Spintronix Color Guard
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Wednesday, July 29, 2020
New Benefits for Patrons!
Wednesday, July 22, 2020
Introducing The Spinthusiast Society
THE SPINTHUSIAST SOCIETY!
Saturday, July 4, 2020
Technique and Choreography Class Instructor Bios - Spintronix VIRTUAL Summer Camp 2020
Brandon Fink
Brandon
Fink is a native Oklahoman and began his color guard training at Putnam
City North High School in Oklahoma City, Okla. He continued to expand his
passion for performance with Sarajevo Winter Guard of Siloam Springs, Ark. in
2004 and Insignia Winter Guard of Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas from 2005 to 2007. In
2008, Brandon choreographed and performed for WGI Independent A Class Finalist
Eclectix Winter Guard of Oklahoma City, Okla. He also choreographed and
performed for 2009 WGI Independent A Class Finalist Central Independent of
Edmond, Okla. Brandon was a member of the Bluecoats Drum & Bugle Corps from
2005 to 2008. Most recently, he has worked with various programs throughout the
St. Louis area and has taken on the role of Artistic Director for La Voƻte
Performance Ensemble. This will be his 2nd season with the Cavaliers Drum
& Bugle Corps Visual Staff.
In
2011, Brandon received his B.F.A. in Dance Performance from the University of
Central Oklahoma. His pre-professional experience includes R.A.C.E. Dance
Company and UCO Kaleidoscope Dance Company. Upon graduation, Brandon attended
the American Dance Festival School where he was selected for the 2011
Past/Forward Gala to perform Twyla Tharp’s “Sweet Fields.” In 2012, he was
selected for the River North Dance Chicago Summer Apprenticeship Program under
the direction of Frank Chavez. Brandon was a company member with the Modern
American Dance Company from 2011 to 2016, The Muny in Fiddler On The Roof
(2016), Variety Theatre in Wizard Of Oz in 2017 and The Little Mermaid in 2018,
Opera Theatre of St. Louis in Orfeo and Euridice in 2018 and with the Bach
Society of St. Louis in Bach In Motion in 2019. He is also an active member of
the Actors’ Equity Association and The American Guild of Musical Artists.
Brandon’s
choreography has been presented at the Big Muddy Dance Company, the University
of Missouri at St. Louis, The University of Central Oklahoma, Florida Atlantic
University, the American College Dance Festival, the Oklahoma Contemporary
Dance Festival, the St. Louis Arts Alliance, the American Dance Troupe, The Big
Muddy Convergence Trainee Program and MADCO.
You
can find him on Instagram @finkbrandonc
Sam Wallace
Sam has been a part of the color guard community as a performer, spintern, and instructor for the past eight years. She has spent 6 of those performing with the Spintronix Indoor Guard, and the last three as the instructor for Rock Bridge High School color guard. He has been a Spintern for several years in our program and this is their first year as a full Spinstructor!
You can find them on Instagram @leighace1313
Greg Burrell
Greg joined the Spintronix camp
staff in 2019, but has been a performer and then choreographer with the South
Shore Drill Team in Chicago basically all his life. With performances in
parades, winter guard competitions, and then students under his command, Greg
has excelled in all areas of the color guard world.
You can find him on Instagram
@gb_cool
Allie Davison
This year is Allie’s third camp as a staff member at Spintronix. He has been teaching band and colorguard since 2012. He is currently teaching at Palm harbor University High school and has also spent some time teaching at Countryside High School. Along with this experience he has also spent time making technique videos and occasional guest appearances on the Spintronix YouTube channel. Allie is a fresh graduate of USF with his degree in Music Education.
Allie has been one of the most consistent parts of the education team at Heat Wave Drum and Bugle Corps. Since joining the guard staff in 2016 Allie has been able to see their growth from the beginnings of the drum corps. Allie’s experience working with a wide variety of groups throughout his teaching career is a strong asset that makes him an important part in both the design and education teams. Allie is a well rounded educator and I am thankful that he has chosen to be a part of our staff once again for the 2020 camp.
You can find him on Instagram @princeallie94
Brittany Roberts
Brittany Roberts started her Colorguard journey at Marion Junior High in Marion, AR in 1999, she performed with her High School Colorguard from 2000-2004. In 2004 Brittany marched her first year of drum and bugle corps with Memphis Sound Drum and Bugle Corps, which she did through 2006. In 2007 she began co-instructing at Fayette Academy in Tennessee; here she taught fall and winter of 2007, 2008, and 2011. Cordova High School in Cordova, TN is where she spent the majority of her color guard teaching career, 2009-2015; Brittany took a year off to focus on her first-born Jaden. January of 2017, she began co-instructing fall and winter guard at Houston High School in Germantown, Tn, has been the head coach since 2018 , she was also blessed with her second born, Charlotte during this time, and is currently the head coach there today. Through the years Mrs. Roberts has written choreography at Collierville High School and Marion High School.
Spinstuctor:
Brittany and Jackie met at Memphis Sound Drum and Bugle Corps during the 2005 season. Jackie invited Brittany to teach at Spintronix’s second weekend camp in 2010. She loved it so much that she continued to come out every year through 2017. Unfortunately, after 2017 she has not been able to teach camp due to starting a family and attending Arkansas State University to study Early Childhood Education. Though these are trying times for us all, she expressed her excitement to be able to teach the Intermediate rifle class during the Spintronix Virtual camp this year. Brittany plans on being a part of the Spintronix family for life.
You can find her on Instagram @mzroberts511
Haakon Burntvedt
Haakon returns for his ninth year as a Spintronix camp staff member! He was a performer with the Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corps for six years, and during that time won the DCI Independent & Ensemble gold medal for his color guard solo performance. He has also been a cast and staff member of Orlando Visual winter guard and staff at Pegasus winter guard, in addition to his work as a performer at both Universal Studios and Disney World in Orlando.
You can find him on Instagram
@haakonb87
Robert Jordan
Robert
Jordan is an instructor and performer from Southern California that has
traveled around the world spreading his passion for colorguard. Robert has
marched with The Blue Devils, RCC Marching Tigers, Gold, and Fantasia
Winterguard. He works with multiple World, Open, and A Class groups each season
on top of doing clinics, giving private lessons, and teaching others in the
community how to campaign effectively and market themselves properly on social
media. He strives to not only make colorguard a household word, but to help the
outside world understand the possibilities that are available within the modern
day marching arts community.
You can
find him on Instagram @thatguywhospins
Anna Carter
Anna has been on staff at Spintronix for 9 years as a teambuilding/leadership director, technician, instructor, choreographer, and Assistant Director. She is also the one behind the camera/computer to produce our vlogs for Youtube. She has taught Teambuilding, Leadership, Dance and Flag at several of our weekend and summer camps over the last 9 years. By day, Anna works with special education students at a local elementary school. Whenever she is not spinning or at work, Anna enjoys traveling, photography/videography, being out in nature, and volunteering as a youth leader at her church. Fun Fact: Anna is the person who first taught Jackie how to spin a flag! It is amazing to see what has come of that.
You can find her on Instagram @annamcarter
Angie Mayhue
Angie has marched DCI
for five years, aging out as a member of the Boston Crusaders color guard, and
then was a staff member of the Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps after that. She
has also spent four years as a cast member of the world champion Pride of
Cincinnati winter guard. She has amassed a large social media following for her
color guard skills and plans to one day become an actress. She loves color
guard because it’s an opportunity to be creative and have fun.
You can find her on
Instagram @angie_mayhue
Jackie Brown
Jackie has been
involved in color guard and the marching arts since 2001 as a performer,
instructor, and judge. She is most well known for her instructional video
series on YouTube titled "#HowToColorGuard" and as a freelance color
guard choreographer & technician across the country. Her most notable
performance resume includes membership in the Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corps
world class color guard, and dancing in the Ceremonies of the 2016 Olympic
games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. As an instructor, she has coached a large
number of high school and independent teams of varying size and location across
the western hemisphere, including Legends Drum and Bugle Corps, Spintronix
Indoor Guard, and the Brazilian Vanguard. She has been judging color guard and
winter guard across the central United States since 2010, a volunteer staff
member for the Macy's Great American Marching Band since 2009, and executive
director of Spintronix Color Guard, a company providing color guard educational
services, since 2008.
You can find her on
Instagram @spintronixguard
Ama Adams
Ama began her color guard career as a band helper in middle school, then worked her way up to become the captain of her high school color guard. She spent two years performing with the Spintronix Indoor Guard before going on to college and competing in WGI as a member of Andesine winter guard from University of Central Missouri. She later returned to her hometown to teach the color guard at her alma mater and become a Spintern for several years at Spintronix, where she had already been creating instructional videos for their social media for some time. This is her first time teaching a live class online and she is very excited to bring you all some fun content!
You
can find her on Instagram @ama_marie97
Thursday, July 2, 2020
Spintronix Virtual Summer Camp 2020: Answering burning Spinthusiast questions...
Frequently asked questions about our camp include:
How much does it cost?
Do I have to live in the same state/country as you to attend?
If I can't make it to the time of the live, can I get a video?
What service will these sessions use?
Will the design information help me in real life?
How do I sign up?
Where are the links for the quizzes of what level I should take?
Who is teaching the classes?
Can I take coach classes as a student or student classes as a coach?
When will we receive the e-mails with the links to the sessions?
All of these and so much more are answered in our live video above! Enjoy!
<3 Jackie
Tuesday, June 30, 2020
Coach Class Instructor Bios - Spintronix VIRTUAL Summer Camp 2020
Jackie Brown
Sarah Sacco
Mrs. Sarah Sacco
has been the Director of Bands at Ava High School since 2008. Mrs. Sacco
attended Missouri State University for her undergraduate Bachelors in Music
Education. During her time at Missouri State, she was a very active member of
the PRIDE Band, serving as a section leader for two years. As an undergraduate,
Mrs. Sacco served one year as the Missouri Collegiate Music Educators (CMENC)
President at Missouri State and another year as the Southwest Seven
State-Regional CMENC President. Mrs. Sacco was also an active member of Sigma
Alpha Iota music fraternity. She served many officers during her time in
college including Vice-President of Ritual and Fraternity Education, Yearbook
chair, and Service chair. Mrs. Sacco is also an active member of the
Springfield Sigma Alpha Iota Alumnae chapter where she has served as Sergeant
at Arms, Vice President of Ritual and Fraternity Education, and President. Mrs.
Sacco is also the Tri-M State Chair on the Missouri Music Educators Association
Advisory Board and the Southwestern Division Representative to the NAfME Music
Honor Society Advisory Council. As the Tri-M chair, she organized the
first-ever Missouri Tri-M Summit which is an annual event for high school music
students. While at Ava High, Mrs. Sacco completed her Master's Degree in
Secondary Education Curriculum Instruction from Drury University.
Chris Sacco
Mr. Christopher J. Sacco grew up in DeSoto, MO and graduated from DeSoto High School in 1999. After high school Chris studied and played trumpet under Dr. Matthew McCready and Joseph Pappas while attending Jefferson College in Hillsboro, MO. Before completing his degree, he was selected to perform with the All-State Collegiate Band, under the direction of Frank Ticheli. In 2004, he received an Associate of Arts degree with an emphasis in Instrumental Music.
Mr. Sacco then began working toward a Bachelor of Music Education at Missouri State University. While in attendance he studied trumpet under Dr. Grant Peters, was section leader of the PRIDE trumpets, and performed in several ensembles including Jerry Hoover’s Jazz Band and the University Wind Ensemble, under the direction of Dr. Belva Prather. While in the Wind Ensemble, Chris was fortunate enough to perform at the CBDNA (College Band Directors National Association) Conference at Baylor University in Waco, TX as well as at the MMEA (Missouri Music Educators Association) Conference. During his time at Missouri State University, he was an active marching and brass technician for several high schools in and around the Springfield area. He graduated summa cum laude in 2007.
In 2013, while serving as the Associate Director of Bands for the Ava R-I School District, Chris completed his Masters in Secondary Education through Drury University. He is currently in his 13th year at Ava, where he co-directs with his wife Sarah. His duties include: Beginning Band, Intermediate Band, Middle School Concert Band, Middle School Jazz Band, High School Jazz Band, and assisting with the High School Symphonic and Marching Bands. His Middle School Concert Band, Middle School Jazz Band, and High School Jazz Band have received superior ratings and top placements every year at various festivals throughout the state. Mr. Sacco’s applied students have consistently received Honor I Ratings at both the District and State level for the past 12 years. The overall program has more than doubled in size and success since Chris and his wife arrived in 2008. Since then, they have had students perform in the All-District Bands, All-State Band, Missouri Lions Band, Macy’s Great American Marching Band, Army All-American Marching Band, and the Bands of America Marching Band.
In January of 2019, Chris was selected as a recipient of the John East “Spirit of Orpheus” Mentor Award for his work with young music educators throughout the South Central region of the state. He is a two time recipient of the National Citizenship Education Teacher Recognition Award as well as the Loyalty Day Award by the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. He has also been “spotlighted” by the Ava R-I Board of Education on numerous occasions for his work with his students.
Mr. Sacco’s professional affiliations and memberships include MMEA (Missouri Music Educators Association), NAfME (National Association for Music Education), MBA (Missouri Bandmasters Association), MOAJE (Missouri Association for Jazz Education), Phi Beta Mu (International Bandmasters Fraternity) and Phi Theta Kappa. Chris currently serves as the Vice President of Jazz for the Missouri Music Educators Association, the Band Vice President in the South Central District of the Missouri Music Educators Association, the Event Coordinator for the South Central Association All-Conference Honor Band, and is also an active certified adjudicator with the Missouri State High School Activities Association.
Outside of music education, Chris enlisted in the Missouri Air National Guard in March of 2000, where he completed an Associate of Applied Science degree in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering. He also served as the Drum Major of the Drum and Bugle Corp at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, TX. While serving 12 years in the 131st Civil Engineering Squadron, he was active during Operations Noble Eagle, Iraqi Freedom, and Enduring Freedom, where he served in various locations throughout the Middle East.
Justin Surface
Justin Surface was born and raised in
Indiana, where as a middle school and high school student he pursued both
percussion and color guard/winter guard. In his Junior year of high school
Justin began his teaching career by joining the staff of multiple local Indiana
high schools. Upon graduating at the top of his class, he pursued color guard
performance by marching with the Cavaliers and Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corps.
Since graduating high school, Justin has taught at several successful programs
culminating in 3 marching band finalist performances, 6 gold medal winter guard
champions, numerous Indiana State Finalist participant groups, and 3 WGI World
Championship groups just to highlight a few. Justin is also a formally trained color
guard just with WGI adjudicator certification. In total Justin has been
teaching for 15 years. When not teaching or judging color guard, Justin works
full time as a Supervisor for Kohls.
Justin joined the staff of Spintronix Indoor Guard as show designer in 2016, at led the team to two IRA Missouri State Champion titles in 2017 and 2018. Thanks to his efforts, the team has moved up in class and even attended Winter Guard International events.
Brent Becker
The
designs of artist-educator Brent W. Becker have had tremendous impact on the
current look of band uniforms. His portfolio of work demonstrates that it is
possible to innovate while preserving tradition.
For Brent, a uniform does more
than create uniformity or present an image – it is an expression of power and
unity that echoes the passion of performance and reflects the unique visual
heritage of the marching activity. Brent has recently worked with The Blue
Stars, Santa Clara Vanguard, Madison Scouts, Pacific Crest, and Teal Sound Drum
and Bugle Corps, as well as many of the nation’s top marching ensembles in the
development of new uniforms.
Brent’s incredible drawing
abilities; experience as a performer and educator; and, his knowledge of
historical and contemporary uniform design laid the groundwork for his career
as the Design Consultant at Stanbury Uniforms – a world-wide leader in uniform
manufacturing.
Brent W. Becker joined the St. Louis Brass Band with decades of
performance experience from several academic and community music organizations.
A member of Phi Mu Alpha SINFONIA, and an alumnus of Bradley University
(Peoria, IL) and Northern Illinois University (DeKalb, IL), Brent has enjoyed the
honor of performing with The Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps (Rosemont, IL),
the Peoria Symphony Orchestra (Peoria, IL), and Sterling Municipal Band
(Sterling, IL). He is currently a euphonium with the St. Charles Municipal Band
(St. Charles, MO) and St. Charles Community College Concert Band (Cottleville,
MO).
Outside of musical pursuits, Brent is and award-winning multi-disciplinary visual artist, designer, and arts educator. Recently, he has exhibited artwork through Art Saint Louis and the Saint Louis Artist's Guild. Brent’s drawing and mixed-media work was selected for the 36th Bradley International Print and Drawing Exhibition. He currently instructs Printmaking at St. Charles Community College and is the Design Consultant for Stanbury Uniforms. In his role with Stanbury, Brent has the unique opportunity to lend his visual expertise to renown performing ensembles, including university marching bands and several notable drum corps.
Patrick Porter
Patrick is a flight attendant for Frontier
Airlines. In performer positions at Disney World, Universal Studios Orlando and
Celebrity Cruise Line, he honed abilities in my attention to safety and customer
service, providing a solid foundation for instructing color guard. His
dependable, energetic, outgoing nature, and eagerness to please have been
recognized by all three employment positions. His experience as a Production
Manager, dance captain and stilt trainer has developed his leadership and
workplace safety skills. He also volunteers with several high schools and
non-profit organizations, including Horizon Independent, where he was a corner
stone of organization development, Spintrionix Indoor Guard as both a coach
instructor and student instructor, and Winter Guard International. His main
goal in working with the performing arts is to inspire youth to reach their
utmost personal growth and potential through their passion in the performing
arts.