Teachers
Our teaching community grows with every semester, welcoming new teachers from traditions across the world. Each one enriches our community by bringing the depth of their musical tradition. Explore their stories below.
Derya Türkan
Derya is widely regarded as one of the leading masters of the classical kemençe. A graduate of the Istanbul Technical University Turkish Music State Conservatory, he has been a long-standing artist of TRT Istanbul Radio and has built an international career as a performer and recording artist. Türkan has collaborated with distinguished musicians such as Kudsi Ergüner, Jordi Savall, Renaud Garcia-Fons, and Erkan Oğur, performing at renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, the Berlin Philharmonie, Concertgebouw, and London’s Festival Hall.
Through numerous recordings and international projects, he has played a key role in bringing the Istanbul kemençe tradition to global audiences. In 2025, he received the Aga Khan Music Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to preserving and advancing this musical heritage.
Regis Molina Reynaldo
Regis is a Cuban-born multi-instrumental composer and improviser from Havana, now based in Berlin. His music blends Afro-Cuban traditions with modern jazz, reflecting a wide range of influences from Latin music to contemporary improvisation.
An active performer on the international scene, he has shared the stage with renowned artists including Chucho Valdés, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Till Brönner, Bireli Lagrène, and the Buena Vista Social Club musicians. Reynaldo has toured extensively across Europe and the Americas and has appeared at festivals and major jazz clubs such as A-Trane and Quasimodo in Berlin. He has received several international awards, including prizes at the JoJazz competition and collaborations on Grammy- and Juno-recognized recordings.
Vladimir Karparov
Vladimir is a Bulgarian-born saxophonist, composer, and bandleader based in Berlin. He studied jazz and popular music at the Pancho Vladigerov Academy of Music in Sofia and continued his studies at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg and the Hochschule für Musik “Hanns Eisler” in Berlin. His music combines modern jazz with the rich rhythmic and melodic traditions of Bulgarian and Balkan folk music.
Karparov has performed internationally across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, collaborating with artists such as Ivo Papasov, Theodossi Spassov, John Hollenbeck, and Amira Medunjanin. As a bandleader, he has released several albums including Thracian Dance, Antihypocrisy, and Iglika, and leads projects such as the Forkolor Saxophone Quartet and the Balkan Spirit Ensemble.
Roland Satterwhite
Roland is a Canadian-born American violinist, violist, singer, and composer based in Berlin since 2008. A graduate of Amherst College, he has built an international career performing across jazz, world, and contemporary music. He is a featured artist with the Moka Efti Orchestra, known from the Babylon Berlin series, and a long-time member of the Balkan-influenced ensemble Django Lassi, with whom he has performed over 250 concerts and festivals across Europe.
He is also the founder of the Berlin-based trio Tolyqyn, whose genre-crossing music blends jazz, rock, and global influences and has received critical acclaim. As a freelance musician, he has collaborated and toured internationally with artists including Albita Rodriguez, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Pedrito Martinez, and Pupy y los que Son Son.