Alek Barkats (Music Teacher, Pre-K to 6th Grade)

Alek Barkats (he/him) will join Greene Street Friends after teaching and playing music in the Bay Area for nearly a decade. He is an accomplished pianist and songwriter, who loves to share his passion for music with others. As an Orff Schulwerk based teacher, he encourages students to play with the building blocks of music, and inspires them by sharing music traditions from all over the world.  He seeks to foster a learning environment where students feel they can take risks, get creative, and have fun.

Previously, Alek taught 1st and 2nd grade at Beauvoir the National Cathedral Elementary school, in his native Washington, DC. Later, he moved to the Bay Area to teach at AltSchool, Fort Mason, all while regularly performing up and down the west coast. Eventually, Alek sought to fuse his passions of music and education together (music education!) and began teaching jazz and classical piano, led his own music workshops and summer camps, and finally made his way into the music classroom at Alta Vista School in San Francisco. He is excited to join the Greene Street community, and explore all that Philadelphia has to offer.