San Francisco

Helena Fatima Colindres (they/them), who likes to go by “Mixti,” is a two-spirit, non-binary, versatile vocalist, educator, and activist of Nahua ancestry. As a rising opera vocalist, they have performed roles such as Thérèse in Poulenc’s Les Mamelles de Tirésias, die Königin in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, and Winnie in Beecher’s Sky on Swings with Opera Saratoga. Mixti graduated with a Master of Music in Voice and Pedagogy in May 2022 from the Peabody Conservatory. They also hold a Bachelor of Music in Voice and a Bachelor of Arts in Comparative American Studies with an emphasis on Identity and Diversity from Oberlin College and Conservatory. Additionally, they have an Associate of Arts in Latin American and Latinx Studies and an Associate of Science in Behavioral Sciences from City College of San Francisco. With over a decade of teaching experience, they are thrilled to begin their first year as a mentor with ArtSmart. Born and raised on Yelamu Ohlone land, Mixti is passionate about building community through their art, teaching, and daily organizing.

Mentoring Philosophy

A good mentor is someone who inspires and leads by listening and understanding what the mentee’s interests, goals, and needs are. They create an environment where questions and feedback are encouraged, mistakes are welcomed, and advice is gently offered. A good mentor is committed to ensuring their mentee feels valued, understood, accommodated, and above all else, celebrated!

“When you get these jobs that you have been so brilliantly trained for, just remember that your real job is that if you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else. This is not just a grab-bag candy game.” – Toni Morrison

Sergio Gonzalez (he/him) was born in El Paso, TX. He has lived in San Francisco since 2006, and began teaching for ArtSmart in 2022. He graduated from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of Cesar Ulloa. Gonzalez recently made his Opera San Jose debut as Tamino in their production of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. His students have gone on to prestigious vocal programs around the United States such as University of Southern California , University of California at Los Angeles, the Oberlin Conservatory, and Northwestern University.

Mentoring Philosophy
I believe communication, respect and understanding are essential to being a good mentor. 

“Work hard, have fun, and make it happen.” –Rafael Nadal

Erica Thelen (she/her) is a young dramatic soprano from Andover, Minnesota. Erica holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Oberlin Conservatory and a Master of Music degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Most recently, Erica made her role debut as Ma Zegner in Proving Up by Missy Mazzoli at her alma mater and performed the role of the “First Lady” in Die Zauberflöte with the Santa Rosa Symphony. Erica has also sung in master classes for Christine Goerke and Lester Lynch. Growing up in a musical family, Erica has fond memories of watching her parents on stage in community theater productions, as well as listening to her mother teach voice lessons and sing in the Minnesota Opera Chorus. Erica’s greatest goal is to inspire others with music, as her parents inspired her. This is her first year as a mentor at ArtSmart, and she is very excited to help young singers in the spirit of her own mentors.

Mentoring Philosophy
A good mentor is able to meet a student where they are and guide them toward progress, whatever that may mean in a particular scenario. Life is full of good and bad, and a good mentor is able to establish principles to help guide someone through all of it. Whether it be music, school, work, or life in general, most of those lessons apply equally.

“And at last, you’ll know with surpassing certainty that only one thing is more frightening than speaking your truth. And that is not speaking.” – Audre Lorde

Alyssa Vieau (they/she) is a musician and actor from Chicopee, Massachusetts, with a wide range of experience in various styles of music such as classical, musical theater, pop, jazz, and songwriting. They hold both a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and an Advanced Music Studies Certificate in Voice from Carnegie Mellon University, and a Master of Music degree in Voice from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM). From an early age, they participated in various local gigs, community theater, and even music-directed their collegiate a cappella group. Alyssa has performed in the Bay Area with Pocket Opera, Cinnabar Theater, and SF Salon Music. Their recent performance highlights at SFCM include Gherardo in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi (2024), Miss Shingle in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (2024), Armelinde in Viardot’s Cendrillon (2024), and La tasse and La libellule in Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges (2023). In addition to performing, they also teach music at Songbird Studios in downtown San Francisco.

Mentoring Philosophy
A good mentor is an honest and empathetic person who establishes a safe space for productive conversation and growth. It requires knowledge, vulnerability, open-mindedness, and the willingness to learn with and from others in the process. Specifically in music creation, even more so because making music is one of the most vulnerable things someone can share with another person. There must be trust on that journey. In my one-on-one teaching, I promote a safe space for any emotions to arise and for my students to share anything with me as we work creatively. Creating spaces for openness promotes the exploration of authentic creativity, which is most important to me in my teaching.

“Creativity comes with being human. It’s in all of us. It’s just a matter of how we find it and express it.”