Wardell King

battery Caption Head

Mr. King is currently in his 29th year as an independent music educator, arranger, consultant and performer with a specialization in marching percussion. Mr. King is currently the percussion caption head/arranger for Desert Ridge, Red Mountain, Campo Verde and Mountain View High School in Arizona. Mr. King has previously served as caption head/arranger/clinician for various other high schools in the state of Arizona.

Mr. King also has served as the marching percussion specialist at Northern Arizona University and The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps .

As the owner of King Percussion LLC, “Championship Concepts For Percussion,” Mr. King has worked with groups in Arizona, California, New Hampshire, Nevada, and Kentucky in both the marching and indoor percussion arenas. In his twenty seven years as an adjudicator and percussion designer/instructor, he has worked with more than 25 different percussion programs at the high school, college and drum corp levels. As a creative percussion arranger, Wardell’s percussion writing is designed to closely integrate concert and marching percussion techniques to enhance all components of the musical score. Wardell has a strong teaching philosophy guided to offer life lessons through music and dedicated practice.

Excelling educationally and competitively in both the local and national circuit, Mr. King is in high demand as an educator and clinician. He provides both rudimental and drum set lessons to students of all ages and educational backgrounds.

With extensive studies in the jazz arts, Mr. King is part of the W Quartet, who continue to play for audiences around the Phoenix Area.

Wardell proudly endorses Vic Firth Sticks, Zildjian Cymbals, Pearl Drums, Remo Drumheads and Presonus Audio.

David Larkins

Visual caption head

David is currently the band director at Desert Ridge Junior High. Aside from being an elementary and junior high band director, David has taught many marching programs in the state of Arizona including: Gilbert High School (2014, 2016-2019), Casteel High School (2018-2019), Corona Del Sol High School (2015-2016), Williams Field High School (2013-2016), Horizon High School (2019), and Linea Indoor Percussion. Along with teaching, David has also written drill and composed music for various programs in Arizona and Mississippi.

David’s performance background begins with the Sun Devil Marching Band in 2013 and 2014. He also marched with the Santa Clara Vanguard in 2014 and 2015 on trumpet, as well as the SCV International tour in Taiwan in 2015. David also performed with the Phoenix Suns Drumline in 2015-2016.

Rob Davis

Basses

Rob is a percussion educator from Arizona. He currently works with various schools around the valley as a bass drum and marching technician.

Over his 27 years of teaching, he has worked with top rated drumline programs all over the valley; Including, Trevor G. Browne, Desert Edge (2008 WGAZ Champions) and Marcos De Niza.

He has studied with Steve Hemphill at Northern Arizona University and worked alongside some of the top names from DCI and WGI, including Ralph Hardimon and Tom Float.

Stephen Bosak

Basses

Stephen was born and raised in Chandler, Arizona and spent 6 years with Vision Percussion as a member of the bass drum section, going all the way back to Vision's inaugural year.

Stephen has taught at many marching programs in the state of Arizona including Perry High School (2017-2021), Chandler High School (2017), Skyline High School (2018-2019) taking home 1st place in percussion with Perry High School (2018) and Skyline High School (2019). This will be Stephen's first year as a member of Vision's staff and is excited to continue to grow the local percussion scene.

Stephen obtained his degree in Civil Engineering from Arizona State University and now currently works as a Civil engineer in the Valley. Since graduating, Stephen has had opportunities designing various aspects of airports, solar farms, and performing traffic studies for future large and small planned developments. When Stephen is not at work, he can be found performing on the Arizona Cardinals Drumline, or spending time with his cats, Legolas and Gimli, and watching personal finance tip videos on YouTube.

Kristina Haney

Cymbals

Kristina is an Arizona native who has performed with a variety of medal-winning ensembles in and out of state. Her marching career started with Basha High School where she was a member of the cymbal line for indoor drumline as well as the marching band.

After graduation, she marched with the Arizona State Sun Devil Marching Band (2009-2010). She joined Dark Sky Percussion in 2010 and was section leader in 2011. In 2012, she moved to California to march Pulse Percussion, where the group took home 3rd place at WGI World Championships. Kristina has also marched drum corps with Cascades (2010) and Pacific Crest (2011).

Kristina is currently on the visual staff with Desert Vista High School (Phoenix, AZ) and Mountain View High School (Mesa, AZ) for marching band, and Williams Field High School (Gilbert, AZ) for their indoor percussion group. She has previously taught various ensembles in Arizona, as well as in California with Pacifica High School.

Kristina proudly endorses Zildjian cymbals.

Orion Choy

Cymbals

Based in Gilbert, AZ, Orion currently attends Arizona State University pursuing a degree in Computer Science. Orion has performed with esteemed ensembles such as Vision Percussion, Vanguard Cadets, and Santa Clara Vanguard from 2016 to 2019. Leveraging this extensive experience, Orion has transitioned into a respected educator, contributing to programs across the valley including the Academy (2023-present) and Vision Percussion (2020-present). Orion’s commitment to excellence in both academic and extracurricular pursuits illustrates a profound dedication to personal and professional development.

Chris Canby

Snares

Bio coming soon!

Shad Balot

Snares

Shad Balot is an active educator and battery arranger in the valley. For over ten years, he has taught various high schools including Mesquite high school, Sandra Day O’Connor High school, and Cesar Chavez High School. He has also taught at Phenom as well as Phoenix Union Indoor.

Besides teaching music, Shad has also arranged music for drumlines around the state and has been an adjudicator for WGAZ.

Shad also enjoys spending his free time playing music, and spending with his daughter Athena, his wife Alison, and their five dogs. Shad is passionate about music and his awesome family!

Ivan gonzalez

Tenors

Ivan is an Arizona native who was born and raised in Casa Grande, Arizona. He first picked up music at the age 11 years old in 6th grade and since then he has fallen in love with all things music.

Ivan's marching history includes: Villago Middle School, Casa Grande Union High School Indoor & Outdoor programs, and aged out after 3 years with Breakthrough Indoor (PIO) from Tempe, Arizona.

Ivan has been teaching since he was 18 years old with different groups from around the state. Most recently, Ivan just finished his time as Caption Head of Williams Field High School and is now working freelance to help the build the quad culture of Arizona.

Ivan has played quad drums for his whole marching career, but has spent many years honing and improving his talents in all things marching percussion. Ivan is very excited to be returning for his second year on the Vision staff and to keep growing the percussion scene in Arizona.

Matthew Isquierdo

Tenors

Matthew Isquierdo is a percussion educator in the Arizona marching arts community.  He has five years of teaching experience in the Mesa area, at Red Mountain and Desert Ridge High school. He recently completed his final marching season in WGI with Flux Indoor percussion. Previously he completed four seasons with Vision Indoor Percussion earning the title of Tenor Section Leader for 3 of those years.

Outside of music and work, Matthew is a dedicated foodie and enjoys staying active through weightlifting. 

Jeff Whipple

Visual Instructor

Jeff Whipple brings a rich history in the marching and pageantry arts activities and has served as an educator, clinician, designer, and adjudicator for over a decade. Ensembles he has worked with consistently achieve superior ratings and are highly competitive in Class & State championships as well as BOA Regional Finals. He also serves as a clinician for programs throughout the country.

His love for music began at a young age and soon found himself heavily involved in the marching arts. Jeff’s dedication and passion for marching band grew and flourished into an illustrative performance and educational career as he worked with programs across the country including the Dowling Catholic Vanguard (Des Moines, IA), Mesa High School (Mesa, AZ), Mountain View High School (Mesa, AZ), and Desert Vista High School (Tempe, AZ.)

Jeff currently currently serves as the Visual Caption Head at Desert Vista High School, and is a member of The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps visual team.

Nick McInnes

Visual Instructor

Nick grew up in San Tan Valley, AZ and started music in the 4th grade. He marched The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps in 2018, 2019, and 2022, and also served as the section leader of the tuba line. Nick is currently on staff at Williams Field High School in Gilbert, AZ and teaches brass and visual for marching band in the fall and indoor winds in the winter. He is also on the instructional team for their indoor percussion program.

Aaron Hudson

Visual Instructor

Aaron Hudson was born into the marching activity. Having grown up around his parent’s high school and collegiate band programs, he gained a musical appreciation and love of percussion from a young age. 

Aaron began his marching career at Lawrence Free State High School (KS) as a member of the front ensemble and bass drum line.  Soon after he marched contra with the Colts Drum and Bugle Corps (2005-2007), served on their Admin Staff (2008-2009), and marched again in the parade corps for President Obama’s 2009 Inaugural. Additionally, he was Assistant Tour Director for the 2012 Phantom Regiment.

Apart from DCI, Aaron has been a part of the Sun Devil Marching Band organization since 2006, acted as baritone section leader (2007-2009),  and has taught visual with the SDMB field staff since 2010, additionally from helping to organize the Dixie Devils Jazz program under mentors Sam Pilafian and Dan Puccio from 2010-2017.

Aaron has taught on the visual staffs of various high schools in the Phoenix East Valley including Dobson HS (2008-2009), Williams Field HS (2010-2015), and has been at Gilbert HS since 2019, where he previously worked alongside members of Vision staff, currently acting as visual caption head and breathing gym instructor. He has worked internationally as a consultant for the Clondalkin Youth Band from Dublin, Ireland. Aaron has also worked in various capacities for both WGAZ and WGI since 2010.

Outside of band, Aaron teaches high school social studies, leads the drumline at Phoenix Rising soccer games, and enjoys spending time with his cat Minnie.

Kiri Guldner

Visual Instructor
Choreographer

A Chandler native, this will be Kiri’s fifth season with Vision Percussion. Kiri specializes in modern and contemporary styles of movement, holding an Arts Degree from the University of Arizona. She has worked alongside members of the Vision staff previously and many have served as mentors during her early days in the marching arts.

Her performance and choreographic credits include Rise Percussion from Boulder, CO and the Mandarins Drum and Bugle Corps from Sacramento, CA. During her six years with the Mandarins, Kiri was a contra player, horn sergeant, and drum major. Kiri is also a member of the visual team for Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps.

Kiri is currently an ICU Nurse, enjoys spending time with her cat, The Purrminator, and also plays harp.

Alison Brightwell-Balot

Front Ensemble Coordinator

Alison Brightwell-Balot holds a Bachelor of Music in percussion performance from Northern Arizona University and her Master’s in Education from Grand Canyon University. She is Director of Percussion at César Chávez High School in Laveen, Arizona where she teaches piano and serves as their percussion music arranger.

Since her move back down to the valley ten years ago, Alison has taught and arranged for various high schools in the state including Sandra Day O’Connor High School where she served as their caption head and co-percussion arranger for 9 years. She has also had the honor to be on staff for Phenom, Phoenix Union Indoor, and Dark Sky Percussion.

Alison has served as adjudicator and/or guest director for the Greater Phoenix Honor Ensembles, AZ Regionals, Solo & Ensemble, and AZPAS. In 2015, Alison was elected Vice President of the Arizona Chapter of the Percussive Arts Society and currently serves as an adjudicator for WGAZ.

Alison is sponsored by Innovative Percussion and is an active member of PAS, the Arizona Music Educators Association, WGAZ, and the National Association for Music Education. In her free time Alison enjoys spending time with her husband who is also a percussionist, his daughter, and their 5 dogs.

Travis Rowland

Front Ensemble

Travis resides in Phoenix, AZ where he has become a highly sought after percussion educator, performer, and clinician. 

Currently serving as Adjunct Music Faculty at Paradise Valley Community College, Travis also works with Desert Vista HS and Mountain View HS band programs. He is also being incredibly excited for year 5 with Vision Percussion! In the greater Phoenix area, Travis has worked with over 12 programs- including 6 State Championship ensembles within the ABODA, AZMBA, and WGAZ circuits. Travis has also presented at the AZPAS and AMEA conferences as a clinician, and adjudicated for the ABODA All-State Band/Orchestra Festival. 

Travis graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance in 2020. As an active performer in the Phoenix area, Travis has had the privilege to work, tour, and record with ensembles and artists including: 

The Phoenix Symphony, BOOM! Percussion Entertainment, The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps, Salt River Brass, Wheelwright, Tatiana Crespo, Harrison Fjord, Pocket Publications, and many more. 

In his free time you can find Travis spending time outdoors, reading a good book, or finding a new city to travel to. 

Jaelan Kim

Front ensemble

Jaelan is a front ensemble instructor living in Tempe. Since graduating from Perry High School, he has been teaching front ensemble for numerous programs including Buckeye Union, Desert Mountain, Peoria, PUSD Indoor, Deer Valley, and Sandra Day O’Connor. He is currently with Campo Verde and Millennium High School.

Aside from teaching, he has performed with the Sun Devil Marching Band and is a 4 year Alumni of Breakthrough Indoor Percussion.

J.J. Mixdorf

Sound Engineer

J.J. has been teaching the marching arts since 2001, when he started as a front ensemble writer and instructor. After graduating from Arizona State in 2009, he went on to direct his own high school programs. His most recent success was at Combs High School, where the marching band earned two state championships (ABODA and AZMBA 2017).

J.J. likes to be on the bleeding edge of technology, and tries to find ways to adapt them for any group he is involved with, making sure it enhances the performance of the ensemble.

J.J. is currently a music educator in the Mesa Public Schools system in Arizona. J.J. earned his Bachelors’ degree in Music Education from Arizona State (2009), and a Masters in Conducting from Colorado State (2016).