We are excited to feature our percussion section during Nathan Daughtrey’s “Black Rainbow” on March 26th at Dallas City Performance Hall for our final concert of the season!
Featured percussionists include Megan Von Dreau, Andy Eldridge, Brandon Kelly, John Moran, Rich Bono, and Mai Hessel.
Megan Von Dreau
Megan Von Dreau is in her 17th year as a 5th and 6th grade music teacher at Eubanks Intermediate School in Southlake, TX. She is a proud original member of the percussion section of Lone Star Wind Orchestra and the Drum Sergeant of Metroplex United Pipe Band, a local competitive bagpipe band. She spends her free time with her husband Ron and their daughters Ella and Lilly in Roanoke, TX.
“LSWO is a one-of-a-kind experience because everyone that is making music in that room together has put aside everything else on that given day in order to create art and beauty. There is no other agenda than the music. The heart of our musicians is what makes us a special and unique ensemble.”
Mai Hessel
A native of Nara, Japan, Dr. Mai Tadokoro Hessel currently serves as an adjunct professor of percussion at Texas Wesleyan University, and teaches privately at Grapevine ISD and Burleson ISD. She is an enthusiastic chamber musician, and co-founding several mixed chamber ensembles such as the Spiral Staircase Duo (percussion and horn) with her husband, Eric Hessel, who is also a member of LSWO. Her marimba performance and discussion was featured at a TEDxWyandotte event, the video of which is published internationally.
Hessel received her music degrees from Cottey College, University of Missouri at Kansas City, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Kansas.
LISTEN TO DR. HESSEL PERFORM“It is always a pleasure to be able to play a percussion featured piece. The LSWO percussion section is very strong, and they deserve being in the spotlight. Generally speaking, percussion is not usually treated as a soloist (undeservedly), and there aren’t many pieces written for percussion as a solo section. It is going to be a great opportunity to show the world that percussion can offer so many different colors and textures that none of the other instruments in the ensemble can provide.”
Brandon Kelly
Brandon Kelly is in his fifth year guiding the percussively-minded youth at Marcus High School in Flower Mound, TX where his responsibilities include instructing percussion ensembles, lessons, and the front ensemble for the Marcus High School Marching Band and Drumline. This was made possible by spending a substantial portion of his own misguided youth in practice rooms at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (BFA Music Performance & BS Music Education) and University of North Texas (MM Percussion Performance). As a professional stick-flinger, BK has sonically appeared with the Lone Star Wind Orchestra, Dallas Winds, Keystone Winds, Midland-Odessa Symphony Orchestra, Imperial Brass, amongst others, and serves as boss stick-flinger and founding member of the Lone Star Percussion Ensemble.
“Wait…. They’re putting the percussionists UP FRONT?!?!”
John Moran
John Moran has a Bachelor of Music degree in both Percussion Performance and Piano Performance from Texas Christian University. His full time job is Director of Worship Ministries at St. John the Apostle UMC. He is also a very active freelance musician around the Metroplex playing gigs that range from classical to country to rock n roll, was the rehearsal pianist & accompanist for the Texas Ballet Theater for 6 years, taught private lessons in Southlake-Carroll ISD for 13 years, and has been an LSWO section percussionist since season 1. You can usually find him around home in Arlington, TX, chasing after Jack (6 year old son) with Katie (wife) and Daisy (golden retriever).
“Performing Black Rainbow offers a wonderful opportunity to highlight the musicality of the percussion section. To many, percussion’s main purpose is to provide the rhythmic backbone for an ensemble. However, Nathan Daughtrey draws attention to the melodic capabilities of percussion instruments, and his composition features many solos from the mallet instruments – including a solo for 3 players on 1 marimba!”
Rich Bono
Rich Bono is a freelance percussionist in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and has been playing with LSWO for 3 years. In addition, he currently instructs private percussion lessons, is an Innovative Percussion Education Artist and operates a timpani repair business in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. Along with his position in the Lone Star Wind Orchestra, Rich is also the principal percussionist and timpanist for the Odysseus Chamber Orchestra and has performed at numerous conventions and festivals in both the United States and abroad.
LISTEN TO MR. BONO PERFORMDon’t miss the last concert of the season!
The Lone Star Wind Orchestra journeys through the world to amazing vistas and dangerous natural phenomenon.
Under the direction of Music Director Eugene Migliaro Corporon, the LSWO will also perform Eric Whitacre’s “Ghost Train,” and Frank Ticheli’s “Vesuvius,” along with the organization’s premiere of Michael Daugherty’s “Rio Grande.”
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