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Charles Pisarra

Tulsa Oklahoma Union Public Schools
Percussion Specialist Assistant Band Director
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Charles Pisarra is Director of Bands and Associate Director of Fine Arts for the Union Public Schools in Tulsa, OK. Prior to his current appointment he spent eight years as full-time Assistant Band Director and Percussion Specialist. Union Bands offers elective courses for students in grades 6-12, serving 1100 students in winds, percussion, and color guard education. Twelve beginner band classes, five intermediate middle school level band classes, three high school concert bands, two scholastic jazz bands, four winter guard classes, a competitive marching band, and a wide array of honor band & solo/ensemble activities comprise the musical and performance engagement of Union Bands students.  Mr. Pisarra oversees a staff of 8 full-time assistants, 12 part-time assistants, as well as a nationwide design and consulting team.  Additionally, he serves as lead conductor for the Union High School Wind Ensemble, and he is integrally involved in the administrative function of the Fine Arts Department for the school district. 

The Union High School Renegade Regiment is a 10-time Bands of America Grand National Championship Finalist. Mr. Pisarra has been involved with this group for over a decade, originally as a part-time technician and designer, then in the percussion coordinator role, and now in the lead director role.  Most recently, the Renegade Regiment has earned BOA Finalist status in 2010, 2011, and 2014.  Additionally, the Renegade Regiment appeared in the 2013 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, performing for a live audiences of over 3 million and a worldwide television audience of over 50 million.  
 
During his tenure as Percussion Specialist at Union, Mr. Pisarra  coordinated all aspects of percussion education and curriculum development, including instruction of students in grades 6-12, advanced percussion techniques, high school marching band, indoor competitive drumline, percussion solos/ensembles, and other novelty ensembles.  Under his direction, soloists and ensembles consistently earned superior ratings at district and state level contests, and the indoor competitive drumline won the 2012 Oklahoma circuit state championship and earned semifinalist status at the 2014 WGI Percussion World Championship. Under his leadership, numerous students earned positions in honor bands and several graduates entered music performance & music education degree programs at universities throughout the region. 

Charles holds Bachelor and Masters Degrees in Music Education from the University of Oklahoma.  Mr. Pisarra's graduate work included focus on research, conducting, percussion performance, and instructing undergraduate percussion methods courses.  His primary teachers include Richard Gipson, Lance Drege, Michael Raiber, and William Wakefield. As a student performer, Charles was involved with various ensembles at the University of Oklahoma, including the Percussion Orchestra, Steel Drum Band, Pride of Oklahoma Marching Band, Symphony Orchestra, Opera, and Wind Ensemble. In the marching arts, he performed with the Dubuque Colts, and Concord Blue Devils Drum & Bugle Corps. Mr. Pisarra has served in instructional roles for the Pride of Oklahoma, the Colts Drum & Bugle Corps. He has also performed as a percussionist with the Tulsa Signature Symphony and other freelance positions in the Tulsa area.  

Mr. Pisarra owns and operates Percussion Solutions LLC, a pageantry arts consulting company that specializes in designing custom percussion arrangements, and customized audio wiring & rackmountable audio connection panels & wiring/cabling solutions.  The company has a client base that includes organizations in Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Idaho, Missouri, North Carolina, Louisiana, Illinois, Tennessee, and Indiana. 

Charles Pisarra has served as a clinician for River Valley Independent (‘RVI’) Percussion Ensemble (2012 WGI PSA World Championship Finalist), and as adjudicator for Winter Guard & Percussion of Oklahoma (WGPO).  He holds memberships with PAS, OkMEA, NAFME, and OBA.  Mr. Pisarra proudly endorses SABIAN Cymbals and Innovative Percussion Sticks & Mallets as an educational artist.