Cosmo School of Music Woodwind Teachers

Christopher Jones is an American saxophonist and teacher in Toronto. Enthusiastic about contemporary, classical, jazz, and pop music, he has performed on stages in Canada, the United States, and Europe. With a variety of chamber ensembles in Toronto, Christopher has performed Canadian and world premieres of music by Snežana Nešić, Zosha Di Castri, Yikke Zhang, and more. This year, Christopher founded the Toronto Saxophone Collective, a saxophone band that debuted in collaboration with renowned composer Robert Lemay, and he performs regularly with the Pasccs Trio.

Having completed bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Toronto, he recently presented a series of solo recitals. Christopher also performed in the Iriqtus Quartet last year and placed third among their cohort in the final round of the Canadian Music Competition. In 2019, he won the University of Toronto’s Winds Concerto Competition twice, and the following year, he performed concerti with the school’s wind bands. He taught music theory at the University of Toronto as a teaching assistant and currently teaches saxophone, clarinet, and music theory to students around the Greater Toronto Area.

Christopher's teaching philosophy revolves around the belief that learning music at any age is a valuable path to self-expression and cognitive growth. Whether students seek an academic boost, guidance for Cosmo Music recitals, preparation for RCM exams, or nurturing their passion projects, Christopher is there to support them. Drawing from his experiences studying with world-renowned saxophonists, he prioritizes building strong fundamentals, technique, and a thoughtful approach to musical interpretation. Above all, Christopher fosters a creative, enjoyable, and rewarding learning environment for students to realize their full musical potential.

Jack Smith is from the small town of Florenceville, New Brunswick. A decorated professional, he holds a bachelor of music from Mount Allison University and a master’s in music performance from the University of Toronto. At Mount Allison, Jack was the class of 2020 recipient of the J.E.A. Crake Performance Award in Music as well as a winner of the Mount Allison Concerto Competition. He has also represented Mount Allison as a solo performer as part of Jeunesse Musicales’ touring performance in 2020. Jack spent two summers playing first alto saxophone for the band of the Ceremonial Guard in Ottawa, where he performed regularly on Parliament Hill, at the Governor General’s House, and at the German embassy. Always happy to perform contemporary pieces, Jack has been involved in several new music concerts, premiering works by modern composers for solo performer and chamber ensemble. He has also participated in Barbara Hannigan’s Equilibrium Young Artist Program for the past two summers.

Aside from performance, Jack enjoys studying instrument repair and approaching music from various angles, including analytical and technical perspectives, in a way that helps create a narrative through performance. As a teacher, he tailors his teaching style to each student, depending on what will help them grow and develop as musicians. Jack strives to create a nurturing and kind environment for all students from every walk of life.

Josh Pelchovitz is a Toronto-born saxophonist who developed into a professional musician at the University of Windsor, where he received a bachelor of music focusing on education. Josh spent two years studying classical saxophone and switched courses in his third year when a new program was offered to him and seven other students, becoming the first cohort to study jazz at the university. He was a finalist in the Ianni Performance Scholarship Competition, an uncommon achievement for a jazz/pop and education-focused student.

Josh has shared the stage with Canadian legends like Gordon Lightfoot and astronaut Chris Hadfield. He has been televised numerous times and played for Queen Elizabeth. Some of the groups Josh has participated in over the years include large wind ensembles, marching bands, choirs, jazz big bands, concert bands, community bands, and his favourite smaller rock, blues, and funk bands. He currently plays saxophone with the Borealis Big Band and the Governor General’s Horse Guard Band.

Josh prides himself on being a versatile musician, willing to play and explore any instrument and any kind of music from cultures around the world. He has picked up many instruments, including flute, clarinet, guitar, bass, piano, and vocals, and continues to be musically influenced by as many experiences as possible.

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.

Svetlana (Nikki) Novikova holds a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance and Pedagogy from the Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg State Conservatory, Russia.

Throughout her career, Svetlana has held contracts with various orchestras in Russia, including the Kremlin Philharmonic Orchestra (Nizhniy Novgorod Philharmonic Society), the Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg Conservatory Orchestra, Chamber Opera Company, and the State Russian Concert Orchestra of St. Petersburg. Over the course of a five-year contract (1998–2003), she performed with orchestras in Seoul, South Korea, including the Seoul National Symphony Orchestra and New Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra.

Since immigrating to Canada in 2004, Svetlana has been an in-demand teacher and performer in the Greater Toronto Area. Her students have received gold medals for their achievements in examinations at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. They have also won numerous prizes and scholarships at the Kiwanis Music Festival and North York Music Festival in Toronto. Many students continue their education in various university programs majoring in music education and flute performance, including the University of Toronto, Western University, Queen’s University, and Wilfrid Laurier University.