Beaver offers optional Private Music Lessons on a wide variety of instruments to students in both the Middle and Upper Schools. This is an opportunity for all students—from beginners to our most experienced musicians—to further their skills in a one-on-one environment for an additional fee. For FAQs and information on pricing for Middle and Upper School students, click here.
Below, you can meet our Private Music Lesson teachers, who are all professional musicians in the Boston area with many years of experience.
PRIVATE MUSIC LESSON TEACHERS
Joshua Garver, Private Lesson Coordinator
Joshua Garver (Josh) began learning violin in 4th grade in his neighborhood public school system. Beginning private lessons in 6th grade, Josh studied violin, chamber music, and music theory at the Hochstein School of Music and Dance and the Eastman Community Music School. He was also a member of the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and the Eastman String Youth Orchestra. His primary teachers during his youth include Amy Murrell, Dr. Andrea Dawson, and Dr. Lee Wilkins. In 2006, Joshua attended Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, pursuing a degree in Instrumental Music Education (strings). There, Josh studied with Dr. Brenda Brenner. He began his teaching career working in 2008 under Dr. Brenner’s tutelage at the Fairview Violin Project. In 2011, Josh graduated and moved to Boston to begin his work at Conservatory Lab Charter School as a strings teacher. He completed his Masters of Music in Music Education at Boston University in 2017. Josh currently directs the Sibelius Orchestra at Boston Music Project, teaches Middle School Strings at Beaver Country Day School in Chestnut Hill, MA, and teaches privately in the Arlington, Cambridge, Medford, Somerville, and Belmont area through his own studio, Spy Pond Strings.
As a violinist, Josh has performed with several community orchestras in the Greater Boston area, including the Brookline Symphony Orchestra and the Me2/Orchestra. Josh currently serves as a violin section leader of the Me2/Orchestra. Josh is a frequent contributor and soloist with the Virtual Video Game Orchestra.
Josh lives in Arlington, MA, with his wife, son, and cat.
Christie Beaulieu, voice
Christie grew up in central CT, where she began singing at a young age in choirs and community theater, and also at home with her sisters, where she provided the piano accompaniment for all their sing-alongs! Christie continued her musical journey in her own private study, in regional musical theater, and singing or playing in every musical ensemble her middle and high schools offered, from orchestra to jazz band to show choir. Christie studied voice performance at Boston University, where she focused academically on classical repertoire, while also singing and arranging pop/rock as a member and director of an all-female a cappella group—BU’s Terpsichore. Since then, Christie has spent her time teaching private piano and voice lessons in her home studio, while exploring many other music-related interests both personally and professionally, including writing and performing operas with elementary students, singing for the occasional wedding band, teaching dance fitness, and performing with a giant classic rock cover act all over the country. Christie is thrilled to be returning to teach at Beaver for her third year.
Cara Bergantino, violin, viola, cello
Cara Bergantino is a strings teacher specializing in violin, viola, and early cello lessons. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education with a concentration in viola performance from New York University, and a Master’s Degree in Arts Administration from Boston University. Cara has taught strings in the Belmont Public Schools and Newton Public Schools and conducts the Newton All-City Orchestra. Cara has taught private violin, viola, and cello lessons since 2015, and currently teaches at the Conservatory at Highlands. Cara performs with the Brookline Symphony Orchestra as a violist, and spends the summers at Camp Encore/Coda in Sweden, Maine, as Camp Director & Owner, where she also teaches viola lessons.
Denver Nuckolls, percussion
Denver Nuckolls is a performer, composer, audio engineer, and educator based in the Boston, MA area. His creative practice centers around his various operations as a sonic shapeshifter, translating a world flooded with sound through a variety of explorations in musical presentation, documentation, and communication. With over a decade of instructional experience across all levels of education, Denver’s teaching philosophy centers around the idea of music as a supplementary area of a student’s life. While a student’s technique and overall knowledge of music will always improve as they hone their crafts, authentic enjoyment is the primary catalyst in bridging the gap between aspiring amateur and professional musician. Denver allows his students’ interests to create, guide, and grow within their lesson curriculum, ensuring a cooperative space in which all artistic styles are highly valued.
Michael Tybursky, brass
Michael Tybursky is an educator and active freelance trombonist throughout New England. He is the principal trombonist of the Bangor Symphony Orchestra and frequently performs with orchestras in Boston and beyond, including the Lexington, Portland, and Cape Symphonies and the Plymouth Philharmonic. Michael teaches brass students at Beaver Country Day School in addition to teaching private lessons throughout the Boston area. He and his wife, soprano Jessica Jacobs, own and manage Somerville Music Spaces, a venue of rehearsal, teaching, and performance spaces available for hourly rentals.
Caroline Samuels, cello and bass
Music has brought Caroline all over the world, including a summer of performances in Graz, Austria, and all throughout Puerto Rico with the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico. During her time at the Eastman School of Music, Caroline had the opportunity to perform at the Lincoln Center in New York City and a program solely of Steve Reich’s compositions at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC. Caroline completed her Master of Music at the Boston University College of Fine Arts. She has spent summers performing at the Aspen Music Festival and the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, CO. Caroline is a member of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, and also serves as its personnel manager. She regularly performs with the Plymouth Philharmonic, Cape Symphony, New Bedford Symphony, and Portland Symphony. Caroline maintains a studio of private students, as well as teaching with the Boston Music Project.
Collin Valentine, woodwinds
Collin Valentine is a Boston-based freelance musician and woodwind instructor. After graduating from Berklee College of Music, Collin began working as a woodwind doubler, remote recording artist, and social media content creator, amassing an audience through viral covers of popular songs. Collin has leveraged his unique collection of instruments from around the world to lead workshops at schools across the Northeast and contribute to film and video game soundtracks.
Collin’s primary mission as a teacher is to help students construct healthy practice and performance habits while also fueling their passion and love for music. He encourages consistency with students while also ensuring they have the space to explore their own personal musical interests. Collin frequently uses production and recording programs to not only deliver custom lesson materials but also to produce professional recordings for students as an avenue into self-assessment.
Jef Charland, guitar and bass
Bio coming soon
Warren Levinson, guitar and bass
Warren Levenson, guitar and bass instructor, joined the Beaver music faculty in 2024. A longtime Boston University faculty member, Warren leads the Boston University Jazz Combos and teaches guitar in both private and group lesson settings. He has also presented a series of
improvisation clinics at BU. At the Belmont Day School, from 2015 to 2025, he led the Jazz and Guitar Ensembles and taught guitar. A founding faculty member at Gann Academy, he led the Jazz and Rock bands, taught Music History and Music Theory, and composed original music for many drama club productions. He served two terms as Arts Department Chairman at Gann. Warren is a Jazz guitarist and has performed all over New England. He holds a B.A. in Music from Brandeis University and a M.M. from the New England Conservatory.