Summer Percussion Academy

June 21-25, 2021

WVU percussion faculty will provide individual and group lessons, clinics, lectures, and more in the Summer Percussion Academy. This comprehensive percussion academy is for beginners through advanced percussion students ages 14 to 18. Registration is limited. Scholarships are available.

• Ages: 14 through 18
  
• Dates: June 21-25, 2021
• Cost: $100

Guest Artists

George R. Willis is the Director of Percussion Studies and Professor of Music at West Virginia University.  Professor Willis also directs the Mountaineer fife and drum ensemble, a unique group that specializes in both traditional fife and drum music as well as folk songs from the Appalachian region. Mr. Willis has performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for over 20 years, including tours to Europe, Japan, and South America.  Other orchestral ensembles include the Philadelphia Orchestra, West Virginia Symphony, Wheeling Symphony, and the New Caritas Orchestra at Duke University. As a chamber musician he performs with his wife, Ellen-Maria Willis, in The Willis Duo, the D’Addario Percussion Ensemble, and the Jewish Music Festival.  George’s discography includes a new recording with The Willis Duo ( Something Old, Something New), a Mountaineer Fife and Drum CD, many recordings with the Pittsburgh Symphony and two recent CDs with Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble.

Dr. Michael B. Vercelli is the director of the World Music Performance Center at West Virginia University. Michael holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Percussion Performance with a minor in Ethnomusicology from the University of Arizona. Dr. Vercelli has received many awards for both his performance and study of indigenous music and has released recordings with master Ghanaian xylophonists Tijan Dorwana and Bernard Woma. Michael has received the Snowshoe Institute Award of Excellence for Scholarship in the Arts and the WVU College of Creative Arts awards for Outstanding Service and Internationalizing the College. Dr. Vercelli has published in the Percussive Arts Society’s journal, Percussive Notes, and in the third edition of Gary Cook’s Teaching Percussion. He is a Meinl Percussion artist and a member of the Vic Firth educational team.

Internationally known drum set artist Brian Wolfe has performed and recorded with a number of diverse artists and producers, and has maintained a busy schedule of extensive international touring with artists including David Byrne and St. Vincent, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, and Maynard Ferguson. In addition to being the drummer on various recording sessions led by Grammy-nominated producers Phil Ramone, Mitchell Froom, Gabe Roth, Mark Ronson, and Mike Viola, Brian has performed on a number of national television shows including The Late Show with David Letterman, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Conan, Michael Buble’s Christmas in Hollywood, Later with Jules Holland, Austin City Limits, Good Morning America, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Brian is an adjunct professor at WVU where he directs the drum set studies.

J. “Mark” Reilly  is considered by many to be one of the foremost military music connectors in the world. As an internationally recognized performer, speaker, educator, and consultant, Mark’s experience has allowed him to travel the world extensively working at the state and royal level.

Mark has presented at such prestigious institutions such as the Amsterdam Conservatory, the Royal College of Music, and the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, Austria. His collaborative work with the Top Secret Drum Corps , His Majesty’s The King’s Guard of Norway, Her Majesty’s Royal Marines, de la Garde republican and the Pontifical Swiss Guard has given him vast experience in international cultural events.

He holds degrees in Music Education from Northwestern State and Boston Universities, is endorsed by Mapex Drums, Majestic Percussion, REMO, Innovative Percussion, Sabian, Prologix, Loyal Drums, and Büchler Trommelbau and is a adjunct professor at West Virginia University.