School welcomes new music teachers

North Valley Music School in Whitefish welcomes three new teachers to its faculty.

Voice teacher April Dawn Vogel has a passion for the arts. A seasoned vocalist, actor and educator, Vogel has garnered rave reviews throughout her career.

With undergraduate studies from Whitworth College and years of classical voice training, Vogel has fashioned her vocal styles from Porter to Puccini. Her ability to speak to an audience makes for a treat of music and song.

Vogel has performed, written and directed many musicals. Her favorite roles include Eva Peron, Mae West and Maggie from “Dancing at Lughnasa.”

Vogel is committed to community and delights in the opportunity to guide youths as they discover their unique voices. Before moving to Whitefish, Vogel taught vocal performance in Honolulu at Mid-Pacific School of the Arts.

William “Billy” Sturdivant-Thompson, piano and voice teacher, is an award-winning composer, musical director and pianist.

His professional career has included six seasons with Alpine Theatre Project, four seasons with Cygnet Theatre in San Diego, and currently the national tour of a new jukebox musical, “It Gets Better,” based on the YouTube channel of the same name.

Two of Sturdivant-Thompson’s original scores for stage have been produced multiple times, and he has scored three short films, with a full-length feature slated for this spring.

In academia, he has been a composer in residence with the San Diego Opera's Words and Music educational outreach program as well as faculty or faculty assistant at the University of Southern California, American Musical and Dramatic Academy-Los Angeles, San Diego State University, the Strasberg Institute, Metropolitan Educational Theatre Network, Pasadena Junior Theatre and St. Elizabeth Parish School.

Sturdivant-Thompson holds a Bachelor of Music in composition from USC and a Master of Fine Arts in musical theater from SDSU.

Cellist Jesse Ahmann joins the regular faculty after having been an instructor for Camp Festival Amadeus for many years. Ahmann is also a composer, and his interest in genres spans classical to jazz to experimental.

He plays for the Glacier Symphony. He enjoys teaching students how to play music “through the heart.”

For more information, visit northvalleymusicschool.org or call 862-8074.