VSMS is owned and operated by former NYU (New York University) professors Van Bich Nguyen and Sean Buhr. We are a music teaching and recording studio, production company and home to the Pineapple Kids Show and its programs.
We met in graduate school at NYU earning multiple Master degrees in Vocal Performance, Musical Theatre and Vocal Pedagogy. We were fortunate to study and perform in concerts, regional and Off-Broadway productions with some of the best in the business in NYC. We were also professors at NYU for about 10 years combined, teaching voice, working with people from all over the globe (like we still do today) and developing a wonderful reputation among our peers and students. A few years after Van moved back to California, Sean also traveled back and forth from NYC to LA to teach and perform as we started to collaborate more and merge our two studios. In 2018, we officially launched Van and Sean Music Studios, which was later shortened to VS Music Studios (VSMS). What started out as a home teaching studio in Van’s living room has now evolved beyond just music. We are a family and a network to help professional, pre-professional and beginner artists alike become more independent and knowledgable, develop skills, build confidence and grow. We are proud to serve our clients in Southern California with our 2 physical locations in WESTMINSTER and COSTA MESA, and world-wide ONLINE.
Bich Van Nguyen
Vietnamese-American singer-actress-songwriter, TV host and jewelry designer Bich-Van Nguyen was handed the mandolin by her grandfather when she was four. She started taking piano lessons at age five and singing at six, and has been performing ever since.
Previously trained at National Music Conservatory in Vietnam and at Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, Long Beach, California, Bich-Van graduated with a Masters in Musical Theater at New York University, and an Advanced Certificate in Vocal Pedagogy.
Bich-Van is one of the most versatile and sought-after Vietnamese-American vocalists, and has performed as a headliner with Asia Entertainment, the Vietnamese – American Philharmonic, the Ngan Khoi Chorus, and more. She also performs in Opera, Musical Theater and stage productions, and headlines concerts all over the world at prestigious venues such as Kennedy Center (DC), Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center (NY), Segerstrom Center for the Arts (CA), Musco Center for the Arts (CA), Carpenter Performing Arts Center (CA), La Mirada Theater (CA), Rachel Schlesinger Concert Hall (VA), Desiring The Arts Festival (IA), Marie Stéphane Concert Hall (Montreal), National Music Conservatory (Vietnam), Quan Ngua Stadium (Vietnam) among others.
Notable roles include the Lead in the World-Premiere Opera “What The Horse Eats”, Lead in the World-Premiere Monodrama “Count To Ten”, the Muse (Lead) in the Off-Broadway musical “A World Without Harmony”, Mẹ Mõ and Sùng Bà in “Tale of Lady Thi Kinh”, Tuptim in “The King and I”, Kim in “Miss Saigon”, Christine in “Phantom of the Opera”, Cleopatra in “Giulio Cesare” and more.
Bich-Van hosts her own TV acoustic musical show called “Gác Nhỏ THE NOOK Acoustic” and her travel show called “LET’S GO!” while also appearing in countless TV/radio interviews and talk shows. Most recently, she appeared as a guest coach and celebrity judge on SBTN VOICE.
Besides her 13 albums up to date, Bich-Van can be seen and heard in numerous CDs and DVDs. Bich-Van now resides in Southern California. Besides actively performing, she teaches piano and voice, coaches and music directs, with over fifteen years of teaching experiences, including two years in the Faculty of New York University. More info: www.bichvanofficial.com
Sean Buhr
Sean Buhr is a singer, actor, songwriter, producer and voice teacher. Within the last few years he has been seen on stages at The Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.), Carnegie Hall (NYC), The Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center (NYC), 54 Below (NYC), The Signature Theatre( NYC), Skirball Center (NYC), The Town Hall Theatre (NYC), Laurie Beechman Theatre (NYC), Williams Center, Rose Center among many others throughout North America playing with the New York POPS and Stephen Schwartz to name a few. He has also performed internationally including the Shanghai Oriental Arts Center (Shanghai, China) and St. Petersburg Cathedral. His duo, Van and Sean, released three albums within the last three years. They are currently working on a Christmas Holiday album. Sean will also be releasing his debut solo album of his original songs. He produces and directs the annual Desiring the Arts Festival in Iowa, founded the McSweeny-Buhr Scholarship for the Arts and recently completed his seventh year as voice faculty at New York University. www.SeanBuhr.com
