palaver music center faculty
Maya French
Violin & Viola Instructor (she/her)
I grew up in midcoast Maine and was lucky to have a childhood full of outdoor adventure and lots of music. I’ve performed at Kronberg Academy, Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Orford Music Academy, Manchester Music Festival, Kneisel Hall, Virginia String Quartet Seminar, and Kinhaven Music School. I received my BM in Violin Performance from Boston University in 2015 under the direction of Bayla Keyes. I am currently a faculty member at the Palaver Music Center and am certified to teach Suzuki Violin as well as Music Learning Theory, an early childhood music method. When I co-founded Palaver Strings, I had many goals in mind, such as promoting social service, participating in a self-conducted ensemble, and playing new music, but most of all I wanted to connect with audiences in an honest and open environment. In addition to music, I love gardening, cooking large family-style meals, traveling, and the ocean.
Brianna Fischler
Education Coordinator, Violin & Viola Instructor (she/her)
Brianna Fischler holds a B.M. in violin performance from Boston University, where she studied with Bayla Keyes. She attended the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, Aspen Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute, Garth Newel Music Center, Three Bridges International Chamber Festival, and Kinhaven Music School.
Brianna has performed at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, and Woolsey Hall.
She has performed in masterclasses with Ani Kavafian and Pinchas Zukerman, and placed first in the University of Connecticut Chamber Music Competition with the Annellie String Trio.
She has taught violin and viola at El Sistema Somerville, Bridge Boston Charter School, and Bay Chamber Concerts, and is currently a faculty member of the Portland Conservatory of Music in addition to maintaining her own private studio in Portland, Maine. Brianna is also certified in Early Childhood Music Learning Theory and the Suzuki Method.
Robin Lane
Cello Instructor (he/him)
Robin Lane is a cellist, composer, audio engineer, and music producer. Robin’s passion for music ignited at a young age when he began playing the cello, studying through both the Farmington Public Schools and The Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford. After graduating high school, Robin moved to Amherst, MA to pursue a degree in Social Thought and Political Economy at the University of Massachusetts. It was there, through African drumming and music theory courses, that Robin rediscovered his passion for music. He withdrew from UMass to devote himself to a private music education. Shortly after, Robin relocated to Rockland, ME, to continue pursuing his music education at Midcoast Music Academy (MCMA), Woodsound Studios, and Bay Chamber. It was there thathe began to explore other genres on the cello. Studying privately allowed Robin to explore other musical interests, leading him to discover that he deeply enjoys and has a natural skill for audio engineering. Beginning with teaching assisting, Robin worked his way up at Midcoast Music Academy, serving as the Operations Manager from 2016 through 2019, supporting young musicians and encouraging music education in the community.
In 2024, Robin graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Southern Maine with a Bachelor of Music in Music Performance with a concentration in composition. Robin performs classical, jazz, and contemporary works for public events, private events, and weddings throughout New England. Notable performance venues include Camden International Film Festival, One Long Fellow Square, SPACE and Maine Yoga Festival. Robin has been the cellist and sound engineer for The (stillness) Collective since 2018. In addition to performing, Robin records, engineers, and produces his own music, along with the music of a growing number of Maine musicians, out of his studio, Robin’s Nest Recording in Rockland. On the rare occasion that Robin is not involved in music, you might find him spending quiet time in nature, practicing yoga, or enjoyably working on his 1995 Subaru Legacy.
Elizabeth Moore
Viola & Violin Instructor (she/her)
I grew up in midcoast Maine, surrounded by music at an early age. My violin studies began at six, but I have earlier memories of my father playing and calling for contra dances. Playing folk music, in chamber ensembles, and singing every chance I got, I developed my musical interests in a small yet supportive community. I went on to study viola performance at the UNC School of the Arts with Sheila Browne, and at BU College of Fine Arts with Karen Ritscher. Teaching and playing with Palaver over the years, I am inspired by my colleagues and students; I learn so much each year, and continually reexamine the ways in which I approach music and my role as a musician and educator in the world. In addition to my work with Palaver, I teach a private studio, and at the Portland Conservatory of Music.
Joel Rosen
Cello Instructor (he/him)
Joel Rosen is a cellist originally from St. Louis, Missouri. After high school he completed his Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance with Stephen Balderston at DePaul University in Chicago. After graduating with his Master of Music in Cello Performance from the University of Tennessee Knoxville, he taught at the Knoxville Suzuki Academy and performed alongside ensembles in East Tennessee like the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra, and Symphony of the Mountains. Passionate about pedagogy as well as performance, Joel was a Graduate Teaching Assistant at UTK studying with Dr. Wesley Baldwin and received Suzuki Certification for Books 1 & 2 from Dr. Melissa Kraut.
Sylvia Schwartz
Violin Instructor (she/her)
Deeply inspired by the relationship between music, movement, and dance, violinist and teacher Sylvia Schwartz (M.Mus.) steadfastly believes that every child—every person—can learn, and makes it her business to meet each individual where they are on their journey of learning, discovery, and mastery. Sylvia is a vibrant performer in both modern and historical styles. The power of music to heal and to bring us together drives her to teach through the Suzuki method and to perform wherever she can, from the Scarborough COVID-19 vaccine clinic to Shostakovich Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia—and many places in between.
Matthew Smith
Managing Director of Education & Cello Instructor (he/him)
Originally from the sun-saturated desert of Arizona, I’ve loved classical music as long as I can remember and got my start playing the cello through my school orchestra. This experience showed me the importance of creating accessible musical opportunities for young people, and has shaped my role as a cellist and as Palaver’s Managing Director of Education. As an educator, I have served as a Teaching Assistant at The Boston Conservatory, and most recently as a Music Educator and Teaching Artist Fellow through the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
I have had the pleasure of working with Colin Carr, Gautier Capuçon, and Bernard Greenhouse and have studied chamber music with members of the St. Lawrence String Quartet and Brentano String Quartet. I received a Master of Music degree from The Boston Conservatory at Berklee, studying with Andrew Mark, and a Bachelor of Music degree from Arizona State University, where I studied with Thomas Landschoot. Outside of Palaver, I perform in a duo with my long-term musical partner, pianist Pei Pei Song, where we are regular guest artists at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, China.
Emma Wiegand
Early Childhood Music Instructor (she/her)
As the third of six kids with a musician mother, it was always my job in the family to entertain the younger ones and music was an essential tool with which to do so. This foundation laid early on in my life led to working with children in various capacities and eventually to my work as an early childhood music teacher at various locations in the Boston area, including Rock and Roll Daycare and the Newtowne School. After moving to Maine, I joined the Little Roots team at 317 Main Community Music Center in Yarmouth and am delighted to expand the fun with Palaver Strings!
I hold a BA in Theatre Studies from Emerson College and am certified in Music Together, but I love combining all my past experience and different theories and materials to create playful, diverse, and educational class experiences.
When not making music with little humans, I can be found roaming the woods with my Akita mix Raven and my Siberian Husky mix Dashiell, playing board games with my husband, reading as much as I can, or looking at the sea.
Brian J. Evans
Visiting Faculty - Embodied Music Classes (he/him)
Brian J. Evans is a Citizen Artist, defined by the Aspen Institute Arts Program as:
Individuals who reimagine the traditional notions of art-making, and who contribute to society either through the transformative power of their artistic abilities, or through proactive social engagement with the arts in realms including education, community building, diplomacy and healthcare.
Mixing disciplines, mixing professions, and mixed race, Brian J. Evans unpacks the “moments of suspension” that reside in the spaces between spaces—convinced that connections exist between us all and it is the responsibility of the Arts to remind us to be holistically human, lest we forget. Courageous vulnerability and intentional equity keep him aloft as he finds ways to give back and add to the communities, mentors, and ancestors who blazed trails and continue to do so! Evans believes it is the responsibility of the Arts to rediscover existing connections within humanity.
Photo credit: Kari Mosel Photography