Jeremy Cohen
Founder & Director
- Adjunct Faculty, Worcester State University (2013–present)
- Director, ThisWorldMusic LLC (2007–present)
- Board of Directors, Young Audiences of Massachusetts (2010–2016)
- Adjunct Faculty, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2008–2012)
- Music Director, Umana Middle School (2006–2008)
- M.M. Composition (New England Conservatory of Music)
- Hertz Traveling Fellow (2003)
- B.A. Music (University of California Berkeley)
- International Travel Medicine First Aid Certification (Wilderness Medical Associates)
Email: jcohen@thisworldmusic.com
Full bio
Jeremy Cohen is a Massachusetts-based percussionist, composer and educator. As a teaching artist he has presented workshops at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Boston Symphony Orchestra, New England Conservatory, The University School of Milwaukee, Sarah Lawrence College, Citi Performing Arts Center and school districts nationwide, including: Memphis, TN; Oakland, CA; Providence, RI; and Worcester, MA.
A passionate educator, he has designed and implemented comprehensive African drumming curricula at Westfield State University, Worcester State University, Boston Arts Academy Performing Arts High School and at the Umana Middle School in East Boston. As music director at the Umana, he also established a multi-genre guitar program and set up a fully-integrated music technology lab.
Still active in the classroom, he works at ZUMIX community music center and with incarcerated youth through the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services Artists in Juvenile Justice Initiative. He is Adjunct Professor of Music at Central Connecticut State University (graduate level), Westfield State University, Worcester State University and UMass Amherst (graduate level), where he designed the Music & Dance Department’s first cultural field study in Ghana, West Africa.
He sits on the Young Audiences of Massachusetts Board of Directors and has consulted for The School District of Philadelphia and for MusicianCorps, the flagship program of The Center for Music National Service.
A California native, he graduated with a B.A. in Music from U.C. Berkeley, where he studied traditional Ewe drumming with Ghanaian master drummer C.K. Ladzekpo. Awarded the Alfred M. Hertz Traveling Fellowship to study composition in New York City, he went on to attend The New England Conservatory of Music where he earned a M.M. in Composition. Mr. Cohen continued his Ewe drumming studies in Ghana under Emmanuel and Ruben Agbeli and was a member of the Boston-based Agbekor Drum & Dance Society, an ensemble led by Professor David Locke of Tufts University.
When he isn’t leading workshops around the country or study abroad courses in Ghana, he enjoys composing and practicing at home.
Leah Moriarty
Ghana Program Leader
- B.F.A. Dance (Five College Dance Department at University of Massachusetts Amherst)
- Featured choreographer, Hampshire College, Amherst College, UMass Amherst, Mount Holyoke College
- Teaching Artist, The Town Hall NYC
- Projects with Baba Chuck Davis, Kellie Lynch, Ni’Ja Whitson, Tamara Williams and Souleymane Badolo
- CPR/AED First Aid Certification
Kristen McEntee
Ghana Program Leader
- B.A. Music Education (University of Michigan)
- M.M. Ed. University of Massachusetts Amherst
- Alto, Tanglewood Festival Chorus/Boston Symphony Orchestra Chorus (2000–present)
- Elementary Music Teacher and Music Director of Middle School and High School Musicals, Melrose, MA (2006–present)
- Ghana Program Assistant (2011–2012)
Fusseini Ayamba
Ghana Logistical Support & Cultural Guide
- Native of Tamale, Ghana (Northern Region)
- Tamale Polytechnic
- Chief Linguist, Dagomba Chief of Accra/CMB
- Professional Dagomba Traditional Dancer
- Grandson of Dagomba Master Drummer Alhaji Abubakari Lunna
Katherine Fuller
Ghana Program Assistant
- B.M.Ed. (DePaul University)
- General Music Teacher and Choral Conductor, Bedford MA Public Schools (January 2012–present)
- Resident Supervisor/Interim Residence Director, Aspen Music Festival and School (2008-2009)
- Clinician, Massachusetts Music Educator Association All State Conference (2014)
- Performing Arts Specialist, Cambridge Camping Association (2010–2011)
- Ghana Program Assistant (2014–present)
John Hughes
Ghana Program Assistant
- B.S. Chemistry (University of California, Riverside)
- Ph.D. Organic Chemistry (University of Utah)
- Percussionist: hand percussion, drumset, orchestral and electronic percussion (Pleasanton Playhouse, Tri-Valley Repertory Theater, Curtain Call Performing Arts); Livermore, CA Joint Unified School District; Livermore-Amador Symphony; CoolTones Big Band; Cheza Nami (African cultural education non-profit)
Jmaw Moses
Ghana Program Assistant
- B.A. Theatre, Minor in Dance Studies (Knox College)
- Knox College Senior of the Year Award
- Artist-In-Residence, Bearnstow (2015)
- David Delaney Fellow, Edmund Burke School (2015–2016)
- Intern, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot Theatre Company, Dublin Ireland (2013)
- Ghana Program Assistant (2015–present)
Rebecca Bean
Ghana Program Assistant
- B.A. Music Education (University of Southern Maine)
- Graduate Studies (University of Southern Maine)
- Elementary and Middle School Music Teacher, Cape Elizabeth Schools, ME (2003–present)
- Maine Arts Teacher Fellowship in Ghana (2009)
- Balkan Pearl Music and Dance Festival in Macedonia (2011)
Jahara Sara Conz
Ghana Program Assistant
- B.A. Multidisciplinary Arts Management (University of Massachusetts Amherst)
- Certified Yoga Teacher (Karuna Center for Yoga and Healing Arts)
- Director, Choreographer and Dancer, FemmAesthetik Dance Ensemble (2008–2012)
- Yoga & Dance Teacher, Lotus Heart (2007–present)
- Ghana Program Assistant (2011–present)