By: Sabrina Kreiss ’21

Originally from Vineland, New Jersey, Pine Crest School Choral Director Mr. Michael Testa moved to Florida in 2001 to work with the Florida Grand Opera.

During that time, a former faculty member introduced him to Pine Crest where he became a member of the Fine Arts faculty in 2005. Now, almost 20 years later, Mr. Testa oversees and teaches chorus for students in the Lower, Middle, and Upper Schools on Pine Crest’s Fort Lauderdale campus, in addition to Advanced Placement (AP) Music Theory.


After graduating from Rowan University with his bachelor of arts in music education, Mr. Testa began performing all over the United States as an opera singer.

Mr. Testa began graduate school at West Chester University shortly after earning his bachelor’s degree. There, he studied music performance. Feeling drawn to education, he began teaching extracurricular classes in music throughout his collegiate studies. He landed his first teaching job at a K-8 public school while studying for his master’s degree.

I had the opportunity to meet with Mr. Testa to learn more about his career at Pine Crest and his passion for music and singing.

By Emily Roy ’20

Pine Crest School Band Director, Dr. Dannel Espinoza, was invited by The Academy of Arts and Letters to New York City to record with his saxophone quartet Project Fusion.

Dr. Dannel Espinoza, or Dr. E. as he is known by many of his students, can be found on the Pine Crest School Boca Raton campus. Dr. Espinoza joined the Pine Crest Fine Arts Department  as the Band Director during the 2018-19 school year. 

For more than 60 years, Pine Crest Summer has been a favorite among parents and campers alike.

Pine Crest Summer has been the source of summer fun and amazing memories for over 60 years.

Do you have a budding artist at home? Does your child sing into a hairbrush, put on shows in the living room, or spend hours editing footage he or she filmed on a cell phone?

By Biddi Solomon ’20

The Fine Arts play a pivotal role in Pine Crest School tradition. Each year, Pine Crest student-artists on both campuses and in all three Divisions — Lower, Middle, and Upper School — present a musical theater production. Last week, Pine Crest Upper School Panthers will transform into the East High School Wildcats in their production of Disney’s "High School Musical."