The Mike Finnigan
School of Music

Matt Gerry has been a music teacher and guitar instructor at Salina South Middle School for 19 years. Through various grants from organizations like the Salina Education Foundation, the Greater Salina Community Foundation, Donorschoose.org, the Give a Note Foundation, and the Country Music Association he has built a guitar program in the Salina public school system from the ground up. At Salina South Middle School where he currently teaches, over 200 students enroll in his guitar classes every year. He is a Salina South High School graduate who obtained his Bachelor's degree in Music Education from Wichita State University, and a Master degree in Teacher Leadership from Kansas State University. His training also includes instruction from the GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshops and the National Science Foundation’s STEM Guitar Building Project. Mr. Gerry’s work has been featured in various publications including InTune magazine, Music Inc. magazine, and his middle school guitar program was featured as the Kansas representative in NAMEs - Guitar Class in 50 States. His students have gained national attention by winning the “Making Wishes with Weezer” contest in 2010, appearing on a commercial aired on the Disney Channel, and were also highlighted on the Radio Disney Music Awards. His teaching accolades include Salina Teacher of the Year in 2011, the Music Teacher of Excellence Award from the Country Music Association Foundation in 2017, and was a “Hero for Change” recipient from Radio Disney that same year. Gerry is a member of the board of directors at the Stiefel Theatre. Matt is married to his wife, Stephanie who are both proud parents to Adele (16) and Lydia (14) who attend Salina South schools. He enjoys singing and playing guitar at First Covenant Church, and the hobby of collecting vinyl records.

Jesse Smith has been playing guitar and bass for over 20 years. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from Kansas Wesleyan University in2008. After graduation, Jesse was a member of the Salina Symphony, performed many shows as a pit orchestra member at the Salina Community Theatre, and has been a member of several locally performing bands. Since 2019, he has taught music and guitar classes at Lakewood Middle School. His wife Abby also works in education, and they are proud parents to their daughter, Violet.

My name is Jennifer Andres and I am so excited to begin working with the Stiefel Theater to teach at the Mike Finnigan School of Music!  A little bit about myself, my husband and I live in Abilene Kansas where I have five children from ages 21 – 3 years old !  I have been playing piano for 37 years and I have been teaching private lessons for 18 years.  I am an avid supporter of music education and over my career I have seen the benefits of piano in my students’ lives.  I am so excited to begin teaching piano at the Mike Finnigan School of Music!  I look forward to working with your students!

Ann Zimmerman has sung across the Great Plains and beyond—in New York, Seattle, Boston, Texas, Minnesota, Alaska – turning each audience into her backup choir.  She sings songs old and new and has written her own award-winning songs. She has four independent recordings. Ann sings annually at the Land Institute’s Prairie Festival near Salina and in recent years has been performing at the Walnut Valley Festival, Winfield, Kansas. She entertains nationally at festivals, farmers markets, fancy theaters, conferences and backyards. Pre-pandemic, she played about a hundred dates a year. Ann sings for thousands of students each year in Salina Public Schools through the Salina Arts & Humanities “Arts Infusion” program. “Meadowlark,” the title song from her album of children’s music, was chosen as a finalist in the folk / Americana category of The Great American Song contest.  Ann was voted the "People's Choice" winner in the Wildflower! Festival song contest near Dallas with songs from her “Blue Wild Indigo” album. She is a long-standing member of the juried “Kansas Arts on Tour” and Mid-America Arts Alliance rosters. She was nominated for a “grass-roots Grammy” in the Just Plain Folks national song contest. Ann is from Salina, an attorney and mediator with degrees from K-State and Harvard, and is an elected member of the Salina school board.

William “Bill” Tuzicka is currently in his twelfth year as the conductor and music director of the Salina Chorale.  He serves as the Technical Director and Director of Operations for the Stiefel Theatre.  Mr. Tuzicka taught choral music for 37 years at Southeast of Saline Jr/Sr High School and holds a bachelor’s of music degree from Bethany College and a masters of music education degree from Wichita State University. Bill has many years of “hands on” experience working with performers.

Gavin Blehm is a trumpeter and music instructor from Abilene now living in Texas. A graduate of Ft. Hays State University, he is pursuing a master’s degree in Trumpet Performance at the University of North Texas (UNT) where he plays in chamber music, wind and jazz ensembles and works with public school students. He has performed with the Salina Symphony, Theatre Salina and Hays Symphony

Mikaela Nilo,23, began playing violin at age four in Oregon where she grew up. Now, living with her husband in Ft. Riley, she plays in the Salina Symphony and subs in the Kansas City Symphony. She graduated in 2021 in violin performance from Biola University, Los Angeles, with many awards. At Biola, she taught “String Sprouts,” an after-school program for young children in underserved areas.

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Patrick O’Connor, Wichita musician, historian and all-around character, will demonstrate “Barrelhouse” piano, a style developed around the time of early Blues and will tell adventures of meeting early blue musicians and Mike Finnigan. Pat curated exhibits on The Blues at the Kansas African American Museum and authored the book Wichita Blues: Discovery. He plays keyboard and guitar and has done deep research into Blues History in Kansas.

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Ramona Malone, lifelong pianist and active Salina citizen, focuses her musical efforts on praise, worship and community and is enthusiastic about this chance to share her skills. She works and plays at New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church, has directed the Salina Gospel Choir, serves on the Martin Luther King Ad Hoc Committee and is president of the Salina Family Healthcare Center board.

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