Music Teachers
JOIN OUR TEAM! Now hiring music instructors!
Please send a resume to encoreofcameron@gmail.com to apply.
Amy Yarnellst
Music Director - Piano/Voice
Amy Yarnell is a Missouri native who developed a love for music at an early age. She began taking piano lessons at six years old and grew up singing and playing in her church. At fifteen, she became her church’s pianist and later served as Music Director for ten years. It was through this experience that she discovered her passion for helping children develop their musical abilities and confidence.
Amy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education from Evangel University and a Master’s Degree in Gifted Education from Drury University. Before moving to North Carolina, she taught K–12 vocal music in Missouri and middle school gifted education in Tennessee.
Since joining Encore Performing Arts Studio in 2021, Amy has taught piano, voice, ukulele, and music classes while working with students of all ages and abilities. She now serves as Music Director, where she oversees the studio’s music programs, supports and mentors instructors, and works to create meaningful musical experiences for students and families. Amy is passionate about helping students build strong musical foundations, discover their unique talents, and develop a lifelong appreciation for the arts.
Chris Bost
Guitar/Ukulele
Chris Bost has a twenty-year music history. This includes 22 years of performing and 14 years experience instructing. Chris started learning at a young age and knows how important each students goals, taste and learning style are to keeping music exciting for them. He personalizes each students lessons helping them succeed with their music ideas.
Chris has been a member of the Encore team since it's beginning in 2017. He is also now a school music teacher.
Petra Jeffords
Violin/Kindermusik
Petra Jeffords is a classically trained Baroque violinist and Early Childhood Educator with a passion for teaching music. Petra was born and raised in Hungary, she started learning music at the age of 7 and has been playing the violin for over 30 years now.
After completing her studies in Budapest, Hungary, she got accepted to the Royal Academy of Music in London and moved to England, where she studied under Mr. Simon Standage for two years, while also achieving an NVQ level 3 certificate in
Early years Education at City and Islington College. Petra has been teaching violin both overseas and in the US since 1999 as a private instructor and a music school
teacher with a solo and orchestra performance background in a variety of settings. After her husband’s retirement from the US Air Force, she is looking forward to settling down in Fayetteville and continuing to mentor and teach students of all ages.
Luke Taylor
All Instruments
Luke Taylor is a multi-instrumentalist music teacher native to North Carolina. Although he did study saxophone under Dr. Scott Kallestad, he has a varied experience performing on a wide variety of instruments, and in a wide range of genres. Luke received his Bachelor's Degree from Appalachian State University in Music Education with a concentration in instruments under Dr. John Ross, and a certificate in Jazz Studies under Todd Wright. After his studies, Luke briefly taught at Whiteville High School, before moving to Charlotte to be with his wife, Courtney. After working for Music and Arts, Luke followed his wife to the Sandhills, where they teach today. In addition to teaching music at Encore, Luke can be seen enjoying performance on stage as an actor as well.
John Carson
Guitar/Piano
John Carson is a guitarist from North Carolina with 20 years of experience playing the guitar. John grew up surrounded by music and developed a love for it at a young age. He studied classical guitar at Appalachian State University with Dr. Douglas James. Though his specialty is classical guitar, John enjoys playing various styles of music. While attending college, he played in various ensembles including guitar orchestra, Irish ensemble, and a student run video game ensemble that played arrangements of music from various video games. He particularly enjoyed playing in the Irish ensemble at ASU and went on to start a group of his own with some friends from the school of music. John enjoys sharing his passion for music with others through performing and teaching.