Welcome to the percussion studio at the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music!
Percussion students receive a weekly private lesson and attend a weekly studio class in which they are coached in solo, chamber, orchestral and jazz repertoire.
Visiting artists often present master classes for percussion students during performance classes. Past guest artists include Mark Damaloukis and Paul Yancich of The Cleveland Orchestra, French vibraphonist/composer Franck Tortiller and Kevin Bobo.
Percussion students participate in large ensembles such as the University Symphony Orchestra, Wind Symphony, Opera, Symphonic Band and Concert Band.
Percussion students studying jazz drums and vibes have the opportunity to participate in Jazz Ensemble (big band) and combos.
The CU Percussion Ensemble consisists of three sections: Percussion Ensemble, Latin Jazz Percussion Ensemble and Brazilian Bateria Ensemble.
Oustanding students often are awarded financial aid in the form of scholarships, graduate assistantships and fellowships. These awards are based on musical proficiency, academic achievement and potential for success in the various degrees. Many Brass/Percussion students receive additional income through engagements with professional ensembles in the Denver/Boulder metro area.
Douglas Walter
Professor of Percussion and Jazz Douglas Walter is the only marimba/vibraphone artist to win First Prize in the Concert Artists Guild Competition in New York City. His debut recital in Carnegie Recital Hall received a positive review in the New York Times. He has performed over 350 solo recitals and concerti in 40 states, Canada, Brazil and eight countries in Europe, in addition to conventions of the Percussive Arts Society, International Association of Jazz Educators and MENC. An accomplished orchestral musician, Walter has performed with the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, Oregon Symphony and Santa Fe Opera, Colorado Music Festival and Colorado Ballet orchestras. Walter holds a dual BM from North Texas State University, summa cum laude, two master's degrees (orchestral conducting and percussion) from the University of Michigan and a DMA from Temple University, where he studied with Alan Abel and David Samuels. His BA in French Literature from CU Boulder is also designated summa cum laude. More
Carl Dixon
At the University of Colorado Boulder, Carl Dixon teaches percussion lessons to undergraduate and graduate students and directs the Latin Jazz percussion ensemble and the Brazilian Bateria percussion ensemble.
Dixon is the Musical Director of the Boulder Samba School and Bateria Alegria, a 20-30 member Brazilian drumming ensemble. He teaches private lessons in all areas of percussion and has presented workshops at Indiana University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Naropa University, Colorado College, Colorado State Univeristy-Pueblo, and the Colorado and Wyoming PAS Days of Percussion. More
Michael Tetreault
Michael Tetreault holds a Bachelor of Music from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY and a Master of Music Degree from the Royal Academy of Music in London, UK. Tetreault is currently Principal Timpanist of the Central City Opera, Fort Collins Symphony, Principal Percussionist of the Boulder Philharmonic and Assistant Principal Percussion of the Colorado Springs Philharmonic. Tetreault is also part of the percussion faculty at the University of Colorado (Boulder). Tetreault has performed domestically and abroad with the London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, Toronto Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Central City Opera, Utah Symphony, Orchestre de Paris, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, RTE Concert Orchestra (Dublin), Ulster Orchestra (Belfast), and the Halle Orchestra (Manchester) and many others. More
