Pete's Percussion Podcast - Pete Zambito

Episode 502 - Greg Herron

Pete's Percussion Podcast














Maryland-based freelance percussionist and educator Greg Herron stops by to talk about his new job as McDonogh School Upper School Band Director and Music Technology teacher, along with his private percussion teaching practice (02:25), his start to freelancing, and his career and life in Boston, Mexico, studying in Cuba, and heading back to Baltimore (11:50), growing up in many locations in the U.S., his active musical background, studying at the University of Miami (FL) and Boston Conservatory (MA), the many teachers who influenced him, and the importance of networking for freelancing gigs (41:50), and finishing with the Random Ass Questions, including segments on instrument rentals, working with administration, and taking care of his physical and mental health (01:24:05).
Finishing with a Rave on the 2018 book Atomic Habits (01:38:25).
Greg Herron links:
Greg Herron’s webpage
Previous Podcast Guests mentioned:
Jenna Duranko in 2026
Neil Grover in 2023
Keith Aleo in 2020
Rebecca Kite in 2018
Other Links:
Roy Haynes
Ralph Hardimon
Thom Hannum
Tom Aungst
Pat Hollenbeck
Scott Eisenberg
Foghorn Leghorn
The Karate Kid trailer
Caleb Herron
I’m Possible - Richard White
Dontae Winslow
D.J. Sparr
“Eruption” - Van Halen
Lion Performance Hall
John Locke
Grant Menafee
Nate Morton
Matt Halpern
Steve Rucker
Steve Bagby
Advanced Techniques for the Modern Drummer - Jim Chapin
Scott Deal
Seth Wexler
John Tafoya
Lou Abbott
Svet Stoyanov
Phil Faini
Fritz Reiner
Max Roach
Elvin Jones
Joe Henderson
John H. Beck
Vic Firth
Evelyn Glennie
Colin Currie
Edna Huang
Buddy Rich
Gustav Klimt
Raves:
Atomic Habits - James Clear

Episode 501 - Michael Jones

Pete's Percussion Podcast














New York-based Percussionist, Recording Artist, Researcher and Educator Michael Jones stops by to talk about his current teaching job at Bard College (NY) and his work throughout the school (04:40), how his graduate studies at UC-San Diego influenced his solo CD projects (17:30), his philosophical research on ontology and percussion instrument ideology and modernity, and questions about what “total percussion” means today (30:30), growing up in Connecticut, his progressive metal music background, high school band, and his involvement in the Live Action Role-Playing community (58:25), his undergrad years at the Hartt School of Music (CT) and studying under Ben Toth and many of the other faculty there (01:12:45), more about his graduate work at UCSD, studying under Steven Schick, and many of his UCSD student colleagues (01:25:35), and settles in for the Random Ass Questions, including segments on the impact of YouTube on young musicians, discussions of mental health, metal music, great books, and the San Diego Superbloom (01:39:40).
Finishing with a Rave on the 2026 documentary Earth, Wind & Fire (02:08:20).
Michael Jones Links:
Michael Jones’ website
Michael Jones’ Bard College page
Michael Jones’ Discography
Previous Podcast Guests mentioned:
Steven Schick from 2025
Rebecca Lloyd-Jones from 2022
Nicholas Papador from 2024
Other Links:
Eric Cha-Beach
Jason Treuting
Nicholas Deyoe
Pluto Bell
Scott Wollschleger
Sun Ra
Thurman Barker
“Psappha” - Iannis Xenakis
The Percussionist’s Art - Steven Schick
Amy Cimini
Unsound Supplies - Fanny Gribenski (editor)
Anthropocene Period
Writing the Implosion - Joseph Dumit
Between the Buried and Me
Protest the Hero
Scale the Summit
Periphery
Fred Hinger
Ben Toth
Joe Galeota
John Amira
Shane Shanahan
Ted Piltzecker
Rogerio Boccato
From Me Flows What You Call Time - Toru Takemitsu
Percussion Group Cincinnati
Herbert Brün
Bill Solomon
“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird” - Lukas Foss
William Winant
“Bone Alphabet” - Brian Ferneyhough
“Persephassa” - Iannis Xenakis
Zen and the Art of Archery - Eugene Herrigel
Fiona Digney
Princess Mononoke trailer
Star Wars: The Last Jedi trailer
Rakesfall - Vajra Chandrasekera
Swann’s Way - Marcel Proust (Lydia Davis translation)
Meshuggah
San Diego Superbloom
Nardelli’s
Zetsu No. 8 - Nishida Jun
Raves:
Earth, Wind & Fire documentary trailer

Episode 500 - Megan Arns (2026)

Pete's Percussion Podcast














It’s Episode 500, and the 10-year Anniversary of Pete’s Percussion Podcast! After Pete talks about the early days of the show (01:45), he welcomes back his Mizzou colleague, member of the Percussive Arts Society Board of Directors, Percussionist, Educator and Administrator Megan Arns back to the show for the first time in 8 years! Megan talks about her early years in percussion and her experiences and jobs prior to taking the Percussion Director Position at Mizzou in 2014 (12:00), her 12 years so far at Mizzou, what’s she’s learned, her administrative role, the job market and the challenges for future percussion teachers (17:30), working with grad students these days and her own experiences as a grad student (36:30), why she’s involved in PAS Leadership now, having a family and the challenges and opportunities of continuing to keep a professional career (44:00), her work with the Switch~ Ensemble (01:03:30), when her mentor Michael Burritt came to visit Mizzou in the spring (01:11:00), and a brief Random Ass Questions segment including managing her own physical and mental health, her knowledge of children’s media, new and upcoming travels, her father the college professor, “full send”, and some kudos to Pete for the podcast (01:21:35).
Finishing with the Raves, including some FAQs about the podcast and Pete’s heartfelt thanks to the guests and the fans of the show (01:38:00).
Megan Arns Links:
Megan Arns’ website
Megan Arns’ Mizzou page
Switch~ Ensemble website
Bill Kalinkos
Previous Megan Arns’s podcast appearances:
Megan in 2016
Megan in 2017
Megan in 2018
Previous Podcast Guests mentioned in this episode:
John Parks IV in 2018
Troy Hall in 2020
Clif Walker in 2021
Mark Ford in 2023
William Moersch in 2019
Joshua Simonds in 2022
Other Links:
Lewis & Clark Fife and Drum Corps
Colts Drum & Bugle Corps
Michael Bump
Michael Burritt
Royal Hartigan
“Kakamora” from Moana
Experimental Media and Performing Arts Theater
KPop Demon Hunters trailer
Moana trailer
Frozen trailer
Wicked trailer
“Takedown” from KPop Demon Hunters

Episode 499 - Matthew Hinkle

Pete's Percussion Podcast


































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Recent Master of Music in Percussion Performance graduate from the University of Missouri Matthew Hinkle stops by to talk about his Master’s degree recital program (03:35), his graduate assistantship duties in percussion and recording services (11:10), his interactions with the Mizzou faculty, his enjoyment of the grad cohort there, and his future in percussion (29:00), growing up in the St. Louis area, getting into percussion, and his years in DCI and WGI (44:40), his time attending community college while prepping for DCI auditions as well as getting starting working with high school drumlines (01:00:45), his undergrad years at Lindenwood University (MO) (01:07:15), his path to getting to Mizzou and more about his time as a percussion student (01:16:10), and finishes with the Random Ass Questions, including segments on WGI and DCI and how they supplement the undergrad percussion student, the bad movie Anaconda, cooking, great books, classic video games, and the music of Richard Strauss (01:27:20).
Finishing with a Rave on the 2026 film I Love Boosters (01:54:40).
Previous Podcast Guests mentioned:
Megan Arns in 2016
Julia Gaines-Montag in 2016
Troy Hall in 2020
Clif Walker in 2021
Connor Stevens in 2021
Other Links:
Great Plains International Marimba Competition
“Caleidoscopio” - Gene Kosinski
“Canaries” - Elliot Carter
“The Anvil Chorus” - David Lang
“Khan Variations” - Alejandro Viñao
“White Pines” - Michael Burritt
The Missouri Symphony
Blue Devils DCI
Freedom Percussion WGI
2019 Blue Devils show
Sebastian Buhts
David Arns
Interstellar trailer
Anaconda trailer
The Percussionist’s Art - Steven Schick
Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell
Musashi’s Dokkodo
DOOM trailer
Diablo IV trailer
Imo’s Pizza
Ein Heidenleben - Richard Strauss
Raves:
I Love Boosters trailer

Episode 498 - Sam Quinones

Pete's Percussion Podcast














Following Pete’s thoughts about his experiences at the Canadian Percussion Network’s “The Space Between V” conference, Author and journalist Sam Quinones (The Perfect Tuba) stops by to talk about Sam’s career in journalism, growing up in California, crime reporting, and writing about tuba players and band directors (06:05), his relationship with music, his love of various genres and styles, and his background in punk rock (16:20), his first jobs in writing and building his writing skill set, talking to interesting people, and some of his favorite writers (25:00), his early research on the book, Tuba Fats, and Robert Caro (36:05), the connections between addiction and fulfillment through hard work in music, along with the needs of bands directors to become advocates for their work (41:50), and finishes with the Random Ass Questions, with segments on the challenges for young journalists today, The Godfather films, and great music from The Rolling Stones, Sun Ra, and Emmylou Harris (01:05:45).
Finishing with a Rave on the Sam Quinones book The Perfect Tuba: Forging Fulfillment from the Bass Horn, Band, and Hard Work (01:20:10).
Sam Quinones Links:
Sam Quinones’ website
The Perfect Tuba - Sam Quinones
Other Links:
The Stockton Record
The Los Angeles Times
June 17, 1994 trailer (The OJ Simpson chase)
Folk Music Center
“Carol” - The Rolling Stones
“Mama Tried” - Merle Haggard
“Stand By Your Man” - Tammy Wynette
“Jambalaya” - Clifton Chenier
“La Puerta Negra” - Los Tigres Del Norte
“Sweet Emotion” - Aerosmith
“What’s Your Name” - Lynyrd Skynyrd
“Chain Saw” - The Ramones
“Clampdown” - The Clash
“California Uber Alles” - Dead Kennedys
Killings - Calvin Trillin
Robert Caro
The Corpse Had a Familiar Face - Edna Buchanan
On Writing Well - William Zinsser
Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro
The Godfather trailer
The Godfather Part II trailer
Goodfellas trailer
“Me and Billy the Kid” - Joe Ely
“Space is The Place” - Sun Ra
Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town - Emmylou Harris
Raves:
The Perfect Tuba - Sam Quinones