Roots Music Academy plants itself in Glencoe

Sisters Sara Mungovan and Melissa Vincent have always bonded over being the sole musical members of their family.

Now the sisters are teaming up to develop more of those connections for North Shore families with their new music school in Glencoe, Roots Music Academy.

The sisters have long dreamed about opening a school. After they both quit their teaching jobs, it seemed like a logical step.

“We’ve always talked about this,” Mungovan said. “What if we just do it?”

Located in the Writers Theatre building, 325 Tudor Court, Roots Music Academy will provide children ages 0 to 4 with music experiences, teaching rhythm and socialization, starting this fall.

Mungovan said they wanted a name simple enough for a toddler to say. So the pair settled on Roots, a word with plenty of musical meaning.

“To us, roots represents the foundation of music, specifically referencing root notes and chords, as well as the rich traditions of the roots music genre,” Vincent said. “Most importantly, it symbolizes our mission to plant foundations and the love for it in children.”

Both Mungovan and are certified children’s music teachers and have experience teaching in multiple school districts in Chicagoland. Vincent, of Winnetka, has also worked at music programs in North Shore schools, including Highcrest Middle School, Wilmette Junior High School, Marie Murphy School and Carlton Washburne School.

But working in a public school can be difficult, Mungovan said, adding that the job requires a lot of administrative work and rigid hours. The sisters said their teaching experience can only help at Roots Music Academy.

“I think that with our classroom experience … is what might help us stand out a little bit,” Vincent said. “We know how to scaffold and to give certain ages what they need.”

The music school is renting the Stephanie & Bill Sick Patron Lounge inside the theater’s building, and the music school is not related to the Writers Theatre.

“We were also just really inspired by the professional theater setting,” Vincent said. “We were just like, ‘This would be an incredible place to come to work.’”

To start off the school’s inaugural season, the duo is starting small: a mixed aged music class for children aged 0-4 and their caregivers.

Teaching music is like teaching a new language, according to Vincent. When the toddlers get older, she said, they’ll more easily adapt to formal music lessons.

Each class reportedly will start with a welcome song, then with the introduction of a variety of instruments — shakers, rhythms sticks and more — the students will learn rhythm and tonality.

The main instrument of the class, however, will be voice.

Mungovan said she’s excited to create a “support group” for young parents and caregivers.

“I still talk with the moms that I met 18 years ago when I had my first baby,” Mungovan said. “We still travel together, and I met them in a music class. To me that was so helpful in my life, and I’m excited for young parents or caregivers to also experience it.”

The class will last for eight weeks with 40-minute sessions each week, starting at $295 per child. The academy intends to start with two different classes and expand from there.

In the future, the duo hopes to host infant lullaby classes, music lessons and summer camps. Until then, Roots Music Academy has been making its connections via local events and bulletin boards

“The real reason we started teaching was for the kids,” Mungovan said. “ … We can make it more about the families, the community, the creative part of the learning process. It just allows us to do what we find so special about music and working with people.”

For more information on Roots Music Academy, visit the organization’s website or email director@rootsmusicacademy.com.

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