TEAM GMC
Josh Margolis
Executive Director
Josh Margolis discovered his passion for drums at the age of five under the guidance of the renowned studio/touring drummer Kenny Aronoff in the family barn. Ten years of both drum and piano lessons followed. After attending Berklee School of Music, he came to NYC to study percussion with Miles Davis' drummer Mino Cinelu and Kenwood Dennard of Sting's band. He has been performing in rock, jazz, and acoustic groups in New York City for the past 25 years as a drummer, guitarist, keyboardist and singer. Josh has also worked as a live television producer for the Jonas Brothers, Anna Nalick, and Josh Groban amongst others. Josh is also a BMI composer, working for ABC News, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and NBC Sports. Billboard Magazine, NewSong and the New York Songwriter's Circle have lauded his songwriting skills. Josh has performed, produced and recorded with Joan Osborne, Peter Brown, Tracy Bonham, Matilda Marigolds, Late Night Thoughts and many others.
Currently, he sits on the board as the live music consultant for the non-profit organization Kids Rock For Kids, and lives in Boerum Hill with his wife Aimee Good and daughter Matilda.
Tracy Bonham
Creative Director
A native of Eugene, Oregon, Tracy Bonham began singing at age 5, playing the violin at 9, and piano at age 14. After transferring to Berklee College of Music to study voice, leaving her full violin scholarship at the University of Southern California behind, she began to write songs on the guitar in 1994. She proved to be a quick study; Her 1996 major label debut, The Burdens of Being Upright (Island), went gold in the US as well as Holland, Australia, and Canada, spawning the hit single "Mother Mother". This lead to a pair of Grammy™ nominations in 1997, as well as an MTV Video Award nomination. She has since toured the world many times and has made television appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Late Late Show with Craig Furgussen, as well as A & E's Breakfast for the Arts. Her third album "blink the brightest" was released on Rounder Records in 2005 and with that she placed many of the songs in major network TV shows such as Brothers and Sisters, The L Word, The Closer, What About Brian, and Army Wives. Tracy's vocals are featured on various artist's albums such as Aerosmith "Honkin On Bobo" (Columbia 2004), Wayfaring Strangers "This Train" (Rounder 2004), Ron Sexmith's "Whereabouts" (violin – 1999). In 2003 and 2006 she toured extensively with Blue Man Group singing and playing violin in major arenas as their featured guest performer and their opening act. Tracy is currently writing and recording her next album and teaching violin and voice in Brooklyn.
JJ Alleyne
Instructor
JJ is a Brooklyn born multi-instrumentalist with an array of genres under his many hats. He is a Berklee College of Music alum and a collector of all sorts of knowledge. Inspired by Stevie Wonder, Bon Iver, and John Mayer, he has over 14 years of writing and playing experience. JJ has performed hundreds of shows from Carnegie Hall to Boston's House of Blues and NYC’s Bitter End. He is currently the drummer for signed Mifflin Street Music band Archer Violet. JJ has a deep understanding of production, music theory, and arranging and has a passion for creating and teaching music.
Matilda Marigolds
Instructor
Raised amidst the vibrant sounds and community of New York City, Matilda has been surrounded by music for as long as she can remember. The daughter of a drummer, she’d often attend her dad’s shows, falling asleep at the bar or backstage in the green room. It was almost inevitable that Matilda would soon start to blaze her own musical trails. She took her one (and only) drum lesson at five years old, joining her first band at the age of six. Matilda learned to play a slew of different instruments, including piano, bass, and guitar. She prides herself on being mostly self-taught, but took several years of classical piano lessons. That perspective would influence Matilda’s style of musical creation as she kicked off her solo career. In the summer of 2021, Matilda released her debut EP, Union. She unveiled some of the new music at a May performance at RWQuarantunes — one of the few emerging artists ever to be invited to perform on the platform. Matilda’s music can be found somewhere on the spectrum between Phoebe Bridgers, Fiona Apple, Patti Smith, PJ Harvey and Fleetwood Mac. She describes her nostalgic, genre-bending style as “a time capsule of not only all my feelings, but all of my musical influences.”
Dakota Lopez
Instructor
Surrounded by the bustling and artistically diverse streets of New York City, Dakota has always had an interest in music. At the age of 11, he began his lifelong journey to achieve mastership of the guitar. As time passed, his interests expanded into other instruments and the technology and thought process behind what pushes music to evoke emotion. As a result, he is currently enrolled in the sonic arts program at the City College of New York. Throughout his life, Dakota has worked with a multitude of gigging and recording projects, most notably Koi and Matter of Minutes. He has played various venues across the United States, most notably at the Okeechobee music festival where Matter of Minutes performed adjacent to legends including The Backseat Lovers and Tame Impala. He is very excited to share his experience with GMC students while learning from them the process!
Ian Su
Instructor
Raised in the electric streets of New York City, Ian Su has always believed in the importance of pursuing one’s greatest passions. A record producer, guitarist, singer-songwriter, and visual artist with a love for film, Ian has had the privilege to collaborate with a wide range of musicians and bands, including Julia Miranda, Monica McShane, and Dakota Lopez. Currently, he is enrolled at the Sonic Arts program at the City College of New York, where he is studying music technology.
He is excited to inspire the next generation of GMC students with his love for music.
Alex Kerkoff
Instructor
Hailing from the San Francisco Bay area, Alex started teaching himself guitar at the age of 13 and immediately fell in love with the instrument. His love for music lead to years of practicing which eventually brought him to USC’s Thornton School of Music. At the university level, Alex was able to augment and expand upon his rock and roll roots by becoming immersed in all styles and aspects of music - jazz, classical, flamenco, and country. Alex is passionate about and influenced by the sonic explorations of Jeff Beck, the restless creativity of Tom Waits and the dangerously funky rhythms of James Brown.
Sawyer Nunes
Instructor
Born in New Orleans, Sawyer began learning piano at the age of 4, and after a few months of practice felt the urge to learn just about every instrument he could get his hands on. Sawyer was drawn to music through his own curiosity - learning drums, guitar, bass, trumpet and clarinet within the next few years. All the while, Sawyer was training his voice and began to perform in choirs and musical theatre programs. After moving to NYC to perform in Matilda on Broadway at 12, he began to gravitate more towards writing, producing and releasing his own music. In high school, he made 4 best friends who shared his same passion for music and started the band LAUNDRY DAY. In the past few years, Sawyer has released 6 projects (including 4 of his own solo work), toured the U.S. and Europe opening and headlining festivals such as Govball and Austin City Limits. Sawyer has always had immense gratitude for the teachers who inspired his musical creativity and is excited to share the joy of music with all the students of GMC!
Jed Becker
Instructor
Jed Becker is the composer and music director for the Nick Jr. series’ “Dora the Explorer” and “Go, Diego, Go!”, with over 60 underscores and 120 songs written for the two award-winning series, as well as an Emmy nomination for Best Original Score. As a children’s tv composer, he’s also written for Sesame Studios and Universal Kids. His band, Joy Buzzer, has had songs placed on film and television, including NBC’s “The Mysteries of Laura” and “Aquarius”. As an educator, Jed has been working with students of all ages for the past twenty years, tailoring their lessons to fit their individual needs on piano, guitar, bass and ukulele. Jed also teaches music production and sound editing with Pro Tools and Garageband and is a proud graduate of Berklee College of Music.
Jackson Fisher
Instructor
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Jackson Fisher was first introduced to music by his grandmother when he saw her watching a production of Wagner’s "Ring Cycle" as a child. He was immediately taken in by the dragons, giants, and extraordinary music. Later, Jackson picked up the guitar, telling his father that he would simply learn the song "Sultans of Swing" and then quit. Nearly a decade later, not only has he never quit, he is now a professional musician. Jackson went to Berklee College of Music, where he double-majored in performance and classical composition. He studied composition with Elena Lucas and jazz guitar with greats such as David Tronzo and Mike Stern, all while learning classical piano in his free time. While at Berklee, Jackson also began his teaching career, offering private lessons around Boston. During the summers he taught at home in Brooklyn, working with kids of all ages in private and group lessons. He was also employed by Berklee as a tutor, where he helped his fellow students with their studies in core music. Now that he's back in New York, Jackson is interested in pursuing further studies in classical composition and orchestration, learning bass, and playing and teaching music all over the NYC!
Ellie Conley
Instructor
Growing up in LA, Ellie fell in love with music when she started learning Beatles songs on piano at age 12. She was soon immersed in the world of classical music, studying French Horn at LA County High School for the Arts and then McGill University. She’s performed as a soloist at Walt Disney Concert Hall and performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art as a member of The Orchestra Now. Ellie returned to her Rock roots when she became enthralled with electric guitar. She moved to Brooklyn in 2021 and started playing with the experimental folk-rock project “The Cradle” whom she spent the last summer with, touring across the US and Canada. She founded the prog-rock band Kissy Noises with her fiancée Jamie Weil, and is a founding member of the experimental composer trio Chew Toy, led by Vera Much. Ellie recently started a Composer/Performer Master program at the New School where she will be studying with Wendy Eisenberg. She is immensely influenced by Deerhoof and Tricot but her heart belongs to all of the wonderful music found in the Brooklyn DIY world.