Music

List of 5 members.

• 

  Ms. Edel M Thomas 

  Performing Arts Chair / MS/US Music

  Bio

  Edel Thomas has been on the faculty at Kent Place since 1992, and is now the Chair of the Music Department. A native of Ireland, she received most of her musical education there. She has a degree in music from University College (Dublin) and a master’s degree from Trinity College (Dublin). She holds a fellowship from London’s Trinity College and an advanced diploma in music pedagogy and choral direction from the Kodály Institute in Hungary. As a member of American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), Edel has managed honor choirs and prepared Primary, Middle and Upper School students for auditions at the state, division and national levels. She has been leading the Chamber Singers on choral trips throughout Europe since 2012, and, as an artist-teacher, enjoys nurturing the spirit of music making in her students.
• 

  Mr. Peter Fischer 

  US/MS Music

  Bio

  Peter Fischer has worked with singers at Kent Place in the Upper and Middle School choirs since 2019. In addition to teaching, Mr. Fischer sings and records regularly with professional ensembles, such as the New York Choral Artists and the Same Stream Choir. Some of his arrangements for treble voices have been published with GIA. He’s a graduate of Westminster Choir College, where he received a bachelor’s in music education, and earned his master’s in choral conducting from the University of Arizona.
• 

  Ms. Ruthanna Graves McQueen 

  PS Music

  Bio

  Ruthanna Graves McQueen came to Kent Place School in 2018 to teach music in the Pre-Kindergarten programs and with the students in Kindergarten and first grade. She has a rich and diverse background in musical performance and education, including performing professionally on Broadway and London’s West End. Ms. McQueen recently completed a creative arts therapy program in music at The New School in New York City, and studied at the university’s jazz music conservatory. In addition, she helped the South Orange school system bring musical programs to elementary school children and produced and directed performances with Opera Soup Productions (founded by KPS’s Dr. Mirabal), which introduced classical music to young audiences. Most recently, she worked with the elementary school students in the after-school arts enrichment programs at Primary Prep in Jersey City and Philip's Academy Charter School in Newark. Ms. McQueen is thrilled to join the faculty at Kent Place and holds a B.F.A. in music from The New School.
• 

  Dr. Lori B Mirabal 

  PS Music

  Bio

  Internationally renowned opera singer Lori Mirabal has enjoyed an eclectic career performing alongside luminaries in her field. Her professional training incorporates the Juilliard Opera Center, the Manhattan School of Music (where, after receiving a personal scholarship from Oprah Winfrey, she earned a master’s degree in voice performance), and the Teachers College of Columbia University, where she earned both a master’s and doctorate in Music Education. Dr. Mirabal joined the KPS community in 2010. She directs the Primary School choristers, and led them as they participated in a national music video sponsored by the NJMEA and performed in regional, state and national honor choirs.
• 

  Mr. Terrence Thornhill 

  Instrumental Music

  Bio

  Terrence Thornhill is the Instrumental Music teacher for all three divisions at KPS. Mr. Thornhill earned his bachelor’s degree in music education studying cello with Nicholas Tzavaras, Cellist of the Shanghai Quartet, and received his master’s degree from SUNY Purchase College, studying cello with Julia Lichten, cellist of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. He currently studies conducting with Ken Lam, the Conductor of the Charleston Symphony and Illinois Symphony Orchestra. As an educator, Mr. Thornhill maintains a diverse private studio in the New York Metro Area, teaching students from young children to adults. In addition to his private studio, Terrence is on the Faculty of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra as the lead teacher of their MANY program. He is also the conductor of the Varsity Youth Orchestra and the brand new Harambee Chamber Orchestra, which is dedicated to performing work from composers of color and women. Mr. Thornhill is an original teaching artist for the Paterson Music Project, an El Sistema program serving over 250 students in Paterson, New Jersey. Moreover, his credits include administering sectionals for the New Jersey Region and All-State Cello section in 2008, 2009, and 2017, and becoming the inaugural award recipient of the John J. Cali School of Music Alumni Achievement Award in 2018. The same year, Mr. Thornhill was selected to be on faculty at the National Take A Stand Festival, sponsored by the Los Angeles Philharmonic.