Heather Smith
Heather M. Smith, Owner and Director of MUSIC PLAY, has recently returned to public school teaching (part-time) at Oakton Elementary School. Before spending time home with her children, she was employed as a full-time elementary music teacher for the Loudoun County and Fairfax County Public Schools. She also held the music teaching positions at the Lake Anne Nursery Kindergarten and the United Christian Parish Preschool for a number of years. Currently, she is the also the Director of Children’s Choirs at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Reston. Holding Bachelors degrees in Music Education and Voice Performance from the State University of New York at Buffalo, Heather also has a Masters Degree in Music Education from the University of South Carolina.

Heather has assisted in numerous early childhood research projects including her Masters thesis project entitled Vocal Responses of Two Infants to Three Criterion Songs. She was also one of six music teachers featured on the PBS Documentary Music Play: Ba Ba, Be-Bop, Beethoven. Heather lives in Reston with her husband and three children.

Jennifer Zschunke
Jennifer Zschunke is an enthusiastic singer and entertainer who has spent years performing with a cappella and madrigal groups. A former marketing and communications professional for non-profit, high tech and investment firms, Jennifer chose to stay home when her oldest son was born in 2006. She took MUSIC PLAY wth her son in 2007 and was immediately pleased with the program and Heather's commitment to its theories. In turn, she began working with Heather in 2008 to train to become a MUSIC PLAY teacher.

Jennifer sang in three high school choirs, including the elite Madrigals, and, at the College of William & Mary, sang with the Intonations, an all women's a cappella group, for four years. After graduating from college and moving to the D.C. area, Jennifer sang with dcVocals, a co-ed a cappella group, for five years; after a move to Atlanta, she sang with Octave Atlanta, an all women's a cappella group, for three years. Back in the Northern Virginia area in 2006, Jennifer joined Kismet (now known as UltraViolet), an all women's a cappella group, and sang with them for three years. Currently, Jennifer is the lead female vocalist for local rock band The Slow Burn and guest lead vocalist for Always On Band.