The Brooklyn Guitar and Bass Studio offers lessons to students of all ages and levels on acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar and double bass. Our experienced teachers cater their instruction uniquely to each student, with an emphasis on cultivating joy and self-expression through music.
Rafael Chamone is a guitarist, arranger, and composer born in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, who currently resides in New York City. He graduated in Composition and Conducting from the School of Music and Fine Arts of Paraná, completing his degree in 2022 with a focus on composition and experimental music. In 2023 he earned a scholarship to study at New York University with some of the biggest names in global jazz, such as Chris Potter, Peter Bernstein and Lenny White, among others. He was invited to perform in Costa Rica in July 2024 as part of the "Promising Artists of the 21st Century" program, with the ARAGA quintet, formed by NYU students. Since graduating in 2025, as a member of Brazilian percussionist Valtinho Anastácio’s Super Trio, Rafael has performed in a weekly residence at the traditional Zinc Bar in New York, getting to share the stage with musicians such as Toninho Horta, Edsel Gomez and John Benitez. He has also accompanied and/or performed with Hector Martignon, Misha Piatigorsky, Rafael Barata, Simona Daniele, Kelsey Mines, Myles Sloniker, Graciliano Zambonin, Thiago Duarte, Daniel D’Alcântara and Érica Silva, among others, with performances in Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles and New Orleans.
Kelsey Mines is a Seattle-born, Brooklyn-based bassist, composer, and educator. Her playing draws from a wide range of influences and has taken her all over the world. A "ubiquitous and adroit musician" (Earshot Magazine), Mines has contributed to over a dozen records as a bassist; performed with Tito Puente Jr., Drink the Sea, Jovino Santos Neto, Naomi Moon Siegel, Aubrey Johnson, the Birdland Latin Jazz Orchestra and many others. As a band leader, Mines has been featured at the Earshot Jazz Festival, the Ballard Jazz Festival, and the Wayward Music Series. In 2025 she released her debut contemporary jazz album “Everything Sacred, Nothing Serious” on Origin Records produced by Steve Rodby (Pat Metheny Group) which won the Earshot Jazz Album of Year Golden Ear Award and Best Albums of 2025 by Washington Artists (Seattle Times). Mines is described as "A free spirit with a strong, personal voice [who] can make the double bass dance playfully and rhythmically" (salt peanuts*).
-- Jessica