Award Winning Faculty & Students
Over 25 instructors teaching piano, voice, guitar, woodwinds, brass, and more.
Performance Opportunities
We regularly hold open houses and recitals on our in-store stage.
15 Instruction Studios
Sound reinforced, glass doors, waiting area for parents, located in the heart of historic downtown.
Recording Studio
Pro Tools equipped. Record college audition pieces, songs for friends & family and professional demos.
Alexandria Mae Midcalf
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Alex completed a bachelor's degree in Violin Performance from Central Michigan University and master's degree in Violin Performance from Bowling Green State University and has more than five years of teaching experience. Before moving to Colorado from Michigan in the summer of 2023, Alex also performed as a section violinist in several orchestras.
Notable achievements include winning second place in the American Protege International Piano and Strings Competition and Golden Strings of America Competition, both of which resulted in performing a winner recital at Carnegie Hall in NYC.
During the summers of college and graduate school, she had the opportunity to attend the prestigous music festivals Meadowmount School of Music, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Round Top Festival Institute, Miami Music Festival, and the Monteux School.
Alex teaches traditional classical violin/viola and emphasizes the importance of note and rhythm reading in her lessons. She believes that any young violinist/violist has the capability to reach mastery on their instrument with enough practice, and it is her goal to present a comfortable and positive environment in her lessons; all while helping to expand their technique, knowledge, and most of all, musicality.
Alex welcomes students of all ages and levels.
Daniela Popa
Daniela Popa came to Colorado from Bucharest, Romania, in 2021. She graduated from the National University of Music in Bucharest in 2005 with a degree in Musicology, Composition and Music Pedagogy. For the last 17 years she has been teaching violin and piano at one of the best music schools in Bucharest, achieving the highest teaching certification for a Romanian teacher; during this time, she also taught private lessons. As her main instrument, she focused on violin in the school and piano for private lessons.
Her students regularly performed and excelled in nation and international festivals, contests, and concerts, including the "Merci Maestro" piano contest in Brussels, Belgium.
She is an experienced, passionate, and results-oriented music teacher, willing to bring the best of her knowledge, technique, method, and energy to students in Castle Rock. Music education in Europe has differences with the United States. Daniela believes this will be an enriching experience for students as well as for her, since she is always willing to broaden her horizons and searching for new challenges and achievements.
Daniela is also a choir professional. For 20+ years she was a member of one of the best mixed ensembles in Romania. They won several prizes in contests and festivals in Romania and across Europe.
Daniela is happy to become a part of the Castle Rock School of Music. She's looking forward to meeting and teaching you, and discovering together the amazing language of music, here in this nice Colorado town.
Emma Spears
Emma was given the opportunity to play the violin at ten years old. She soon added the viola, cello, piano, and voice, and began composing classical music at eleven years old. She has been studying music theory and composition with Dr. Treibitz at the collegiate level since age twelve. Emma has been teaching music for almost a decade and loves to teach all subjects in a fun, uncomplicated format.
Students can expect critiques and positive affirmation with each aspect of their playing and singing. Propper technique is a musician's bread and butter. Encouraging students to look into the background and history of each piece they are playing is essential to understanding what type of technique to use and how to use it properly. Additionally, Emma believes a solid understanding of music theory is essential to strengthening one's musicianship.
Emma studied violin and viola with Basil Vendrys, Lydia Sviatslovskaya, and Dr Emily Ondracek-Peterson, voice with Laura Nolen, Rochelle Gallup-Walter, and Ginger Allen, cello with Olga Orgranovitch, and music theory and composition with Dr Howard Treibitz and Thomas Blomster.
