The mission of Skokie School of Music is to provide music instruction to students of all ages and skill levels. We offer lessons, in jazz and classical music, in Chicago and the North Shore area, either in your home or at several teacher-studio locations. Our patient, enthusiastic instructors each have a minimum of five years teaching experience, and many hold advanced degrees and have national and international performing credits. COVID POLICY: We have returned to in-home lessons. All of our teachers are triple vaccinated, and wear N95 or KN95 masks. We require vaccine-eligible students and family members to be fully vaccinated, and we require students to wear masks during lessons. Whether you are looking for a nurturing introduction to basic musicianship for your young child, challenging instruction for your teenager, or want to revisit the joy of making music as an adult, we strive to match every student with the right teacher, and to develop lesson plans that best fulfill individual interests and needs. Regardless of your skill level, we promise that each lesson will be inspiring, challenging, and enjoyable. In addition to offering traditional lessons on piano and other instruments, we also provide instruction in jazz and popular styles, music theory, composition, songwriting, ensemble performance, professional development, and audition preparation.
Please browse our site for an in-depth view of what our instructors offer, or contact Dr. John Roothaan, director, at director@skokieschoolofmusic.com or (312) 515-0483.
OUR TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
Music is a universal human activity that enriches our lives. Learning to make music provides many benefits, including development of fine motor skills and hand-eye-ear coordination, problem-solving experience, cultural awareness, involvement with the joy of creating art, a means of personal self-expression, and a chance to really excel at a challenging endeavor. Additionally, some research demonstrates that children who participate in music succeed better academically.
With these benefits in mind, we believe that everyone deserves encouragement in their musical ambitions. Our aim as teachers is to help each student build on personal strengths and challenge individual limitations as a means toward achieving outstanding performance skills. Above all, we strive to focus on every student's positive achievements, and help each student develop a love and understanding of music as a means of expression.
EVENTS
2012 SPRING RECITAL The 2012 Spring Piano Recital was held on April 22, 2012 at the Wilmette Public Library. More than thirty students performed music by Beethoven, Mozart, Chopin, Bach, Kabelevsky and others.
2012 FALL RECITAL The 2012 Fall Piano Recital was held Sunday, October 21, 2012 at the Wilmette Public Library. Thirty-six pianists and vocalists performed works by Mozart, Beethoven, Kabelevsky, Rodgers & Hart, and others. Bassist Brian Sandstrom was our guest performer.
2013 SPRING RECITAL The 2013 Spring Music Recital was held on Sunday, April 28, at the Wilmette Public Library. More than 30 piano and vocal students performed works by Bach, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Grieg, Rodgers and Hart, Lennon and McCartney, and others.
MAY 2013 CONCERT Skokie School faculty performed at the Skokie Art Walk, Saturday, May 18, in Skokie. John Roothaan (piano), Brian Sandstrom (bass), and Rusty Jones (drums) performed music by George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and others. We were joined by jazz vocalist Lauren Elizabeth.
SUMMER 2013 CONCERTS Student Vocalist Lauren Elizabeth performed with the Northeastern Illinois University Jazz Ensemble for two concerts June 26 and July 11.
Vocalist Lauren Elizabeth in concert with the NEIU Big Band
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2013 SUMMER JAZZ WORKSHOP PERFORMANCE The Summer 2013 Jazz Workshop Ensemble presented their final performance at El Cid, 2645 N. Kedzie, Chicago, on Thursday, August 22.
2013 FALL JAZZ WORKSHOP Participants of the Fall 2013 Jazz Workshop will perform at the 2014 Fall Recital on December 6. The ensemble will perform music of American composer John Coltrane. 2013 FALL RECITAL The 2013 Fall Recital was held on Sunday, November 24, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. More than 30 performers played works by J. S. Bach, J. C. Bach, Schubert, Burgmuller, Czerny, Atwood, Monk, Metallica, and others.
2014 SPRING RECITALS The 2014 Spring Recitals were held Sunday, May 26, and Sunday, June 1, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. Performers played works by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Joplin, Rodgers, and others.
2014 FALL RECITAL The 2014 Fall Recital was held on Saturday, December 6, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. We heard more than 40 performers play works by J. C. Bach, J. S. Bach, Beethoven, Clementi, Coltrane, Greig, Haydn, Schumann, John Legend, and John Williams. Faculty Artists Jessie Hunt (violin) and Brian Stark (saxophone) performed.
2015 SPRING RECITAL The 2015 Spring Recital was held on Sunday, May 10, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. Student musicians performed works by Clementi, Mozart, Beethoven, Joplin, Kabelevsky, and others. Faculty artists Nicole Frankel (flute), Brian Stark (saxophone) and Trevor Shandling (guitar) also performed.
2015 FALL RECITAL The 2015 Fall Recital was held on Sunday, December 20, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. Students performed works by Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Kabelevski, Ellington, and others. Our guest artist was Evanston-based flautist Laura Hamm, performing two works by Chicago composer Susan Estes. 2016 SPRING RECITAL The 2016 Spring Recital was held on Sunday, May 8, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. Twenty-nine students performed works by Beethoven, Clementi, Ellington, Handel, Strayhorn, and others. Our guest artist was faculty violist Cecilia Trode, who performed two works by J. S. Bach. 2016 JAZZ CONCERT On Sunday, July 10, Skokie School of Music hosted a jazz concert and jam session in the Wicker Park neighborhood. The guest soloist was Grammy-winning saxophonist Frank Catalano.
2016 FALL RECITAL The 2016 Fall Recital was held Sunday, December 11, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. Over thirty students played works by Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Kabelevsky, and others. 2017 SPRING RECITAL The 2017 Spring Recital was held on Sunday, May 28, at the Devonshire Cultural Center in Skokie. We had over 30 students perform works by Bach, Beethoven, Clementi, Ellington, Mozart, and others. Our Guest Performers were Grammy-winning Saxophonist Frank Catalano, bassist Stacey McMichael, faculty drummer Trevor Shandling, and faculty pianist John Roothaan. Frank's appearance was sponsored by Yamaha Saxophones.
2017 FALL RECITAL The 2017 Fall Recital was held on Sunday, December 10, at the Devonshire Cultural Center. Students performed works by Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Clementi, Thelonious Monk, and others.
2018 SPRING RECITAL The 2018 Spring Recital was held at the Devonshire Cultural Center on Sunday, May 6. Twenty students performed music by Brahms, Beethoven, Clementi, Stephen Foster, Stevie Wonder, John Williams, and others. 2018 FALL RECITALThe 2018 Fall Recital was held at the Devonshire Cultural Center on December 12. Twenty-two students performed works by Beethoven, J. S. Bach, Ellington and others.
2019 SPRING RECITALThe 2019 Spring Recital was held at the Devonshire Cultural Center on May 12. Students performed works by Clementi, Mozart, Coltrane, T. Monk, and others. 2019 FALL RECITALThe 2019 Fall Recital was held at the Devonshire Cultural Center on December 14. Thirty students performed works by Beethoven, Clementi, Mozart, Burgmuller, and others. Due to Covid, there have been no recitals during 2020 and 2021. We will resume recitals when it is safe to do so.
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OUR MISSION
Music is a universal human activity that enriches our lives. Learning to make music provides many benefits, including development of fine motor skills and hand-eye-ear coordination, problem-solving experience, cultural awareness, involvement with the joy of creating art, a means of personal self-expression, and a chance to really excel at a challenging endeavor. Additionally, some research demonstrates that children who participate in music succeed better academically. 
Vocalist Lauren Elizabeth in concert with the NEIU Big Band