Jesse Willis is currently the Director of Percussion Studies at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, South Carolina. He holds a B.M.E. and a B.M. from Texas Tech University and a M.M. from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and anticipates a Doctorate of Musical Arts from Texas Tech University. At CCU, Jesse is the director and coordinator of all percussion activities including the Percussion Ensemble, World Music Ensemble, and Steel Pan Ensemble. He also serves as the arranger for the CCU Spirit of the Chanticleer Marching Band.
Prior to his appointment at CCU, Jesse was an Associate Instructor at Indiana University, where he directed the Indiana University Steel Pan Ensemble and taught private lessons to both music majors and non-music majors. He also assisted with teaching responsibilities for the Brazilian Percussion Ensemble, Afro-Cuban Folkloric Percussion Ensemble, and Latin Jazz Band.
Jesse is in demand as a performer and clinician at high schools and universities throughout the country. He has also had the opportunity to perform or present at many of the top music conferences in the United States, including PASIC, Oklahoma PAS Day of Percussion, South Carolina PAS Day of Percussion, SCMEA, TMEA, CMEA, LMEA, The National Kodaly Convention, and the National Orff Conference. He has also performed on Royal Caribbean Cruise Line's "Monarch of the Seas." He is currently a member of the Long Bay Symphony Orchestra in Myrtle Beach and has performed with several other regional symphonies across the country.
Jesse has also maintained an active career within the marching arts. For over a decade he has been heavily involved in the drum and bugle corps activity as both a performer and teacher. He marched with the Blue Knights from 2003-2005, and has worked as a percussion instructor for the Blue Stars, Madison Scouts, and Carolina Crown. He has also taught at several championship high school programs in Indiana and Texas, including Northview High School (Brazil, Indiana) and Center Grove High School (Greenwood, Indiana). In 2004-2005, he was the drum line instructor for the Texas Tech Goin' Band From Raiderland.
Jesse's principal teachers include Lisa Rogers, Alan Shinn, Michael Spiro, Kevin Bobo, Steve Houghton, John Tafoya, Brent Montgomery, and Pat Amann. Jesse is a Yamaha Performing Artist and is also currently an educational endorser for Vic Firth and Remo.
