Meet Our Faculty
Our talented instructors are excited to provide high-level, personalized, joy-filled musical experiences for your family.
Sophia S. Ahmad
Piano
MM in Piano Performance, Arts Leadership Certificate - Eastman School of Music
BM in Piano Performance - Gordon College
Ms. Ahmad holds a Master of Music in Piano Performance and Literature and an Arts Leadership Certificate from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y. She earned her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Gordon College in Wenham, Mass., with additional chamber music studies in collaboration with New England Conservatory in Boston, Mass. Her principal teachers have included Edward Ferdinand, Mia Chung-Yee, Anne and Raymond Hanson and Douglas Humpherys.
As a pianist, she collaborates regularly with Simon Estes, she has recorded for Prentice Hall’s Inside the Orchestra DVD and she has performed with artists from the New World Symphony, the National Portuguese Symphony Orchestra and the Des Moines Symphony, among others. In 2013, she presented a lecture recital entitled Schumann’s Romantic Forest: A Musical Journey Through ‘Waldszenen, Op. 82 throughout Central Iowa and at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y.
An advocate of new music, she has premiered numerous pieces and worked with composers including Libby Larsen, Bright Sheng and Simone Fontanelli. Her solo performances have been broadcast on Iowa Public Radio, and in 2012, she made solo appearances at Iowa State University and Drake University, performing the music of Philip Glass. She appeared as the keyboard soloist in Schnittke’s Concerto Grosso No. 1 with the OSSIA new music ensemble. In 2018, she was invited by the Des Moines Art Center for a solo performance of Satie's "Relache" in conjunction with the opening of "The Irrational and the Marvelous" exhibition.
Ms. Ahmad is a Presser Scholar and active as a music teacher, performer, critic and writer. At the Eastman School of Music, she taught piano class, and she co-founded and performed in the annual Women in Music Festival. She was invited to make a solo appearance in March 2014 at the tenth anniversary of the Festival, which featured Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Higdon as its composer-in-residence.
Outside of music, she has served as Director of Marketing & PR for the Des Moines Symphony, Vice President of Public Relations at the Greater Des Moines Partnership and Senior Director of Development at MercyOne Des Moines Foundation. She currently serves as Vice President of Philanthropy at WesleyLife Foundation.
Brittany Brugman-Khanna
BM in Flute Performance, Piano Minor - Wartburg College
Brittany Brugman attained a Bachelor of Music degree from Wartburg College in 2008 with a flute emphasis and piano minor. Brittany grew up playing piano, flute, and organ in church, at school, and for various events and occasions throughout Northeast Iowa. While at Wartburg, she was the principal flutist in the Wind Ensemble and Wartburg Community Symphony Orchestra. Brittany also accompanied Wartburg’s Ritterchor (men’s choir) under Dr. Paul Torkelson and accompanied for students, concerts, and festivals. She studied piano pedagogy and collaborative pianism under Dr. Suzanne Torkelson and flute pedagogy and performance from Prof. Dominique Cawley.
Since moving to Des Moines in 2019, has become an integral leader in the Des Moines community. She is passionate about promoting music education and helping people develop into lifelong musicians.
Brynn Friesen
Piano, Voice
Bachelor of Music Education (BME), Vocal Emphasis (In Progress) - Drake University
Brynn is a senior at Drake University, currently studying music education with a concentration in voice. She has had formal voice training for 10 years and has played piano for 13 years.
At Drake, she has studied voice with Professor Leanne Freeman-Miller and piano with Dr. Nicholas Roth. Alongside her training, she has performed with the Drake Opera Theater, including operas such as Carmen (Carmen) and The Magic Flute (Papagena). She has assistant music directed two shows for a local theater in her hometown of Kansas City, Fiddler on the Roof Jr. and Les Miserables. Her primary goal in educating young musicians is instilling a passion for music and enthusiasm to learn and grow!
Angela Gust
Piano, Voice
MM in Vocal Pedagogy - Boston Conservatory
BM in Vocal Performance - Drake University
Angela attended Drake University and the Boston Conservatory at Berklee School of Music, where she completed a bachelor of music degree in vocal performance and a master of music degree in vocal pedagogy, respectively. She has performed in multiple recitals and productions at Drake and the Boston Conservatory, including singing the role of the Secretary in the Boston Conservatory’s 2019 production of Menotti's The Consul.
Outside of her performing ventures, she has also taught voice and piano lessons to young students as well as served as a music director for Catholic masses with the Boston University Catholic
student center. Angela looks forward to sharing her love of music with young musicians and develop her pedagogical skills.
Campbell Helton
Piano and Violin
BM in Piano Performance/Composition, Violin Emphasis - Utah State University (In Progress)
Campbell Helton is in her third year at Utah State University double majoring in a bachelor of music in piano performance and a bachelor of arts in composition with a violin emphasis.
As an accomplished pianist and violinist, Campbell has soloed with the Des Moines and Ottumwa Symphonies as a piano and violin concerto competition winner, and played in masterclasses with Jeremy Denk, Nikolai Lugansky, Kevin Zhu, the Viano Quartet, the Dover Quartet, and the Fry Street Quartet. She has attended Brevard Music Center and Stringwood Chamber summer festivals. She currently studies piano with Dr. Sasha Kasman Laude and violin with Rebecca McFaul. As a composer, Campbell has workshopped with Gabriela Lena Frank, Alyssa Weinberg, Melinda Wagner, Katherine Balch, Anthony Cheung, and Laura Kaminsky.
In 2025, she won first place in UMTA’s Composition Competition and attended Yellow Barn’s Young Artist Program in Vermont. Her works have been featured at the LunART all-women Composer’s Hub, the Iowa Composer’s Forum Festival of New Music, and the Evergreen and Oak Trio’s Call for Scores tour. Campbell is also a songwriter, with an original EP and single released on all streaming platforms.
As a collegiate member of Utah Music Teachers Association (UMTA), Campbell is a passionate private piano, violin, and composition instructor. She believes that music is for learners of all ages and can positively influence all aspects of life. She is a fierce advocate for her students, embracing everyone individually and celebrating diverse learning needs.
Brogan Kirkpatrick
Piano
Piano Studies - Drake University
Brogan has been passionate about music since his very first music class in elementary school. Initially involving himself in as many instruments as he could get his hands on, his focus turned towards piano after discovering the music of the Romantics. He enrolled in classical training as a teenager to develop a better technique. Brogan’s love for the instrument now encompasses its composers, performers, teachers, students, and even technicians. He studied under Dr. Asia Brutian-Grant for four years in high school and Dr. Nicholas Roth for one while at Drake University.
Brogan is a dedicated teacher who believes firmly in the value of flexible pedagogy. He has tutored a wide range of subjects, including music theory and mathematics. He believes that a good teacher not only guides a student, but builds intrinsic motivation. While not studying scores, Brogan is serving the local community as a pharmacy technician.
Nick Meyer
Cello
BA in Music and Political Science - Drake University
Nick Meyer graduated from Drake University with a Bachelor of Arts in Music (focusing on cello) and in Political Science. While at Drake, Nick studied cello under Dr. Ashley Sidon and participated in the Drake Orchestra, Drake Cello Choir and numerous chamber ensembles. Outside of music, Nick works full time at a public relations firm in Des Moines. He is excited to teach and share his joy of music with Mobile Music Lessons students.
Kyle Miller
Guitar
BS in Political Science, Minor in Music Performance - Iowa State University
Kyle Miller was raised in northeast Iowa and began teaching himself electric guitar and bass at age 12. This early commitment to music led him to pursue formal study at Iowa State University in 2007. At Iowa State University, Kyle studied classical double bass with George Work and performed with the Iowa State Symphony Orchestra. He earned a minor in Music Performance in 2011. Since 2021, Kyle has studied classical guitar with noted guitarist and Mobile Music Lessons faculty alum Steven Kennedy and has performed in masterclasses with acclaimed guitarists Bill Kanengiser and Andrea Gonzalez Caballero. Since 2012, he has also performed solo electric and acoustic sets throughout the Des Moines area.
Adam Pandian
Piano, Cello
BA in Music Education (in progress) - Colorado College
Adam Pandian has been playing piano for eight years, and is studying Music Education at Colorado College. He also plays the cello and sings. He enjoys composing, songwriting, and production. Adam's teaching experience spans music, and also sports, as a snow sports instructor and coach. He also taught improvisation and organized a club for it, as it is a skill he values highly in music. He is excited to share his passion through music instruction.
Matthew Soeghay
Piano
MM in Piano Performance - Bowling Green State University
BM in Piano Performance - Iowa State University
Matthew Soeghay is an accomplished pianist and Des Moines-based piano teacher. He earned his bachelor of music degree in piano performance at Iowa State University and his master of music degree in piano performance at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Matthew has taught piano and accompanied other musicians since his undergraduate years, and he enjoys seeing them grow. Matthew believes in hard work, discipline and passion, and he is excited to be a part of the Mobile Music Lessons faculty.
Anna Steenson
Piano, Guitar, Ukulele, Mandolin, Tenor Banjo and Cello
MA in Communications - Drake University
BA in Music - Drake University
Anna Steenson is a multi-instrumentalist from Des Moines. She holds a music degree from Drake University where she studied cello with Dr. Ashley Sidon. She is an active performer, appearing in Irish trad music groups, small chamber ensembles, and in pit orchestras for the Des Moines Playhouse and other community theater groups in musicals such as Disney’s Frozen, Fiddler on the Roof, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Bright Star, and Crazy for You. She has also performed with visiting artists such as Michael Bublé and in Iowa PBS specials. She plays and teaches cello, piano, acoustic and electric guitar, ukulele, mandolin, tenor banjo, and additional stringed instruments. She has taught students ages 5–85 and is committed to inspiring a lifelong love of music in each of her students.
Elaina Steenson
Piano, Violin, Viola, Ukulele
JD - Drake University Law School
BM in Viola Performance - Drake University
Elaina Steenson graduated in 2017 from Drake University with a Bachelor of Music degree in Viola Performance and Music Business. She studied piano as a secondary instrument and has minors in Business Studies and French Language & Culture. She has been teaching violin and viola for the past seven years.
Her honors thesis focused on music therapy in the correctional setting as a means for prisoner reform, which led her to pursue a law degree from Drake University Law School. In her free time, she enjoys playing for weddings, churches and other events with her band and musical collaboration ClearJoy Music (clearjoymusic.com).
Natalie Steenson
Piano, Ukulele
BA in Music & Religion - Coe College
Natalie has taught private lessons for 15 years. She is a trained early childhood educator and has taught early childhood music classes for over 20 years, and currently is teaching at the Montessori Children’s House in West Des Moines. She is the Director of Music and Arts Ministry at Windsor Presbyterian Church and director of a community arts initiative called ArtHouse Des Moines at Windsor Presbyterian Church. Through ArtHouse she hosts a free monthly ukulele choir and oversees other art programming.
She is active in the community, regularly teaching ukulele classes at the North Side Library, singing with the Des Moines Choral Society, and offering music, movement and musical storytelling workshops for children and adults through Cultureall and ASAP (After School Arts Programming). Natalie was also a children’s choir director with Iowa Youth Chorus for eight years. Natalie currently serves on the Board for the Des Moines Choral Society and Zenith Chamber Music Festival. Natalie is married and has 2 grown musical daughters, and often performs together with her family.
Olivia Tice
Piano, Voice
Bachelor of Music Education (BME), Vocal Emphasis (In Progress) - Drake University
Olivia Tice is a senior at Drake University majoring in Music Education and Vocal Performance under Leanne Freeman-Miller. She has performed a variety of operatic roles such as Carmen in Carmen, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Third Lady in The Magic Flute. She has played piano for 12 years and was a part of the 16 pianos performance work as well as accompanies for churches around the Des Moines metro. She looks forward to being able to share her love of music to students and audiences as she finishes her degree and begins a professional career.
