The M4M Team
Sara Sherman, Director & Founder
Sara Leila Sherman (Creator & Co-founder) has established a presence on the classical music scene in her home city of New York and beyond. An accomplished pianist whose playing The Epoch Times has called “deeply satisfying, fresh, and insightful.” Sara performs regularly both as a solo artist and in chamber ensembles. In New York, she has taken the stage at Lincoln Center, Steinway Hall, Yamaha Artist Salon, Center for Fiction, The Living Room, and many other venues large and small. Just last summer, Sara was a featured soloist with the Chelsea Symphony. Further from home, she has played as a guest soloist for the German Ambassador in Washington, D.C., and she has performed internationally in Italy’s Castello di San Lorenzo Picenardi, Capella di Santa Chiari, and San Secondo Parmense; Courchevel, France; and Alushta, Ukraine.
Sara earned her Master of Music degree and a Professional Studies certificate in piano performance from the Manhattan School of Music. She completed her undergraduate studies at Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University. Over the course of her musical career, Sara has benefited from the instruction of Jeffrey Cohen, Luba Edlina-Dubinsky, Veda Zuponcic, David Kraukauer, Wolfram Koessel, and Carol Ann Aicher. She has received honors in many festivals and competitions, including the Shining Stars Debut Series (first prize), Young Artists’ Competition, Sylvia Denbo Memorial Scholarship Competition, and the Leschetizky Young Gifted Artists Concert in New York City.
Sara is a much-sought-after teacher on NYC’s Upper West Side, where she runs a thriving private studio. In the past two years, Sara’s students have taken gold and silver honors in competition, earning performances in major venues such as Carnegie Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, and Lincoln Center.
Peter DelGrosso, Creative Director
Enjoying his work as a bright and energetic musician, Peter DelGrosso has found home as a horn player, educator, and composer/arranger in New York City. As a performer he has traveled through China as principal horn of The Philadelphia Festival Orchestra, to Saas-Fee, Switzerland as the horn player for the Talis Festival & Academy, and as a member and arranger for groups playing in Stockholm, Sweden and Cartagena, Columbia. Most recently Peter was a guest artist and brass clinician for the Casalmaggiore International Music festival in Casalmaggiore, Italy.
Back in the United States, Peter is an active member in orchestras throughout New York including The Chelsea Symphony, Manhattan Symphonie, and New York Wind Orchestra. He is currently the principal horn of the Yonkers Philharmonic in which he was a soloist in 2018. He was also a soloist with the Queens College Wind Ensemble in 2016 and with the Queensborough Symphony in 2015. Peter is the founder and arranger of the Metropolitan Horn Authority, a New York based contemporary horn quartet.
Starting with his high school band director Greg Thomas, Peter credits his success to his teachers. He earned a Master of Music Degree from the Aaron Copland School of Music and completed his undergraduate studies from Virginia Commonwealth University where he received a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and was awarded “Outstanding Achievement in Music Education.” Peter’s teachers include David Jolley, Patrick Smith, John Clark, Bill Purvis, and jazz studies with John D’earth.
Peter is an enthusiastic educator and is currently on faculty at the Long Island Conservatory. He also maintains a private studio of horn students and was the horn teacher for the Gracias Choir & Orchestra festival in Huntington, NY. Peter uses a warm touch with his students while challenging them and always asking more questions, teaching is one of his greatest joys.
Vivianne Laurence
Vivianne Laurence is an Indonesian classical pianist who started to learn piano at the age of 6. After she graduated high school, she decided to deepen her knowledge of music. At the age of 17, she continued her studies in Piano Performance at LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore, under the tutelage of Mr. Clarence Lee.
Whilst in LASALLE, Vivianne is an active performer and joined several masterclasses. Her performances include Constellation Piano Concert at Esplanade Library and SIA Theatre, piano festivals at Aureus Academy Music School, Piano Voyage 2019: Into the Underworld, and LASALLE’s Open House 2019 and 2020. In 2019, she obtained Gold Award at Ars Nova Festival 2019 and the 3rd Overseas Performers’ Festival.
In 2020, Vivianne earned a degree, BA (Hons) in Music. She continued to study under the tutelage of Mrs. Suriani Leo and attained 3rd prize winner at the 2020 International Music Competition Bonn “Grand Prize Virtuoso”, Summa Cum Laude at La Pianista Online Series Festival, and 1st Commendation at International Grand Music Festival.
Besides being an active performer, Vivianne is passionate to share her experience and knowledge as a piano teacher. She has taught at KEL’s Music School, Singapore as a part-time Piano Teacher and currently working at Riverside Music Studios, New York. Moreover, she has also had an internship as a student director and organized an annual LASALLE’s concert, Piano Voyage 2019: Into the Underworld.
Vivianne is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree at the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Dr. Joanne Polk.
Featured Artists
Alphonso Horne, Trumpet
Juilliard Graduate and Multi-GRAMMY Award nominee Alphonso Horne thrills audiences with his soulful sound and dramatic sensibility. The true embodiment of class and eclecticism, Alphonso has collaborated with artists from all genres and disciplines including Wynton Marsalis, Patti Labelle and Rihanna.
Horne has also performed in several Tony-Award-winning Broadway shows including “After Midnight” and “Shuffle Along” featuring guest artists Fantasia Barrino, Dulé Hill, Toni Braxton, Audra McDonald, Savion Glover and many more.
Alphonso can also be seen on CBS’s “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” and in the upcoming jazz biopic, “BOLDEN”.
Nyssa Grant, Violin/Fiddle
Nyssa Grant has been playing violin for as long as she can remember! Born and raised in Iowa she moved to NYC to pursue acting and music. Nyssa was on the national tour of the Broadway musical Once and now plays in bands and records music all over the city.
Ric Becker, Trombone
Ric Becker is a trombonist, composer, vocalist, and all-around low-brass enthusiast. A graduate of Mannes College of Music as a student of both David Finlayson and David Taylor, his work ranges from classical and jazz to pop and contemporary styles. He has toured or recorded with Postmodern Jukebox, Easy Star All-Stars, the New York Ska Jazz Ensemble, contemporary classical ensembles Contemporaneous and Mimesis Ensemble, and more. Broadway credits include substitute work on Matilda, King Kong, and Cirque du Soleil’s Paramour, as well as the tuba/bass trombone chair for the 2018 first national tour of Love Never Dies. He has also worked for film and TV, appearing in productions for MTV, VH1, Hulu, Amazon Studios, and more.
Ric is an active educator with a small private studio of young brass musicians and pianists. He specializes in first-time beginners, with a focus on reading skills, musicianship and self-improvement. His students have gone on to win positions at top conservatories including Manhattan School of Music and New England Conservatory, as well as regularly ranking in regional band competitions and festivals.