Hanneke Willson

I was born from Dutch parents in South Africa and grew up in Johannesburg.
I graduated from the University of Witwatersrand (Johannesburg) with a Bachelor of Music degree majoring in piano performance. During this time I gave many recitals and also had the opportunity to play as a soloist with the Witwatersrand University Orchestra. As part of my course I also studied the violin and have played violin in many amateur orchestras. After the completion of my degree I did a Post Graduate Teacher’s Diploma (majoring in music) and also took both piano teachers’ examinations for Royal Schools of Music and Trinity College of Music. In 1995 I completed a post-graduate performance diploma (at the University of Witwatersrand) in piano accompaniment and have since then accompanied many singers, choirs and instrumentalists.

I taught subject music in High Schools for 12 years at highly esteemed schools in Johannesburg, one of them “Roedean SA” (sister school of Roedean, Brighton in England) at which I became head of the Music Department, managing a staff of 12 music teachers.

My husband John and I and two very small children moved to Dubai in 1999. It was only with my move to Abu Dhabi in 2003 that I started teaching Kindermusik. I have since then given classes to all the age groups of Kindermusik and have decided to devote my energies mostly to Kindermusik Village (newborn-13mths) and Our Time (13mths-3years.) I am currently on the instrumental teaching staff at The British School Al Khubairat where I teach piano part-time. I also teach the “ABC Music and Me” Kindermusik course for nurseries at both Humpty Dumpty Nurseries in Abu Dhabi.

Silvia Sopkova

I come from a beautiful country in Central Europe, Slovakia, where I spent all my childhood and school years. I moved to Abu Dhabi right after finishing university, which was already 6 years ago.

Both my parents played musical instruments from a young age and so they signed me up into an elementary school which specialized in music. I sang in the choir in the afternoons and also had piano lessons, but my first love is singing.

After starting secondary school, I sang in the church choir and played the piano in my free time. At university, I studied Economics specializing in Tourism. During the last term, I was offered a position with the national airlines of the United Arab Emirates to join their cabin crew. Having just finished my Master degree, got married and gone on honeymoony I was sitting on a plane to start my new career in Abu Dhabi

My husband followed me couple weeks later and luckily got a job as a design architect which is his profession. After 2 years of flying as cabin crew, I became a cabin manager, which brought new challenges and responsibilities to my life. One of the brightest sides of my job was the opportunity to see so many beautiful places.

Although this kind of job might easily become a long term career, our desire for a baby was getting stronger every year. When our son Matteo was born, my life changed dramatically.

Now my life is attending kids' playgroups and all possible lessons for babies in Abu Dhabi. One of them is also Kindermusik and it has definitely been the most rewarding. Matteo has a great time singing and dancing and playing musical instruments. When I saw how he catches the beat when the music is on and shaking his little body, there was a new desire growing in me with every class we attended. I wanted to get back to music and spend time with children, their parents and still have most of my time for my own son.

Rebekah Jamieson

Having spent most of my career working in the leasing and property management market, I am now taking time off to be with my 6 month old daughter Sophia.

I graduated in dance, drama and music with a hope to follow a career in the lime light, however soon realised that I did not have a competitive enough personality to be successful in the field. Though I have kept up my singing as much as possible with the Church choir and have occasionally been involved with ADDS, I have missed spending all my time surrounded by music and movement.

I discovered Kindermusik through St. Andrews Church and was drawn into it immediately, since my daughters birth I have been singing and dancing with her hoping to instil in her my passion for music. So to discover that there is a course designed to do just that I was already on board and ready to sign her up for classes. Being able to teach other children the joy of music and movement is very fulfilling for me.

I hope that my love for music, singing and movement with be infectious and help children to enjoy music and grow.

Connie Faria

Connie grew up in California, USA. As a child, she spent 6 years taking piano lessons and sung in school choirs. As an adult she moved to the Seattle, Washington area and started taking Kindermusik classes when her first son was born in 2000. In between doing Toddler Storytimes at the local library, attending weekly playgroups and bringing her son to Kindermusik classes – she had another baby. By the time her daughter was born in 2003, Connie decided to become a Kindermusik educator. She taught Village, Our Time and Imagine That! classes for 3 years before starting to teach Music Box classes at a local Montessori School.

In 2008, her third child was born and she had since been elected into a local City Councilwoman position. She spent her time volunteering at her children’s school, leading her daughter’s Girl Scout Troop and bringing her youngest son to playgroups and gymnastics class while continuing to teach at the Montessori School until December 2010. Connie moved to Abu Dhabi in August 2011 with her husband and three children.

Bronya Dean

I graduated with a music degree from Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand and with an MA in cultural policy and administration from the University of Warwick in the UK. I followed a career in arts administration in the UK before moving to Azerbaijan where I taught primary years music at The International School of Azerbaijan. I started teaching Kindermusik classes in Baku shortly after my first child was born in 2006. Back in the UK, and with a second child, I continued pursuing my love of 'musicking' with young children by facilitating weekly music sessions at my son's preschool and running an after-school music club for reception year children at my daughter's infant school.

I arrived in Abu Dhabi with my husband and two children in September 2011 and I am currently studying for a PhD in early childhood music education.

I believe music can make a real difference in young children's lives, through enhancing development and simply adding joy.

Vindy Madapatha

Music and dancing has always played a major role in my life. As a child my first performance was on national television when I was only 8 years old. That was after winning my very first national award for singing and dancing. In school I was highlighted for vocal performance. I was a member of the school choir and used to sing and participate for national level competitions and events as well as sing in social clubs and the church.