CURRENT MEMBERS
Keegan Vaughan
Keegan Vaughan is a percussionist from Dallas, Texas. He holds a Bachelors degree from the University of Oregon, during his undergraduate he had the opportunity to study with percussionists: Pius Cheung, Ian Kerr, Eriko Daimo, Keiko Abe, Victor Mendoza, Johan Bridger, and David Hildebrandt. An avid performer and educator, Keegan has played with the following groups: Orchestra Nova Northwest, Orchestra Next, Eugene Concert Choir, and the Eugene Difficult Music Ensemble. Teaching at the following institutions: Sheldon High School, Hebron High School, and the John G. Shedd Institute of the arts, where he taught private lessons and performed in their pit orchestra for musical theatre productions. Keegan is currently pursuing a Masters degree from the University of Delaware, where he is a member of their Graduate Percussion Group. He currently studies with Gene Koshinski and Timothy Broscious..
William Irish
William Irish is a solo percussionist, chamber musician, audio/video engineer, and educator from San Jose, California. In 2025, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor’s degree in Percussion Performance. While refining his abilities in Oregon under Professors Pius Cheung and Ian Kerr, William immersed himself in a wide range of musical experiences. He studied with renowned marimbist Eriko Daimo at the UO and even traveled internationally to further his training—studying with Keiko Abe in Tokyo, Johan Bridger in Copenhagen, and Victor Mendoza in Valencia. During these travels, he also performed at various international music festivals, broadening his artistic perspective and global reach. William is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Percussion Performance at the University of Delaware. There, he is a member of the UD Graduate Percussion Group, a dynamic chamber ensemble led by percussion directors Gene Koshinski and Tim Broscious.
Jacob Fullinwider
Jacob Fullinwider is currently pursuing a Masters in Percussion Performance and is a member of the University of Delaware Graduate Percussion Group. Prior to graduate school, he studied percussion at the University of North Texas under Mark Ford, Paul Rennick, and Dave Hall. During his time at UNT, Jacob was involved in the African Ensemble, Afro Cuban Ensemble, Two O’Clock Steel Band, Gamelan Ensemble, Brazilian Ensemble, South Indian Ensemble, and Jazz Chamber Music Ensemble. He had large ensemble experience with the UNT Studio Orchestra, Lab Orchestra, Baroque Orchestra, and was the Principal Timpanist for the 2023 Symphony Orchestra. In 2022, Fullinwider received first prize for the Percussive Arts Society International Convention Snare Drum Competition and was awarded both the Christopher Deane & Deborah Mashburn Performance Scholarships. While in the Dallas area, he has performed with the Mesquite Symphony Orchestra, Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra, Coppell Community Orchestra, North Central Texas Winds, and the Dallas Brass Band. In the summer months he has participated in the Warner Brothers Film Orchestra Intensive, the International Timpani Intensive, the Bang On a Can Summer Festival, the American Percussion Seminar, and the Sō Percussion Summer Institute. He has recorded with Tito Puente Jr. and participated in music tours across Ireland and Poland.
Nathan Jackman
From the majestic mountain landscape of Cedar Hills, Utah, Nathan Jackman is an accomplished musician driven by a deep passion for music. For fifteen years, Nathan has been captivating audiences with his musical prowess in various styles, including Caribbean, percussion chamber music, opera, musical theater, collaborative piano, jazz, contemporary, and orchestral percussion.
He has performed with many marching percussion groups, including Battalion Drum & Bugle Corps, Impact Percussion, Brigham Young University Drumline, and the Utah Valley University Green Man Group. He is a sought-after teacher for both drumline and front ensemble, having worked with various high schools around Utah. In addition to his experience in teaching, he loves to write music for piano and percussion.
Nathan received an associate’s degree from Utah Valley University, a bachelor’s degree in percussion performance from Brigham Young University, and is working towards a master’s degree at the University of Delaware.
FORMER MEMBERS
Carl Tafoya
Hailing from Bloomington, Indiana, percussionist Carl Tafoya has performed with many different groups and organizations throughout the state, including the Southern Indiana Wind Ensemble, Columbus Indiana Philharmonic, Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, Constellation Stage & Screen, Bloomington Chamber Singers, and Ensemble CONCEPT/21.
In May of 2022, Carl graduated from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, receiving his Bachelors in Music Performance. Outside of Carl’s MM studies & appointment with the University of Delaware’s Graduate Percussion Group, he has served as principal percussionist of UD’s Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble.
Carl enjoys building, repairing, and modifying percussion instruments when he isn’t playing them. He indulges in this hobby by serving as Assistant Percussion Coordinator for Interlochen’s Summer Percussion Intensive and Arts Camp.
Kyle Skinner
Kyle Skinner is a percussionist based out of Newark, Delaware. Originally from Texas, he received his bachelors degree in Music Education from The University of North Texas, where he studied with Mark Ford, Paul Rennick, Christopher Deane, and Dave Hall. He is currently getting his masters degree in Music Performance from the University of Delaware and is a member of the University of Delaware’s Graduate Percussion Group under the direction of Tim Broscious and Gene Koshinski.
Bensen Kwan
Bensen Kwan is a Houston-based percussionist who holds a bachelors degree in Music Education from the University of Houston. He studied under Dr. Blake Wilkins, Dr. Craig Hauschildt, and Professor Alec Warren. He has been named a winner of the Mika Hasler Young Artist Competition, second prize in the Frances Walton Competition, and winner of the Philadelphia International Music Festival Concerto Competition; in addition, he has studied in Leipzig, Germany at the Hochschule fur Musik und Theater Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Leipzig under Stefan Rapp. Passionate about social justice, environmental protection, and of course, playing excellent and meaningful music, Bensen aims to become a musician who supports these causes and bring a positive change to society. He currently pursues a masters at the University of Delaware with Gene Koshinski and Tim Broscious.
Gabriel Labell
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Gabriel Labell is a recently graduated master’s student from the University of Delaware. Gabriel has gotten the opportunity to perform in a diverse range of venues such as the Brattleboro Museum and Arts Center, the PAS international convention, and Symphony Hall in Boston. Gabriel has extensive marching arts experience which ranges from tenor drumming for both the University of Massachusetts and the Spartans Drum and Bugle Corps, as well as experience in the front ensemble. As an educator, he has held positions in several marching music ensembles such as Oakmont-Overlook Regional High School and Appoquinimink High School. Gabriel earned his Bachelor of Music from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst where he studied under Ayano Kataoka, Thom P. Hannum, Ian Hale, and the chamber group Sandbox Percussion.
Jake Grimsley
Jake Grimsley is a percussionist and educator based out of Newark, Delaware, currently pursuing his master’s degree in percussion performance and serving as a graduate chamber fellow for the University of Delaware Graduate Percussion Group.
As a percussionist, Jake has performed in a variety of mediums across the United States. Most notably, he was heavily involved in freelance and university ensembles in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and spent the summer of 2022 as a performing member of the Mandarins Drum and Bugle Corps from Sacramento, California. As an educator, Jake has taught elementary, middle, and high school music ensembles throughout Virginia. The majority of his early career has been spent as a percussion instructor at Bath County High School, Spotswood High School, and with Rockingham County Indoor Percussion.
Jake holds a bachelor’s in music education from James Madison University where he studied with Casey Cangelosi. Currently, he is pursuing his master’s degree in percussion performance at the University of Delaware under the direction of Dr. Gene Koshinski and Dr. Tim Broscious. Jake has also had the privilege of working with other notable educators such as Dr. Caleb Pickering, Aaron Trumbore, Marlon Foster, Emre Kartari, Benjamin Pyles, and Taha Ahmed.
Daniel Albertson
Daniel Albertson, originally from Wichita, Kansas, is a graduate of Washburn University (B.M.E. ‘21) and the University of Delaware (M.M. ‘23). He is an Assistant Professor of Music at Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, Kansas, Adjunct Professor of Percussion at Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kansas, and is currently furthering his education at the University of Kansas in pursuit of a Doctor of Musical Arts in Percussion Performance. Additionally, he serves as the current president of the Kansas Chapter of the Percussive Arts Society and is the Festival Coordinator of the Sunflower Music Festival, hosted in Topeka, Kansas during the summer months. Prior to these appointments, he served as the 5-12 Band Director and 7-8 Choir Director for the Ellinwood USD 355 school district in Ellinwood, Kansas.
Albertson has enjoyed a vibrant teaching and performance career, serving on staff at several high schools in Kansas and Delaware as a percussion specialist. He has played in a wide variety of mediums both in the United States and abroad, as well as performed with percussion professionals such as Quey Percussion Duo, Sandbox Percussion, Sō Percussion, Third Coast Percussion, Michael Burritt, and the United States West Point Band.
Daniel received numerous accolades during his undergraduate work, including first prize for the 2019 Kansas Percussive Arts Society Snare Drum competition, a semifinalist finish at the 2020 Naftzger competition in Wichita, Kansas, and the 2019 Washburn University Most Outstanding Music Major of the Year award. While working towards his Masters degree, he was awarded with a Graduate Teaching Assistantship for the University of Delaware percussion studio and was an inaugural member of the University of Delaware Graduate Percussion Group. As a member, this ensemble won first prize at the PASIC Concert Chamber Percussion Ensemble competition in 2021 and runner up the following year in 2022, and were soloists for Viet Cuong’s “Re(new)al” percussion concerto with the University of Delaware Wind Ensemble in 2023. His primary teachers have been Steve Hatfield, Dr. Tom Morgan, Dr. Von Hansen, Dr. Gene Koshinski, Dr. Tim Broscious, and Garrett Arney.
Gage Kroljic
Percussionist and educator, Gage Kroljic began his musical instruction on drum set at the age of 9. A South Jersey native, Kroljic currently serves as a percussionist with “The Commandant’s Own”, The United States Marine Drum & Bugle Corps. He has performed in parades, ceremonies, and concerts across the United States, as well as internationally at the 2024 Norwegian Military Tattoo. Kroljic has performed for many distinguished guests to include the 39th Commandant of the Marine Corps, Vice President of the United States, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Department of Defense Chief Information Officer, as well as numerous senators, ambassadors, and military officials.
Prior to enlisting, Kroljic has made previous appearances with the Atlantic Brass Band, Altoona Symphony Orchestra, Nittany Valley Symphony, Fusion Core Drum & Bugle Corps, and the Bushwackers Drum & Bugle Corps. He has served as a battery percussion technician and writer for Fusion Core Drum & Bugle Corps in 2021 and the percussion director for the Loch Haven University Bald Eagle Marching Band in 2019. Kroljic holds degrees from Penn State University (Bachelor of Music Performance, Bachelor of Music Education, and Professional Performance Certificate) and the University of Delaware (Master of Music Performance).
Zach Odom
Zach Odom is a former MM student majoring in Percussion Performance at the University of Delaware. Before enrolling at UD, Zach attending Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, Alabama where he earned a BA in Music Education. Zach’s successive plans include teaching, performing, and eventually applying to a DMA program.
Andrew Simmons
Andrew Simmons Is a percussionist, educator, and composer that graduated from the University of Delaware with his Master’s in Percussion Performance. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Capital University and primarily studied with percussionists such as Bob Breithaupt, Ryan Kilgore, and Eric Paton. Andrew is currently a freelance musician in the Ohio and Illinois area, teaching master classes and lessons to percussionists and performing throughout the year.