Anya Menk

Anya Menk is a musician, educator, composer, lyricist and social activist from Le Center, Minnesota. Menk’s diverse skill set is displayed through classical and jazz voice, piano and flute. She recently graduated with a Master’s Degree in Contemporary Performance from the Berklee Global Jazz Institute on full scholarship under the direction of GRAMMY-winning jazz pianist, Danilo Pérez. Menk has performed with jazz luminaries such as saxophonist Joe Lovano, drummer JT Bates and Peter Eldridge of New York Voices. She is the 2025 winner of the Dr. Dee Daniels Vocal Jazz Scholarship through Jazz Education Network.

Menk enjoys writing music with social justice themes as well as concepts that pique her curiosity. She enjoys singing and writing vocalese, a technically demanding practice in vocal jazz. She uses vocalese to tell intricate stories and to be an ambassador for the music itself, reinventing improvised solos from jazz greats with her lyrics.

Menk has been teaching privately for a decade, drawing inspiration from many thoughtful and devoted educators throughout her life. She believes that a strong technical foundation is paramount to play music from any genre on any instrument. She exposes her students to styles of music from all over the world, and she works to ensure that students feel represented in the works they play and sing. Community is at the heart of her instruction;most of all, she wishes for her students to leave her studio knowing the music made them grow in kindness to themselves and to others.