Dr. Glenn Schaft
About the Director
GLENN SCHAFT is Professor and Director of Percussion Studies at Youngstown State University. He is the advisor/co-founder of the Youngstown Percussion Collective and an artist with Avedis Zildjian Co., Innovative Percussion Inc., Remo Inc., and a member of the Black Swamp Percussion Educators Network. Glenn earned the DMA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the MA from Eastern Illinois University, and the BM from Baldwin Wallace University. He pursued post doctoral studies in contemporary music and orchestral percussion at Cleveland State University, Afro-Cuban music in Havana, Cuba and world percussion at the Berklee School of Music World Percussion Festival. Glenn’s teachers include John Hollenbeck, John Riley, Tom Freer, Jay Burnham, Lewis Nash, Ted Piltzecker, Tom Siwe, Johnny Lee Lane, George Kiteley, Harold Damas, Linda Pimentel, and Ruben Alvarez. A member of the Percussive Arts Society, Glenn serves on the Drumset Committee and has appeared as performer, lecturer, and panelist at PAS international conventions.
Glenn’s career spans idioms such as classical, new music, world music, jazz, blues, rock, reggae, funk, Brazilian, West African, and Afro-Cuban. Glenn has recorded and served as executive producer with the Youngstown Percussion Collective, Dave Morgan, Ron Coulter, John Hollenbeck, Cleveland Chamber Symphony, Scott Wyatt, Amanda Powell, Air Force Band of Mid-America, Youngstown State University Wind Ensemble, and myriad jingles.
His credits include conductors Giora Bernstein, Jeffery Siegel, Anton Coppola, Edwin London, Gunther Schuller, Paul Martin Zonn, Peter Schickele, aka P.D.Q. Bach ensembles such as Colorado Music Festival, Skaneateles (NY) Chamber Music Festival, "Artist In Residence" at Baldwin-Wallace University with BATTU contemporary/world percussion group, Cleveland Chamber Symphony, Cleveland Ballet, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Cleveland Opera, Robert Page Singers, Akron Symphony, Richmond Symphony, Springfield (IL) Symphony, Youngstown Symphony, Duluth-Superior Symphony, Champaign-Urbana Symphony, Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra, Dance Theater of Harlem, Cleveland Dance Collective, and artists such as Paul Sperry, Julie Newell, Robert Weirich, Robert Van Sice, Peter Erskine, and Ben Toth.
Glenn drumset and world music credits include Ruben Alvarez, American Jazz Orchestra, Chuck Berry, Nick Brignola, Freddie Bryant, Ndugu Chancellor, Sarah Jane Cion, Stewart Copeland, Anthony Cox, 1940's Radio Hour Show-US Tour, Todd Coolman, Harold Danko, Paquito D’Rivera, Larry Elgart, Raul Esparza, John Fedchock, Five By Design, Reynaldo Gonzales, Taku Hirano, Laurence Hobgood, Engelbert Humperdink, Randy Johnston, Sean Jones, Mike Kocour, Alison Krauss, Victor Krauss, Ralph Lalama, Tony Leonardi, Robert Lockwood Jr., Bryan Lynch, Jim McNeely, Hank Marr, Phil Palombi, Ken Peplowski, Chita Rivera, Trichy Sankaran, Michael Spiro, Marvin Stamm, Chip Stephens, The Texas Tenors, Alan Vizzutti, Dan Wall, James Weidman, Michael Weiss, Mike Wofford, Women of the Phantom, Andrea Zonn, and Youngstown State University Faculty Jazz Group.
About the YSU Percussion Ensemble
Notable performances include the 2018 Percussive Arts Society International Convention in Indianapolis, Percussive Arts Society Ohio Chapter Days of Percussion at Capital University, Ohio Northern University, Youngstown State University, and Ohio Music Education Association Conferences in Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati. A central part of our mission involves collaborations with composers in the commissioning, premiering, and critically acclaimed recording of their works. Our 2005 release "Dark Wood" includes six premiere recordings and commissions. Our commission project with New York City-based percussionist/composer John Hollenbeck on his "Ziggurat" for five percussionists and four saxophonists, was premiered at the Whitney Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City, and is available on his 2008 release "Rainbow Jimmies." The Youngstown Percussion Collective's 2012 release "Forms Of Things Unknown" is a concert-length suite by YSU professor of jazz studies, bass, and composition, Dr. Dave Morgan. Our 2012 recording of Ron Coulter's "Cajon Trio" will appear on an upcoming 2019 Coulter CD release.
arr. G. Schaft
Thanks to
Sabian Cymbals, Latin Percussion, Evans Drumheads, and for their support of Mr. Spiro's appearance and
for the door prizes for the clinic.
Joe Edwards and the Dana School of Music for the piano.
Tony Leonardi, Kent Engelhardt, and the YSU Jazz Studies Department for the sound system and the opportunity to direct the Latin Jazz Combo.
James Suggs and Brian Connell for running the sound.
YSU Theater Department for use of the Ford Theater.
Becky Keck for the publicity assistance.
Dr. Lee Brooks and Concert Masters for the recording.
All the students for their hard work and musicianship.
My graduate teaching assistant, Craig Yarger, for driving Michael Spiro where he needs to be - sorry it's so early.
Michael Spiro for sharing his musical expertise with us all.
Michael Spiro is an internationally acclaimed percussionist, recording artist, and educator, known specifically for his work in the Latin music field. He has performed on hundreds of records, co-produced several instructional videos for Warner Bros. Publications (featuring such renowned artists as David Garibaldi, Changuito, Giovanni Hidalgo, and Ignacio Berroa), and produced seminal recordings in the Latin music genre, including, Orquesta Batachanga, Grupo Bata-Ketu, and Grupo Ilu-Ana.
Mr. Spiro's formal education includes a Bachelor's Degree with Honors in Latin American Studies from the University of California, and three and a half years of graduate work in ethnomusicology at the University of Washington. His practical education consists of a seven year apprenticeship with Francisco Aguabella and extensive study throughout Latin America. He has studied in Cuba since 1984 with musicians such as Jose Luis Quintana "Changuito", Esteban Vega Bacallao, Daniel Diaz, and Juan Blanco of Orquesta Ritmo Oriental, Regino Jimenez, and Los Munequitos de Matansas. In addition, in 1986 he spent two months training at G.R.E.S. Portela, the famous Escola de Samba in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
As an educator, Mr. Spiro is extremely active. He has been a faculty member or artist in residence at the University of California at Berkeley, Stanford University, Mt. Holyoke, University of Massachusetts, Smith College, Wichita State University, Banff Center of the Arts, California State University at San Diego, and the Cornish Institute of the Arts, and has conducted clinics and master classes at numerous institutions throughout North America.
Mr. Spiro's recording and performing credits include such diverse artists as David Byrne, Dori Caymmi, Changuito, Alex DeGrassi, Ella Fitzgerald, David Garibaldi, Gilberto Gil, Giovanni Hidalgo, Toninho Horta, Bobby Hutcherson, Dr. John, Bobby McFerrin, Andy Narell, Ray Obiedo, Chico O'Farrill, Lazaro Ros, Carlos Santana, Shadowfax, Grace Slick, Clark Terry, McCoy Tyner, and Charlie Watts. In addition, he has recorded soundtracks to such major motion pictures as Soapdish, Henry and June, True Stories, Walker, Eddie Macon's Run, and Dragon-The Life of Bruce Lee.
He currently resides in San Francisco, California where he is an integral part of the Bay area music scene. He maintains his position on the jazz faculty at the University of California, Berkeley, records and produces with groups throughout the West Coast, and is touring world-wide with his percussion trio "Talking Drums", which he co-leads with David Garibaldi and Jesus Diaz. In 1996 his own recording, Bata-Ketu was released on Bembe Records and is currently receiving international acclaim.
YSU Latin Percussion Group is directed by Dr. Glenn Schaft who is director of percussion studies at YSU. The Latin Percussion Group is an integral part of the percussion ensemble program at YSU which also includes marimba ensembles and contemporary percussion groups.
YSU Latin Jazz Combo was founded in the fall of 1999 and is directed by Dr. Glenn Schaft. It is one of five jazz combos and three big bands which comprise the ensemble portion of the renowned YSU Jazz Studies Program. The Latin Combo performs music by Latin jazz masters such as Dizzy Gillespie, Tito Puente, and Eddie Palmieri.
