Our Faculty
Fabian Ularu, Violin and viola - Assistantconcert master of the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra, Highland Park Strings (1st Teaches intermediate to advanced students.violin), former member of Galveston Symphony Orchestra, Houston Civic Symphony, La Orquesta Sinfonica de la U.AN.L., Filharmonica “George Dima”, and “Virtuoziidin Transilvania”. Six years ago I was given the opportunity to teach at Solo Classic. During my tenure at Solo Classic I have enjoyed teaching a range of students from 1st grade to high school level using traditional methods and also Suzuki method. I appreciate that Solo Classic has developed quarterly concerts in which the students have to opportunity to demonstrate theirs skills and knowledge accumulated. We encourage students to participate in local activities, school orchestras or local competitions. In the last IGSMA, several of my students have taken gold medal.
Solo Classic provides a full range of services from lessons to repairs, to music store, which helped me in my duties, becoming a reference a local community for schools, local musicians as well as local orchestras.
Andrew Bukowinski, Cello- received his B.M. in Cello Performance, summa cum laude from Arizona State University, where he studied with Thomas Landschoot and worked with the Tokyo, St. Lawrence, Orion, and Brentano Quartets, and received his M.M. in Cello Performance, with distinction from DePaul University, where he studied with Stephen Balderston. He has performed in master classes for Emmanuelle Bertrand, Andrés Diaz, Timothy Eddy, Bernard Greenhouse, Philippe Muller, and Menahem Pressler, among others. During summers, he has attended several music festivals, including the Eastern Music Festival in North Carolina, Interlochen Arts Camp’s Advanced String Quartet Program in Michigan, the Killington Music Festival in Vermont, the Domaine Forget Summer Music Academy in Quebec, and the Castleman String Quartet Program in Boulder, Colorado. In the summer of 2012, Andrew taught cello lessons in Trujillo, Peru as a volunteer with a non-profit organization. He maintains an active teaching and performing schedule in the Chicago area and has played with the Chicago Chamber Orchestra, Illinois Symphony Orchestra, 42nd Parallel Self-Conducted Orchestra, and the Kankakee Valley Symphony Orchestra.
Desi Tantchev, violin/viola- Ms. Tantchev holds both the BM and MM from the State Academy of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria. Prior to moving to the U.S. In 1996, Desi has been performing with leading orchestras in Bulgaria and Europe. She served as principal violist for the Whiting Park Festival Orchestra for 8 years, performed regularly with the Illinois Philharmonic, Illinois Symphony Orchestras, currently she is a member of the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra and Highland Park Strings. Teaching both Traditional and Suzuki methods Desi is on the faculty of the MCMC in Crystal Lake since 2002, NSMI in Northfield, Starland and Wilmette Park District. She has taught at Glenbrook North and Glenbrook South H.S. for several years. Desi lives in Glenview with her husband and two sons.
Parallel with her Undergrad studies she was a member of the Youth Symphony Orchestra of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), 1st violins 2007-2010 (Moscow, Russia) where she got to perform together with well-known conductors as V.Spivacov, M.Gorenstein, I.Simonov, F.Mansurov.
In 2011 she moved to Chicago to follow her musical dream and got a Master Degree in Violin Performance (2013) at DePaul University School of Music, followed by a Certificate Performance at the same University in 2015.
At the moment she is a member of the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra-violin, Candid Opera Orchestra, also violin teacher at Logos School of Music, Niles, IL; substitute violin with Peoria Symphony Orchestra, former substitute violin with the Racine Symphopny, and former member of the Chamber Orchestra of the theatre "M.Eminescu", Rep. of Moldova. She uses traditional method of teaching combined with some elements of the Suzuki method. Comfortable in teaching any level and working with various repertoire of different genre.
Jon Gould, Guitar is a professional guitarist and instructor from
Chicago, IL. At age 26, Jon has recorded and performed with dozens of
artists at some of the most well known venues and festivals in the Midwest
including: The Auditorium Theatre, The Chicago Latin Jazz Festival, The House
of Blues, The Jazz Showcase, The Chicago Jazz Festival and Milwaukee's
Summerfest. He has written music for the Discovery, Bravo, and Shotime networks
and was named "Best Jazz/Blues artist of 2014" by the Chicago
Independent Music Awards.
In 2009, Jon began attending The Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University where he recived his Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies with a focus in guitar performance. While at Roosevelt, Jon became even more well versed in the history and performance of Jazz, Blues, Afro-Cuban, and Brazilian music as well as music theory and composition.
Inspired by those who had led him in becoming a musician, Jon began teaching students of all skill levels and ages in the Chicagoland area and has been for the past 8 years. Jon believes in the profound joy that learning an instrument provides and strives to share that sentiment with all his students.
Nazar Dzhuryn, Cello- is a native of Lviv, Ukraine, graduated from the Lviv Music School, where he studied with Evgeny
Shpitzer, and earned his Master of Music degree at the Moscow State
Conservatory under Prof. Igor Gavrysh. Upon graduation, Nazar taught at the
Moscow State Conservatory as an assistant professor before moving to Chicago in 1998. Since
then, he has been in high demand as a soloist, chamber and orchestral musician,
and teacher.
Nazar’s solo recitals for the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts and the Piano Forte Salon Series have been broadcast live on 98.7WFMT. He has appeared as a soloist with the Moscow State Symphony “Young Russia,” Moscow Conservatory Symphony, Elgin Symphony Orchestra. In 2010, 2011 and 2013 he appeared as a soloist with Lviv Philharmonic, National Symphony of Ukraine in Kiev, Minsk Philharmonic and Ensemble of Soloists Classicus in Zagreb, performing Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante, Barber’s Concerto, Dvorak’s Concerto and Haydn’s Concertos. In addition, Nazar has given numerous solo recitals and master classes in Russia, Ukraine, South America, South Africa, South Korea and the U.S. In 2008 he released his solo debut CD, Cello Monologue, featuring works by Reger and Kodaly. His next CD, Cello Monologue 2 was released in 2013, featuring works of Ysaye, Hindemith, Crumb, Ligeti and Laniuk.
Nazar
has performed in Rush Hour Concerts at St. James Cathedral and as a guest artist with the Chicago Chamber Musicians; his
chamber-music partners have included members of the orchestra of the Lyric
Opera of Chicago and Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Formerly the principal cello
of the Moscow State Symphony “Young Russia” and the Moscow Conservatory
Symphony, Nazar has served as the assistant principal cello of the Elgin
Symphony Orchestra since 2000 and as the principal cello of the Woodstock
Mozart Festival Orchestra since 2004. He participated in the Rostropovich
Festival in Evian, France, and has performed as an
orchestral musician under Georg Solti, Mstislav Rostropovich, Daniel Barenboim,
and Helmuth Rilling.
Nazar’s
students have won prizes in numerous competitions, including the Fischoff
National Chamber Music Competition, the Walgreens National Concerto
Competition, and the Chicago Chamber Music Competition (sponsored by Midwest
Young Artists).
Sonia Hadar, Violin-
Tel Aviv University.
Student of Shlomo Bohr and Oedoe Partos. First prize winner in Gina Bachauer
competition; principal, co-principal and
1st violinist in Haifa Symphony Orchestra(Israel), Israeli
Opera and Radio of Israel Light Music Orchestra, Tel Aviv, soloist and ensemble
player in chamber groups, Ramat Gan(Israel) and I Musicanti of the Cape Town
Simphony. Currently teaching at Music Institute in Highland
Park and Solo Classic' Music
School of young
children through adults.

Jaroslaw appeared as a soloist and ensemble pianist, composer, conductor, and lecturer in the U.S. and abroad. Jaroslaw writes about his adventures with music for various newspapers and has appeared frequently as a guest on radio programs.
He is an active member of the American Society of Composers and Publishers (ASCAP), Composers Forum in Chicago, the Polish Arts Club of Chicago, and the Chicago Area Music Teachers Association. As a member of Music Committee of the American Council for the Polish Culture, he organizes both their annual concerts and the Marcella Sembrich -Kochanska Vocal Competition.
Personal Statemen
I feel that music is a wonderful means of self-expression and a rich source of inner peace and relaxation. Making music is a way of making friends and bringing happiness to other people. I believe that my music is one of the ways to build understanding and better relations in this small world.
Will Kyriazis - Piano
– is a nationally touring musician, educator, recording artist and composer. He
received his Bachelor’s in Music focusing in Jazz Piano from the University of
Denver, where he was rewarded the title of most outstanding student in his class.
He continued his education by completing his Master’s in Curriculum and
Instruction at the University of Denver. Will was also gifted the opportunity
to study classical piano in Vienna, Austria as a part of the Cherrington Global
Scholars program.
He has toured the nation incessantly, recording and performing as a part of many different projects ranging from singer-song writer groups to rock n’ roll to jazz to world music. He has studied with Taylor Eigsti, Chris Botti’s principal pianist, and various other stalwart performers such as: Fred Hersch, Eric Gunnison, Chucho Valdes, Wynton Marsalis, and Dick Oatts.
Will is proficient in performing any style and has spent his years harnessing a wide variety of musical skills. He has taught for the past 10 years, and seeks to instill in his students a deep appreciation of music that is informed by many different traditions of study. He finds it paramount to incorporate aspects of personal expression and creativity, and seeks to develop well-rounded musicians who are confident in their ability to adapt and create in any musical situation.
Farid Ishkinyaev -Viollin: Started his music education at age of 6. Before he left to
USA, he studied at Academic Music College by Moscow State Conservatory with Professor
Elena Demidenko. He got his Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance (2016) at
Manhattan School of Music where he was studying with Isaac Malkin. He is
currently pursuing his Master’s Degree at DePaul University where he is
studying with Olga Kaler.
He had an opportunity to perform together with famous Russian violinist Dmitry Kogan and Ulyanovsk Symphonic Orchestra. He also got the President Award for his cultural achievements in Russia (2008).
Farid has also performed as an orchestral musician with the the Manhattan Symphonic Orchestra (2012-2016), the Bergen Philharmonic orchestra (2013), Philadelphia Chamber Virtousi Orchestra (2015). He had a chance to play for such famous musicians as Mikhail Kopelman and Emanuel Borok
Min
Park, Violin- recently graduated from Northwestern University, with degree of MM in Violin
Performance and Pedagogy under the guidance of Almita Vamos. Before NU, she received BM in Violin from University of Texas
at Austin under
Brian Lewis and Miro Quartet. She has been in masterclasses with Erin Keefe,
Catherine Cho, Donald Weilerstein, Anne Akiko Meyer, Augustin Hadelich, to name
the few. Min is active as a chamber musician as well. She formed Aoide Quartet
at Northwestern University
and had masterclasses with St. Lawrence Quartet, Lynn Harrell, Philharmonia
Quartett Berlin,
Shumul Ashekanisi to name few. Currently, she’s coaching chamber groups at Hyde
Park Suzuki Institute. As a teacher, which is her passion, Min has been
teaching since her high school years and got Suzuki certified during her
undergraduate. At Northwestern
University, under
guidance of both Professor Almita Vamos and Professor Stacia Spencer, Min has
been actively teaching from beginners to advanced students.
Ekaterina Kalinina, Piano- graduated with honors from Temple University,
PA majoring in Piano Performance. She has been studying and performing piano
since the age of five, participating at local competitions and graduated from
Nizhny Novgorod Musical College, Russia with honors. Ekaterina continued her
education in the Glinka Conservatory of Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. During her
studies, she worked as an accompanist for the Department of Conducting at the
conservatory and at the Nizhny Novgorod Ballet School. Before joining Solo
Classic Ekaterina taught at the International School of Music, Bethesda, MD,
Mozart Music Academy and Go Musicians School in Philadelphia, PA.
Ekaterina approach: The focus of my teaching strategy is to provide an effective and joyful learning through different tactics and techniques that unlock students' potential. My philosophy is to find the unique approach for each student and infuse the knowledge and skills to work independently. My students are encouraged to discover their power as musicians through the wide range of suggestions and tools that facilitate the creative process. The lesson plan is designed to integrate interconnections between music and other art related disciplines to nurture a versatile personality as well as to make music a passion of life.
Agnieszka Likos,-Violin, viola- completed her Master’s Degree in
violin performance at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University in the studio of S. Hersh.
She received her Bachelor’s Degree from the University
of Illinois at Urbana
– Champaign,
where she studied with S. Bernhardsson and was awarded the Smith Scholarship
for artistic work and academic achievements. During her pre-college studies, Agnieszka was a student of M. Dreher at the
Music Institute of Chicago. She began violin in Poland under direction of D.
Pelczar at I. J. Paderewski School of Music in Krosno, and continued with I.
Wojciechowska at H. Wieniawski School of Music in ?ód?. Agnieszka realizes her musical interests in the
field of chamber music, performing at multiple chamber music festivals in Santu
Lussurgiu (Sardinia), Bowdoin (ME), Madeline Island (WI), Hot Springs (AR) and
Urbana-Champaign (IL). She took part in multiple master classes led by
outstanding chamber musicians such as Itamar Golan, Gordan Nikolic, the
Guarneri Quartet, Pacifica Quartet, Hugo Wolf Quartet, Arianna Quartet, Parker
Quartet and Shanghai Quartet. From 2004 to 2006 she was a member of Chicago
Youth Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Music Program. As a member of a piano trio
from Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra Chamber Music Program, Agnieszka won the first prize in the O.P.U.S.
Chamber Music Competition in Chicago.
In addition to teaching, Agnieszka is a member of Heartland Symphony
Orchestra and Northbrook Symphony Orchestra. She is a co-founder and a violin
teacher at the Likos String Academy
in downtown Chicago and also a violin
instructor at Elgin
College.
Patrycja Likos, Cello - earned Master of Music in cello performance from Academy
of Music in ?ód?, Poland under
the tutelage of Andrzej Orkisz. She received an Artist Diploma in cello
performance at the University
of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
in the studio of Brandon Vamos. Between 2012 -2014 Patrycja was a member of
Civic Orchestra in Chicago.
She has performed solo in many cello master
classes led by such outstanding cellists as G. Gnocchi, A. Bauer, M. Flaksman,
J. Pegis, J. Reuling and P. Uyterlinde. As a chamber musician, she took part in
chamber music master classes in U.S.
and Italy
with I. Golan, I. Gitlis, Pacifica Quartet, Parker Quartet, Arianna Quartet and
Jupiter Quartet.
Patrycja has participated in cello competitions
in the United States
and abroad. In 2011, she won the first prize in the Krannert Center Debut
Artist Competition at Urbana-Champaign. Patrycja earned the third prize at the
International Cello Competition in Kosice, Slovak Republic,
and the first prize at the Chamber Music Competition in Stalowa Wola, Poland. Currently
Patrycja Likos is a co-founder and teacher of the Likos
String Academy
located in downtown Chicago. She
also is a cello instructor at the Lycée Français de
Chicago. Additional to teaching
she is an assistant principal cellist of the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra and
a member of Heartland Symphony Orchestra
Robert Monroe, -Piano- graduated with High Distinction
from the University of Iowa in 2012 and holds a Bachelors Degree in Classical
Piano Performance. Robert has toured internationally to Brazil serving as the
pianist for the Johnson County Landmark big band. In 2013, he was selected to
perform at the Iowa City Jazz Festival with the Small Container Trio.
Robert also performed in the 2011 festival. He has had multiple
performances broadcast by television stations UITV, PATV, and radio stations,
KCCK, and KRUI. Robert has over 6 years of private jazz and classical
piano teaching experience. He draws from his many performances to provide
individually suited instruction for each student.