Cosmo School of Music Voice Teachers

Jacqueline Rose Javier-Natividad has been training and performing piano and singing since the age of seven. She obtained Honours in the Royal Conservatory of Music Practical Examination in Rudiments in 1994. Jacqueline then studied vocals, history, harmony, and counterpoint while completing her music degree from York University in 2007. Upon graduation, she developed a strong affinity and passion for teaching piano to students of all ages, taking great joy in watching her students succeed and progress in their development. Jacqueline can teach piano and vocals across different genres, including classical, Broadway musicals, pop, and rock.

During her spare time, she attends concerts, musicals, church choir, and recitals. Jacqueline is currently recording and writing her own songs but also enjoys performing for weddings. Most importantly, she understands the importance of building confidence by encouraging her students to learn, perform, and enjoy music. Jacqueline truly believes music can heal the body, mind, and soul.

A registered Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) instructor, Jada Alexiou holds a bachelor's degree in voice performance from York University. She has studied with professional performers, conductors, stage directors, répétiteurs, and sound engineers. With a focus on classical performance, she has extensive knowledge of styles ranging from the baroque to modern music periods. Jada also has experience analyzing vocal anatomy and pedagogy as it relates to singing in various languages, including English, Italian, German, Spanish, French, Latin, and Czech. This expertise is applied to the popular and universal genres she teaches her students.

Jada brings a fresh and updated approach to both theoretical and practical music training. She emphasizes theory fundamentals as the foundation for musical discovery and is passionate about helping her students unlock their musical potential. With a focus on performance confidence and self-expression, Jada creates an environment for growth and development through customized teaching techniques that ignite her students' passion for learning.

In her own practice, Jada is committed to developing her artistic intuition and refining her expressive abilities. She aspires to pursue a master’s degree in operatic voice and explore performance opportunities abroad. Jada has significant experience as a solo performer, including her role as Cornelia in Handel's Julius Caesar with Summer Opera Lyric Theatre, and in collaboration with choral ensembles, such as Voicebox: Opera In Concert for Verdi Unbound. She has organized and performed in her own feature recitals and has participated in festivals (Kiwanis, Newmarket, Durham, ORMTA, OMFA), masterclasses, competitions, ceremonies, and exhibitions across Ontario. Jada is proud to share her years of musical training to empower her students and inspire future generations of singers.

Nikki Puchkov is an RCM-certified teacher and specialist who has taught piano, theory, history, and harmony since 2013. She regularly prepares her students for RCM practical and theory exams, as well as music festivals.

Nikki continually explores new teaching methods, paying particular attention to the individual learning styles of her students. Kodály, Orff, Dalcroze, and Suzuki are among the methods she uses to make music education fun and accessible to all learners. She aims to guide her students' musical development by exploring various musical genres beyond classical repertoire. She especially enjoys teaching history and harmony.

In addition to performing and teaching, Nikki conducts research in performance science. In 2023, her study on the effects of group singing on children’s mental health was presented at the SysMus Conference in Sheffield, United Kingdom.

Nikki holds a master of performance science degree from the Royal College of Music and a bachelor of music degree in piano with a double minor in historical keyboard (harpsichord and organ) from the University of Toronto.

Kristina Zapanta’s goal is to help students find their own voice. Her lessons are catered to fit her students’ interests while pushing their boundaries and limits, allowing confidence and self-expression to flourish through musical performance and extend into all aspects of life. She has had many experiences that have shaped the artist she is today, and she is excited to share what she has learned with her students. Her commitment to music and music education is her passion, and she hopes to keep it alive by sharing it with her community.

Kristina began taking piano and vocal lessons as a child and has always been immersed in a musical lifestyle. At age 16, she learned how to produce and record her own music, which led to recognition from American labels such as White Room Records and Soulection. Through this opportunity, she professionally recorded, wrote, produced, and toured across North America as an independent artist. She has been involved in many songwriting workshops for SOCAN, Magkaisa Filipino Centre, and Universal Music Canada. Kristina continues to create, perform, and release music as an independent artist and has much more to share.

Meet Emma Della Rossa! She is a flute, voice, and piano teacher at Cosmo School of Music. Emma has been teaching both private and group music lessons for over five years and is comfortable working with all ages. When studying with Emma, students can expect to build a strong foundation in the fundamentals of tone, rhythm, technique, and music theory, as well as develop independence in musicianship skills such as style, phrasing, and ear training. She tailors her lessons to students’ learning styles and musical goals and is always willing to adjust her approach to better meet their needs. By incorporating a variety of musical genres and modes of instruction into her pedagogy, Emma hopes to lead students to discover their own passions and personal connections to music, as well as skills that transcend far beyond the music classroom. Above all, she believes that studying music should be a fun and exciting experience and loves to incorporate movement and musical games into her teaching to foster curiosity and enthusiasm in the music-making process.

Emma is a recent graduate of the University of Toronto Faculty of Music, where she studied music education, music technology, and flute performance. In addition to flute and voice, she plays guitar and ukulele and has achieved grade 9 RCM level in piano. When Emma is not recording original music and performing as a singer-songwriter, she is involved with campus theatre and has played in the pit band for multiple productions. As a flutist, she has performed in various festivals and concerts in Ontario, including the 2019 Kiwanis Festival, where she achieved first place in her category, as well as the 2019 OMFA Provincial Finals, where she received an honourable mention. From 2019 to 2022, she played flute and piccolo in the University of Toronto Wind Symphony and currently sings in the University of Toronto Chamber Choir. Emma is an avid collaborator and regularly performs with her colleagues at the University of Toronto Faculty of Music in classical, jazz, and pop collaborations.

Fahimah Hamidavi is an enthusiastic teacher who strives for the success of her students. Whether preparing for Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) exams, university auditions, or professional recording careers, Fahimah has helped students achieve their goals through their passion for singing. Her love for music and teaching creates a comfortable and nurturing environment where students can grow as performers.

In addition to her teaching, Fahimah is an accomplished performer with theatre credits that include Ragtime, Next to Normal, RENT, Shrek the Musical, The Drowsy Chaperone, and more. She has also been a featured soloist at the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts and has performed with various choirs. Fahimah enjoys using her performance experience to help students feel comfortable performing on stage and in front of others.

Olivia Pileggi is a voice teacher who began singing professionally at the age of 14 with Colm Wilkinson (of Phantom of the Opera) at the Toronto Arts Centre. She has studied voice with Cole and Kristina Victoria from Cosmo Music, along with various other voice teachers and directors. Olivia has completed voice workshops with Elaine Overholt, the Big Voice celebrity vocal coach. She performs at weddings throughout Ontario and has participated in numerous festivals, including the Simply People Festival at Nathan Phillips Square.

In her teaching, Olivia fosters a positive and practical classroom environment that is free from judgment, allowing students to learn and grow optimally. Her musical influences span a variety of genres, including R&B, jazz, soul, pop, rock, and alternative.

Jenna Lawrence is extremely passionate about music and has grown up taking lessons at Cosmo Music. She has performed in a variety of talent shows, school events, and open mic nights, and is currently working on her solo career as a songwriter and recording artist.

Jenna strongly believes in the therapeutic benefits of music and emphasizes that lessons should be fun and engaging for all students. She looks forward to creating individualized plans that best fit each student’s needs and helping them grow as musicians and performers.