Music Director and Arranger JD Shaw is excited to announce the 2023 percussion design and leadership team; Tyler Sammons, Matt Penland, Jesus Sanchez, Dan Sailer, and Reid Paxton.
Tyler Sammons (Percussion Supervisor/Front Ensemble Arranger) serves as the percussion director at Westlake High School in Austin, Texas. Throughout his career, he has served in teaching or design roles for many notable high school programs, including Westlake High School, Marian Catholic High School, L.D. Bell High school, Prosper High School, and Hebron High School.
Tyler served as a member of the percussion staff for the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps from 2012 until 2022. During that time, the Santa Clara Vanguard won the Fred Sanford Award for best percussion performance 5 times and was named the 2018 DCI World Champion, 2017 Silver Medalist, and 2019 Bronze Medalist. Prior to teaching at Vanguard, Tyler taught the Boston Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps, and was a marching member of the Crossmen (TX) and Phantom Regiment (IL), capturing the DCI world championship with the Phantom Regiment in 2008, and the Fred Sanford award for best percussion performance in 2008 and 2010.
Matt Penland (Percussion Battery Arranger) is a percussion performer, educator, and arranger based out of Washington, D.C. where he is a percussionist in the U.S. Air Force Band. Matt has been arranging music alongside his friend Tyler Sammons since 2012. He was previously a percussion arranger for Music City Drum and Bugle Corps from 2019-2022, for the Hawthorne Caballeros from 2020-2022, and is currently an arranger for the Guardians Drum Corp. Matt was also a percussion instructor at the Santa Clara Vanguard from 2012-2022, during which time the group won 5 Fred Sanford High Percussion awards at DCI Finals. As a DCI performer, he was a member of the Crossmen, Carolina Crown, Phantom Regiment, and Santa Clara Vanguard. Matt is very excited to be joining the team at his alma mater corps and looks forward to continuing the tradition of excellence!
Jesus Sanchez (Percussion Caption Head) is an active performer and educator in both the marching arts and drum set idioms. Jesus regularly performs with the Disneyland Band, among other shows, at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, and is currently on the instructional staff at Pulse Percussion. Jesus holds a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from the California State University at Fullerton and is currently finishing his Masters of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of Southern California.
Dan Sailer (Snare Instructor) is the Professor of Percussion at Augustana University and Assistant Director of the Viking Marching Band. Dan was a member of the snare line at Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps from 2007-2010 and Santa Clara Vanguard from 2011-2012. He has received numerous snare drum accolades at DCI and PAS solo competitions. Dan has been a percussion staff member for many premier high school groups in the Midwest, including Lincoln HS, Irondale HS, and Brandon Valley HS. He has also taught at River City Rhythm, Minnesota Brass, Boston Crusaders, and Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps.
Reid Paxton (Front Ensemble Coordinator) is currently the Percussion Director at James Bowie High School in Austin, Texas. Reid’s involvement with the drum corps community began in 2003. Most recently, he worked with the percussion section and front ensemble of the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps alongside his mentors, Paul and Sandi Rennick. While on staff with Vanguard from 2011 to 2019, the group earned the Fred Sanford Best Percussion Performance Award 5 times, in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Vanguard was also named the Drum Corps International World Champion in 2018.
Reid’s journey with the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps began as a member of the front ensemble in 2007. As a member in 2008, the corps won both the DCI World Championship title and Fred Sanford Award. He transitioned to the percussion staff and helped the corps win their third Fred Sanford Award in 2010.
“Their personal connections to the corps and to their caption peers position this team to move forward without missing a beat,” said Artistic Director, Tony Hall. “I can’t wait to get everyone together to produce our 2023 offering!”
Take the First Step
Start your journey to membership with The Phantom Regiment! Our audition process begins with a simple online application process. From there, you may choose an optional virtual audition. Participating in a virtual audition is an opportunity to receive valuable feedback from our World Class instructors before any in-person audition or callback camp.
