Bea Escobar
Owner, General Manager
Bea Escobar has been a resident of Northwest Arkansas for nearly 20 years. Bea comes from a musical family and saw the opportunity to address the unique needs of NWA students wanting performance-based music education. With over 25 years of successful corporate experience and a degree in business, she launched School of Rock Fayetteville in 2016 and acquired School of Rock Bentonville in 2021. In Bea’s words, owning a School of Rock is easily the most rewarding and successful enterprise she has ever been a part of. The school is always full of laughter, music, and happiness. It is so much more than just a business to her.
Eric Watson
Music Director
Eric Watson started playing guitar at 13 years of age in good ol' Arkansas and quickly dove into his local music scene. Eric identified with many of the local acts he heard and saw play as a kid, and looked up to what they did. He wanted to play on stage too. Eric saw the opportunity to start seriously studying music, including theory, in high school and he embraced it, adding vocal music to his repertoire. After high school he studied Vocal Music Education both at Arkansas Tech and at the University of Arkansas in Fort Smith, participating in multiple choral groups and jazz ensembles.
Outside of academic music, Eric has been in rock and roll bands spanning from heavy metal to pop-punk and loves all kinds of music. Eric currently plays bass and tours in the progressive metal band Terminus. Eric prides himself in being able to take influence and knowledge in both theory and technique spanning a variety of genres and apply them to whatever he is currently working on. At School of Rock Bentonville, Eric loves to utilize this with his students who have varying tastes. Music has been one of the biggest parts of Eric's life and continues to shape everything he does!
Amanda Cole
Singing Teacher
From LA to Amsterdam, Amanda Cole has performed every genre of music imaginable. Country, R&B, rock, classical even Tejano have all been a part of her growing repertoire.
Amanda has shared the stage with many R&B and pop greats such as Destiny's Child, Mary J. Blige, and the late greats Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson. For a few years, Amanda performed as a replacement member of the legendary girl group En Vogue and has extensive experience on and off stage. As an actress, Amanda has been featured in productions such as Ain't Misbehavin', Anything Goes, and Dream Girls, as well as a string of other successful gospel and off-Broadway stage plays.
Amanda received rave reviews performing an 18-song, symphonic tribute to the late Ms. Whitney Houston with countless symphony orchestras around the country. She has over 130 million views collectively on Facebook as well as over 10 million on YouTube.
Matthew Smith
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher
Matthew teaches guitar and bass guitar at School of Rock Bentonville. He attended McNally Smith College of Music for guitar performance. He has played rock, Latin, and blues, and is currently part of a metal band called Endfall. He records and mixes the band's song demos. Outside of music, Matthew enjoys photography, videography, and video editing.
Max Hinojosa
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Drum Teacher, Singing Teacher
Max is a passionate multi-instrumentalist who has been playing music for as long as he can remember. He began playing guitar at the age of 5 and quickly fell in love with the instrument. He found a new passion in singing when he joined School of Rock as a student in the seventh grade. Max continued to develop his vocal skills in his high school's Chamber Choir and then Schola Cantorum at the University of Arkansas. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Music Business with an emphasis in classical voice training in 2022.
Max has performed in prestigious venues in England, Scotland, Serbia, and most recently, Carnegie Hall in NYC. Taking influences from a wide variety of genres, Max believes that it is important to expose yourself to many different types of music in order to become a well-rounded musician. Max plays with his band Pillar Reef and released an EP of original music in 2021.
Jenny Dietzel N.H.D.
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Jenny is a native of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and teaches keys, guitar, bass, and drums, with an emphasis on keys. She was also ranked number one in the state on xylophone in high school.
As a classically trained musician, Jenny has taken her musical abilities to a new level by becoming a singer-songwriter in a solo act in the last few years. Her education includes a doctorate in Natural Health, and she specializes in musician’s and children's health. A love of music combined with a healthy lifestyle, and positive mindset, has a direct impact on getting musicians, young and old, up on stage for a great time.
Let Jenny's passion for teaching music inspire you on your journey.
Blake Doyle
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Singing Teacher
Blake is a guitar, bass, and vocal teacher at School of Rock Bentonville. He has been playing guitar since he was 9 years old and grew a passion for it early on in his childhood. At the age of 14, he joined School of Rock Bentonville as a student, where he learned both bass and vocals in addition to furthering his guitar journey.
Blake has recorded music at Fraser Sound Studios in New York City with his band Sawyer Hill, which has tens of thousands of followers on TikTok and listeners on Spotify. He also enjoys guitar pedals/effects and uses them frequently to create interesting textures, tones, and sounds on his instrument.
Erin Cassidy
Drum Teacher
After 44 years in California, Erin Cassidy started a new musical journey and headed down to the south for the birth of his daughter and to start his teaching career. Playing drums and performing in different bands has been a passion in Erin’s life since he was 12 years old.
He started playing drums and performing in 1988 and has been jamming and touring around the western and southern states at clubs and festivals ever since. Erin has also shared the stage with countless amazing bands and musicians from around the states including playing and recording with a member of The Grateful Dead, saxophonist Martin Fierro.
Erin’s musical influences cover a wide range of music such as rock, funk, soul, metal, Latin, groove, jazz, reggae, disco, dance, country, bluegrass, and hip-hop just to name a few. His goal is to brighten lives through music and to pass on some of his rhythmic skills and knowledge that he has been taught and discovered throughout the years.