2017 Staff Additions & Enhancements
The Bluecoats are proud to the announce the addition of Matt Jordan and Ryan Anderson to the corps’ already outstanding instructional staff. Matt Jordan will serve as Assistant Music Ensemble Coordinator, and Ryan Anderson joins the Bluecoats as Battery Coordinator/ Tenors. In addition, we are excited to formalize the establishment of a specific Electronics caption within the structure of our instructional team. Leading this new caption will be longtime front ensemble instructor and sound engineer Erik Kosman. Assistant Music Ensemble Coordinator Matt Jordan is an internationally acclaimed percussion educator, arranger, and performer currently residing in Nashville, TN. In the marching activity, Matt served as the front ensemble arranger and coordinator for the Phantom Regiment from 2011-2014, and has also worked with numerous other organizations including Carolina Crown and Spirit of Atlanta. He is currently the front ensemble arranger for Music City Mystique Indoor Percussion Ensemble, and serves as the Concert Percussion Marketing Manager for Pearl Corporation/Adams Musical Instruments. In his new role with the Bluecoats, Matt will assist Music Ensemble Coordinator Ryan Kilgore.
Battery Coordinator/ Tenors Ryan Anderson is also no stranger to the drum corps activity. He’s served as an instructor for Carolina Crown, and was most recently the Battery Manager for the Madison Scouts in 2015 and 2016. In addition, he teaches many of the top indoor percussion ensembles in Southern California including Pulse Percussion where he is the Battery Manager, Etiwanda High School and Rosemead High School. Ryan will partner in the leadership of the Bluecoats Percussion section with Caption Head Roger Carter and Battery Coordinator/ Snares Tom Gasparrini.
Electronics Caption Head Erik Kosman played timpani for the Bluecoats from 2006-2009. After aging out with the corps he went on to teach Spirit of Atlanta from 2011 to 2013, and rejoined the Bluecoats as a front ensemble instructor and sound engineer in 2014. In addition to his role with the Bluecoats, Erik serves as the Technical Coordinator for the Bailey Performing Arts Center at Kennesaw State University. He will be joined in the new Electronics caption by Sound Engineers Nick Usadel and Matt Skowronski.
Matt, Ryan and Erik are joined by an incredible group of returning designers and instructors, who led the Bluecoats to their first Drum Corps International World Championship in 2016.
Program Coordinator Dean Westman and Artistic Director/Visual Designer Jon Vanderkolff will continue to lead the Bluecoats Design Team in 2017. Vince Oliver returns as Composer/Electronics Designer and will also serve as the corps' Music Coordinator in 2017. Composers Doug Thrower and Tom Rarick will return as Composer/Brass Designer and Composer/Percussion Designer, respectively. Aaron Beck returns as Audio Systems Designer. Jim Moore continues as Guard Designer, Choreographer and Guard Caption Supervisor, and Greg Lagola returns as Costume Designer and contributing member of the design team.
Caption Supervisor Dave Mackinnon and Caption Head Derek Gipson will again lead the Bluecoats Brass program. Ryan Kilgore will continue as Music Ensemble Coordinator and Roger Carter returns as Percussion Caption Head. In his fifteenth year with the Bluecoats, Brad Palmer returns as Front Ensemble Coordinator. In addition to Jim Moore, the Bluecoats Guard program will again be led by Caption Head Shavon Garcia. Mike Fanning returns for his fourth season as the corps’ Visual Caption Head.
