My name is Michael Showalter and I’m a parent of two children, Stephen and Maggie. Our family has lived on Capitol Hill for 10 years and love the neighborhood feel of our section of Washington DC.

I studied music in college and enjoyed participating in many musical groups in the Washington area over the past 15 years including Cantate Chamber Singers, The Washington Bach Consort, and The Palestrina Choir of Washington as well as participating in many of the fine church choirs in our area.

Becoming a father changes one’s life dramatically, but music has remained important to me and I hope I can make it an important part of the lives of my children. As I searched for musical opportunities for my children I began to realize that the majority of children’s music seldom offered any diversity of rhythm or tonality. Then I discovered the Music Together^® program. I immediately realized that this music offered a richer experience yet capsulated in songs that young children enjoy as well as parents with no formal musical training.

All children love to sing. Music Together takes a child’s playful interest and offers the parent a way to support that. I’ve seen it in the expression of my own children which is why I decided to learn more about the program and eventually decided to begin teaching classes.

I grew up playing the piano and clarinet and studying dance, and I have a lifelong love of Broadway musicals. Everybody in my family sang and loved music, though most of them had little or no formal training. What I wanted most, though, was to be a journalist, so I went to the University of Missouri, earned a journalism degree and went to work for The Associated Press. I still work there part-time.

Before having my daughter, I was the AP’s national education writer, a beat that really sparked an interest in early childhood education. I was recognized for my work in 2009 by the Education Writers Association. Then my daughter and I discovered Music Together classes, and I was hooked. I loved watching my daughter’s language bloom and enjoyed seeing her really discover music. But more than that, I treasured the opportunity to just let go and sing my heart out and be silly with her and with the other families in class.

That’s what I hope I bring to Music Together as a teacher — the idea that a parent doesn’t need lots of special training to be an enthusiastic participant, to show children that anyone can sing and dance and enjoy music. Parents are their children’s most important teachers!

My formal music training began with piano and trumpet lessons in elementary school. When I was 15, I fell in love with the bass guitar, and it has been my primary instrument ever since. I have played with a number of bands over the years, spanning a wide range of musical genres, and my recordings and compositions have been heard in films and on the radio. I have given private lessons to children and adults in guitar, ukelele, bass, songwriting, and music theory. Throughout the semester, I will be bringing in a variety of musical instruments, including guitar, ukelele, banjo, and my brand new ukelele bass.

I majored in languages and linguistics at Georgetown University, where I also took a number of music theory courses and sang in one of the school’s choirs as part of a course on choral literature. Upon graduating, I moved to New York City, where I worked primarily in film and television production and development. In 2009, I moved back to DC, to Capitol Hill, where I currently live with my wife and two children, Eliza (3) and Ben (1).

For a long time now, I have been fascinated by how people of all ages learn and perceive music and language. I believe that the methods and song collections employed by Music Together hold uniquely powerful tools for enriching our children’s musical development. When I took the Music Together training last year, I had no intention of teaching it. Rather I was interested in learning about the program’s methods and philosophy so that I could apply them to Eliza and Ben’s musical development. Libby asked me to help teach a demo fundraiser for our daughters’ pre-school, and I was instantly hooked. I look forward to working with you and your children and to having lots of fun in the classroom.

I remember exactly when my singing career began — right after losing the solo spot in Handel’s Messiah to another fifth-grader. That was when I knew how much I loved to make music, to sing, to be part of an ensemble, to experience the sheer joy of tuneful sound all around me. From that defining and humbling moment, I went on to perform, alone and in a company, in as wide a variety of genres as I could — choral, music theater, opera, jazz, funk, rock ’n’ roll, folk and country. All this time, music education has been of vital importance to me. After moving in short order from Brooklyn to Santa Cruz and then to Miami, I welcomed the first of my two daughters. It was not long at all before I began teaching family classes. I loved it — the give and take, the sense of discovery on the kids’ faces, the sheer joy in the room. It also happened to be a pretty much perfect way for me to continue doing what I loved while spending time with my newborn (talk about early music exposure!). Our family embarked on a new level of musical engagement. I got to see both girls master new musical elements and delve even more deeply into the possibilities of musical creation and improvisation. And since the Music Together collection was playing so often in the house and in the car, we all (Dad, too!) could sing together. One big, happy, singing family!

I wanted to discover more about this dynamic and rewarding program and was impressed to learn about the many years of deep research that lies behind the Music Together curriculum, and the theory of parent engagement and education. And I was fascinated to discover the painstaking process by which songs are constructed so that kids are drawn to singing them. This summer I completed my teacher training, and I could not be more excited to combine my experience with this new knowledge, and to share Music Together with my new community. 

Born in NY and raised in Alexandria, VA, I discovered my love of music at an early age, singing (anything and anywhere! No audience required!) and playing cello and piano. I have been involved in some sort of music-making my whole life. In addition to performing musical theater (high school, college, and yes, community theater), I’m a vocalist in a local klezmer band, Ein Lanu Z’man.

After becoming a mom and working in my daughter’s preschool, I discovered another passion: preschool education. I pursued both passions by becoming a preschool music teacher in 2006, specializing in Jewish and Hebrew music. I taught in Jewish preschools in Clearwater, FL and in Alexandria and Arlington. In 2016 I co-founded the “Tinok Time” (Baby Time) program at Agudas Achim Preschool in Alexandria, VA, whereI introduced littles and their caregivers to music, art and more. 

In 2018 I fell in love with the Music Together program when I moved to Wichita, Kansas and became a registered Music Together teacher, teaching at Riverside Music Together and attending mixed-age classes with my son, Zev. It was both as a parent and a teacher that I discovered the magic of Music Together to bring families together for a shared musical learning experience. I love giving parents the opportunity to be musical models for their kiddos, and reminding families that EVERYONE is musical, because parents will always be the best teachers for their own children!

I moved back to the DC area with my family this summer, and I am excited to join the teaching team with Mr. Mike’s and share my passion for all things music. I am especially thrilled to be introducing the Music Together Sing Shalom program to the community this fall!

Hunter Ringsmith is a professional actor, singer, and educator new to the DMV. Originally from Orlando, Florida, Hunter has degrees from Southern Methodist University (BFA) and University of California, Irvine (MFA). Recently, he played Lysander in Folger Theatre’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and his resume includes work ranging from contemporary dramas, Shakespearean comedies, musicals and everything in between. As a teacher he has worked with middle and high school students through Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s WillPower Tour and taught first year acting to undergraduates at University of California Irvine. He’s a strong believer that music is a lifelong pursuit and a way to continually enrich our lives. When he’s not acting and teaching you can find him at a CrossFit gym, out on a hike, playing his ukulele or baking something fun in the kitchen.

The first instrument that I learned to play was the piano.  I practiced enough to get by and learn the basics, but didn't really fall in love with music until I started playing clarinet.  I got a scholarship to play clarinet in college and studied music.  I knew that I didn't want to be a professional musician, however, so I studied Education and Spanish as well.  I decided that I wanted to become a Spanish immersion teacher and moved to Spain as a Fulbright Scholar.  After living in Spain for 3 years, I felt that it was time to move back to the US and found a teaching job in the DC area.  I taught 4th grade Spanish immersion for 8 years, met my husband, and settled in NW DC.  I continue to play clarinet with the Fairfax County Wind Symphony.

I am a mother to two amazing little girls. My first was born a few months before our lives were upended for the pandemic so I left teaching to stay home and take care of her.  Eventually I felt that I really needed something structured to do with my daughter and discovered Music Together classes.  I could see so quickly how much musicality is built into the program.  It's not just singing around children and hoping they will join in, it is very intentional and educational and I knew right away that I wanted to be involved.  It has been truly amazing to watch my daughters learn through Music Together.  I have seen their musical development and am constantly awed by what our little ones pick up by listening, watching, and experimenting.  Now that my little girls are both in school, I honestly can't imagine giving up Music Together!  I'm very excited to join Mister Mike's team and to work with families to explore and enjoy music together.

Linguistic research reveals that babies, whether they are hearing or deaf, acquire language quicker if they are exposed to both sound and manual signs, including the use of body language, such as gestures and facial expressions. Singing through sign language also encourages babies to develop stronger communication and expressive skills, and this program will focus on teaching different songs through rhythms and vibrations. 

One interesting thing about myself is that I am profoundly deaf. I communicate using sign language with deaf people, and I speak and lip read the best as I can with hearing people. You may ask: How can a deaf person understand or even teach music?! A common misconception is that deaf individuals live in a world devoid of sound and cannot appreciate music. That is far from the truth. Much like my hearing counterparts, I enjoy listening and even dancing to a wide variety of music without hearing the lyrics. 

I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Family Studies and Spanish from Gallaudet University, and I have worked as a private elementary school teacher and a professional nanny for various families in the Capitol Hill neighborhood for more than 15 years.

I’m so excited to work with all of you—let’s have fun making music accessible for our children together!

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I’ve loved singing and performing since I was just 3 years old. Music has always been my heart’s language. In 2006, I had the incredible honor of winning Taiwan’s Top Idol, and since then, I’ve been singing and touring all over the world. I perform in English, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Spanish, and Cantonese, and it’s been such a joy to connect with people through music in so many different cultures.

I grew up in California and sang in jazz and chamber choirs throughout high school. These days, I’ve happily settled in the Washington, D.C. area, where I’ve lived for the past 8 years with my husband and 2 daughters.

I first discovered Music Together while attending classes with my own children—and I absolutely fell in love with it. Seeing children light up with music, move freely, and express themselves with joy was deeply inspiring. It’s now my joy to bring that same magic to other families in a warm, playful, and nurturing space. I truly believe music brings us all closer together, and I can’t wait to sing and grow with you and your little ones!