Staff
Noah Baerman, Founder and Artistic Director
Noah Baerman is a pianist, composer, educator, author, activist and, since 2012, Artistic Director of RMI. His devotion to the arts as a force of good in the world dates back to his teen years, as does his interest in the intersections of different art forms. Through RMI he has furthered his work of raising awareness of topics including disability, nonviolence and the American foster care crisis, while teaching and nurturing others seeking to find transcendence of self and society through art.
“It is an amazing gift to have a bright future in spite of adversity. I hope to create things of sufficient beauty that I can give that gift back many times over.”
Noah Baerman
For more information on Noah Baerman, please visit his artist page on this site
Dave Kopperman, Vice President of Design and Branding
Dave Kopperman is an artist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in Rockland County, New York. Dave holds a BFA in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design and has worked as a design professional and Creative Director for over twenty years. His comics work has appeared in a variety of publications, including KPMGo, Anything But Monday, and Signal to Noise (in collaboration with Duplex Planet creator David Greenberger), and he has developed and taught courses on the creation of comics. Visit his artist page for more information.
Gabe Gordon, Senior Program Associate
Gabe Gordon is an arts administrator and creative community member in Brooklyn NY. During his studies at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT, Gabe cultivated his passions for music and education, playing piano/keyboards in a number of ensembles and working at Green Street Arts Center. He moved to New York in the summer of 2012 and joined Manhattan School of Music as Distance Learning Program Coordinator. In the summer of 2016 Gabe then became Program Coordinator at LEAP, helping to bring arts integrated programming into NYC schools. Gabe also has experience in private piano instruction and event planning.
Peter LaMalfa, Senior Program Associate
Peter LaMalfa is a jazz pianist from central Connecticut, now based in New York. An alumnus of the music program at Purchase College in Westchester County, NY (where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in jazz studies) and of Portland State University in Oregon (where he earned his M.M.), Pete has studied with esteemed musicians such as Ray Vega, Pete Malinverni, Todd Coolman, David Hazeltine, Darrell Grant and George Colligan. Peter is passionate about defending the environment, promoting equal rights and arts education. He enjoys traveling, cooking and a good cup of coffee.
Karen Hogg, Development Associate
Karen Hogg is a multi-instrumentalist, educator, and writer based in Connecticut. She holds degrees from Berklee College of Music and Western Kentucky University. Karen is the author of the instructional books Women in Rock and Guitar Made Easy. She believes that creating art and having access to art is a soul-healing necessity that should and can be available to all.
Joshua Kwassman, Technical Associate
Joshua Kwassman is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, and audio engineer based in New York. He holds music degrees from the New School and NYU and has received wide acclaim for his two albums as a bandleader, Songs of the Brother Spirit and Heartwork. He has performed as a featured artist across North and South America, including the famed Lincoln Center in New York, Symphony Space, JazzPeru festival in Lima, Peru, Catalina’s in Hollywood, California, and many other venues.