with which she toured across Colombia and Mexico. Today, she showcases her artistry through her solo project, Siempre Perdida. You can catch Ivanna…