Moving percussionists from the back of the
orchestra to the forefront of modern music.
Serious fun
The Percussion On the Sound (POTS!) 2023 Summer Seminar
will take place July 30th - August 6th at Five Towns College,
a beautiful campus just outside of New York City.
The POTS! Summer Seminar is an exceptional, pre-collegiate program for young musicians seeking a unique performing experience. Participants will be immersed in percussion classes on marimba, snare drum, timpani, complimentary percussion, hand drumming, drum set, and multiple percussion, and will present full percussion ensemble concerts in front of live audiences. It’s serious fun!
In addition to learning instrumental skills, students will gain important insight into audition preparation for music festivals and college auditions, careers in music, practice and organizational skills, mental preparation for peak performance, and developing important team-building skills.
POTS! faculty are some of New York City’s finest percussionists who bring their professional experience into the classroom from institutions such as New York City Ballet, New York Philharmonic, The Juilliard School, Hofstra University, and Five Towns College. Instructors regularly interact with participants in rehearsals, group master classes, and one-on-one coaching sessions. Discussions about percussive arts, the music profession, and citizenship in the arts are part of the daily dialogue.
The Five Towns College campus offers a safe and productive environment. The Public Safety Office provides 24/7/365 security and campus surveillance. The dormitory rooms are air-conditioned, with bathrooms and showers in each room and easy access to the rehearsal and practice facilities. There are communal areas with sofas, group television gathering spaces, and quiet areas for studying. Next door, The Upbeat Cafe caters to three meals per day.
Whether practicing for our concert or tossing the frisbee in one of the large grassy areas on campus, the Percussion On The Sound Summer Seminar is always about serious fun. Summer is a time to make new friends, learn unique things, and enjoy the weather. POTS! and Five Towns College offers the complete package.
Learn the rules like a pro
“
so you can break them like an artist
”
-Pablo Picasso
Faculty
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A native of Uruguay, Pablo Rieppi lives and works in New York, where he is a member of The New York City Ballet Orchestra, Percussion Department Coordinator and Instructor at The Juilliard School, Pre-College Division, and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Percussion at Hofstra University.
The Houston Chronicle wrote, “Pablo Rieppi sparked a lot of buzz at intermission with his ability…he was rock solid no matter what position he had to contort into to play.”
In the last three decades, Mr. Rieppi has performed a wide range of music with some of the world’s leading artists and ensembles, including regular engagements with New York Philharmonic and numerous performances with The Metropolitan Opera, Mostly Mozart Festival, American Symphony Orchestra, The New York Pops, American Composers Orchestra, Speculum Musicae, New York New Music Ensemble, DaCapo Chamber Players, The New York City Opera, Manhattan Sinfonietta, New York Percussion Quartet, Perspectives Ensemble, American Symphony Orchestra, and numerous others. He has performed under the world’s finest conductors, as well as with world, jazz, classical, rock and R&B luminaries Joe Zawinul, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Joshua Bell, and The Who, among others.
Mr. Rieppi was a member of numerous Broadway orchestras, including The King and I, Legally Blonde, and West Side Story. He has recorded many feature film scores, including Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story, Salem’s Lot, Gemini Man, Zoolander 2, television shows (recently The Marvelous Mrs. Maizel), and new compositions with several ensembles.
He is equally dedicated to music education, particularly the development of the creative learning process. Currently, he is teaching at The Juilliard School and Hofstra University. Past appointments include SUNY Purchase College-Conservatory of Music and Columbia University. He has been a teaching artist with the Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar, Carnegie Hall, New York Philharmonic, and The American Composers Orchestra, and has given numerous percussion master classes in the United States and abroad. Most recently, Mr. Rieppi created Percussion On The Sound (POTS!), a year-round, pre-collegiate group of solo and ensemble musicians in residency at Hofstra University, and joined the faculty of Percussion Conservatory, an international, online percussion school.
In 2004 he composed music for the soundtrack of Blackballed: The Bobby Dukes Story, which won numerous prizes at several film festivals. His percussion and electronics piece “Rage and Peace” was performed by the New York University Percussion Ensemble and at The Aspen Music Festival in 2007. His first method book, Snare Drum Technique: Essential Basics for Daily Practice, was cited in the March 2015 issue of Percussive Notes as one of the 30 most utilized snare drum method books. His composition Rhythmic Roots, for snare drum, bass drum, and hi-hat, is available through Amazon and is a popular audition and recital selection. His melodic and harmonic accompaniments for the 12 Etudes for Snare Drum by Jacques Delecluse, titled Accompaniment Music for Solo Snare Drum, Vol. 1, is available through Bandcamp.com. Videos of various solos and short clinics are available on YouTube and at PRieppiMusic.com.
Mr. Rieppi has a master's degree and Professional Studies Certificate from The Juilliard School and a bachelor's degree from George Mason University. Pablo Rieppi proudly endorses Innovative, Yamaha, and Zildjian music instruments.
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Do-it-all percussionist Sean Ritenauer can be heard anywhere music is found, whether on Broadway (Something Rotten!, Pippin), television and film (The Marvelous Ms. Maisel, Moonrise Kingdom, A Dog’s Purpose), or as an orchestral musician. Equally conversant in classical, contemporary, Latin, and popular music styles, the Ohio native’s multi-genre fluency has led to a highly varied career. Particular highlights include Mahler’s Symphony No. 7 in Alan Gilbert’s final performance with the New York Philharmonic, Steve Reich’s 80th Birthday concert with contemporary music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, and perhaps most fondly, playing congas alongside Aretha Franklin.
As an orchestral musician, Ritenauer regularly performs within the New York Philharmonic, including on tours of Europe and Asia, and also has joined the Malaysia Philharmonic and National Symphony Orchestra (D.C.). As Principal Percussion of the Huntsville Symphony (AL), he has performed as concerto soloist three times, including the second-ever performance of Andy Akiho’s Percussion Concerto in January 2020. The Huntsville Times praised Ritenauer for “mesmerizing dexterity”, and recounted “an immediate standing ovation” from the audience.
Sean also places a premium on excellence as an educator. As a private teacher, his Manhattan-based studio features alumni admitted to the country’s top music programs, including Juilliard, Eastman, and the New England Conservatory. He is currently serving as a percussion instructor at Hofstra University where he directs the Hofstra Percussion Ensemble.
He makes his home in New York City with his girlfriend, the oboist Hsuan-Fong Chen. They share a home with their cockapoo, Hiro.
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James Dragovich served as a band director for the Hewlett-Woodmere Public Schools for thirty-three years, twenty-nine as Director of Bands at George W. Hewlett High School. During his tenure, the Hewlett High School Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Bands performed in Montreal, Boston, Washington DC, Virginia, Disney World, Puerto Rico, and numerous appearances at Carnegie Hall. The Hewlett Jazz Orchestra performed at many jazz festivals and was a featured ensemble at the 2014 NYSSMA Winter Conference in Rochester, NY. The Hewlett Marching band performed the halftime show at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville Fl and marched many times in the NYC Columbus Day Parade, including a first place finish in 1991. During his time in Hewlett, Mr. Dragovich served as a cooperating teacher to over forty college students, all of which are now enjoying their own careers in music education, and was nominated to “Who’s Who Among American Teachers” numerous times by his students.
Mr. Dragovich presently serves as the Director of Undergraduate Music Education for Five Towns College. Before this appointment, he served on the Music Education Faculties for LIU Post and Hofstra University, teaching method classes in percussion and brass studies. As a conductor, he has commissioned works for both symphonic bands and jazz ensembles by such composers as Robert Sheldon, Errol Weis Schlabach, Mike Carubia, and Carl Strommen. Guest soloists with Mr. Dragovich’s ensembles include Joseph Alessi, Dave Pietro, Stanley Drucker, Cecil Bridgewater, Eric Ralski, Jack Schatz, Pete McGuinness, Mike Carubia, and John Riley.
Mr. Dragovich directs the Nassau Suffolk Jazz Band, is a clinician for Music in The Parks, Festivals of Music, and Educational Tours Inc., and is on the teaching staff for POTS! (Percussion on The Sound). He serves on the board of directors for Best Bands International and The American Chamber Ensemble while keeping an active performance schedule, including his own seventeen-piece jazz orchestra. Mr. Dragovich continues teaching percussion and low brass in his private teaching studio in Amity Harbor, NY, enjoying life with his wife Mindy.
Guest Clinicians
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A classical and jazz musician, percussionist Steve Blutman has performed and recorded with some of the top orchestras, jazz ensembles, and show productions. Highlights include performances with The Cleveland Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, Honolulu Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Canton Symphony, Youngstown Symphony, Mansfield Symphony, Akron Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, New World Symphony, Blue Man Group and Broadway and Off-Broadway show productions. Music Festivals include multiple summers with the Orchestra of the Americas (South America) and the AIMS Orchestra (Graz, Austria). Steve has also done extensive touring with The Cleveland Orchestra throughout Europe and the United States.
An avid educator, Steve joined the music education faculty at Hofstra University as an Adjunct Professor of Music in 2016. He is an “Artist-in-Residence” for school districts on Long Island and a regular guest clinician for districts in the tri-state area. Steve frequently leads professional development sessions on percussion pedagogy with educators across the country. He is the percussion coordinator for Nassau Suffolk Performing Arts and serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Long Island Youth Orchestra. He previously served as the Percussion Co-Chair for New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA). Additionally, Steve co-authored the Festival Sight Reading series, published by Pinnacle Music Press, Inc.
Steve received a master’s degree in music performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a bachelor’s degree from Hofstra University. His primary instruction occurred under the tutelage of Paul Yancich, Richard Weiner, Pablo Rieppi, Dave Ratajczak, and Tony Tedesco.
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Yale Snyder received a Master of Music degree in Percussion from the University of Minnesota and a B.S in Music Education from Hofstra University. In addition, he is currently pursuing a Post- Masters in Educational Leadership from Montclair State University. Mr. Snyder currently teaches in the Monroe Township School District where he is a band director and the District Percussion Specialist (Grades 4-12). In Monroe Township, Mr. Snyder has designed one of the most comprehensive percussion programs on the East Coast. Under his direction, the district’s percussion ensembles have achieved state and national recognition including being accepted to perform at the NAfME All-Eastern Conference on 3 separate occasions.
He has won 3 educational grants for the district which includes bringing in guest composers from Texas and North Carolina to work with his students as well as earning funding in a cross curricular project to teach students about the history of the marimba and vibraphone. As a clinician, Mr. Snyder has presented workshops at various music education conferences including NJMEA, PMEA, TMEA, Texas Bandmasters Association, as well as Days of Percussion in several different states.
In February 2021, during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Mr. Snyder was one of the 4 developers and administrators of the POTS! 2021 Online International Percussion Festival and Competition. This online event provided students from all over the world the opportunity to receive adjudication and see masterclasses from world class percussion artists.
He is the current President and Division Percussion Chair for CJMEA where he has overseen and maintained Region Percussion Ensembles at both the High School and Middle School levels providing students in grades 6-12 opportunities to work with renowned guest conductors in the percussion field. As CJMEA President, Mr. Snyder also serves on the NJMEA Executive Board of Directors.
Mr. Snyder has commissioned 3 new percussion ensemble works including “Luminescence” by Dr. Nathan Daughtrey. This piece was composed for the Monroe Township Middle School Percussion Ensemble and the World Premiere Performance was broadcasted on Facebook Live. He currently resides in Jersey City, NJ.
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Alana Wiesing is a multi-faceted and award-winning timpanist and percussionist from Phoenix, AZ. She holds a Master of Music degree in percussion performance from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, IN, where she also completed her undergraduate studies. Her primary percussion instructors were Bill Wanser and John Tafoya, and she has completed additional studies most notably and extensively with David Herbert, Cynthia Yeh, Joseph Pereira, Ed Stephan, Markus Rhoten, Richard Weiner, Jauvon Gilliam, Eric Shin, Keith Aleo, Michael Spiro, Jonathan Haas, and Doug Howard. Alana’s summer festival activities include the Eastern Music Festival (2007, 2008), the Interlochen Arts Camp (2009, 2010), the Chosen Vale International Percussion Seminar (2011), the Indiana University Summer Music Academy (2013), the National Orchestral Institute + Festival (2015, 2016), and the Aspen Music Festival & School (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019). She actively performed, recorded, and freelanced with countless orchestras and ensembles during her time in the Midwest, notably serving as the Principal Timpanist of the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic and the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra as well as a regular substitute and extra percussionist with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic.
Alana is currently based in Tucson, AZ, where she serves as the Principal Timpanist of the Tucson Symphony Orchestra. She is a passionate educator, instructing as an Adjunct Professor of Percussion at the University of Arizona Fred Fox School of Music and an alumni faculty member at the National Orchestral Institute + Festival as well as operating her private teaching studio. Since her arrival in Tucson, Alana has presented masterclasses and clinics for the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), National Orchestral Institute + Festival, the Network for Diversity in Concert Percussion (NDCP), Virtual Percussion Music Festival (VPMF), Michigan State University, George Mason University, University of Florida, Western Carolina University, Benedict College, the Arizona PAS Day of Percussion, and the University of Arizona. She has been a guest Principal Timpanist with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., and she also performs with the Arizona Musicfest Festival Orchestra as a timpanist and percussionist.
Alana presently serves as the President and Chair of the Board of Directors for the Network for Diversity in Concert Percussion (NDCP) – a collective of performers, educators, and businesses who serve as a resource for, and support to, aspiring professional percussionists from underrepresented and underserved communities in an effort to improve equity, diversity, and inclusion in the concert percussion community. She participated in a virtual roundtable to discuss breaking racial barriers in the education and performance worlds through the Percussive Arts Society and its Diversity Alliance, and she has appeared on numerous podcasts and platforms to discuss these topics of personal impact. Additionally, she serves on the executive board of the Tucson Federation of Musicians (TFM, Local 33).
Alana proudly uses and endorses Freer Percussion and Black Swamp Percussion products. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, biking, running, cooking, playing sports (notably tennis and ultimate frisbee), attending museums and concerts, playing board games and trivia, listening to all genres of music, trying new restaurants, and spending quality time with family and friends.
Meal plan included in all options
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Until June 1, 2023 - Full refund
June 2 to June 30, 2023 - 50% refund
After July 1, 2023 - no refundOnce the session begins for the enrolled student, no refunds will be made for any reason, including illness.
As we cannot provide refunds, we encourage you to consider purchasing third-party insurance prior to May 1st. Third-party camp insurance may be available through companies like aplusplans.com*.