JENNIFER LESETH- DESIGN ANALYSIS

Jennifer Leseth is a Chicago native with 30-plus years of performance, instruction, and design experience in the pageantry arts. Jennifer started performing at an early age and her passion for the art grew as she performed with color guards such as Destiny (IL), Guardsmen (IL), State Street Review (WI), and Escapade (OH) as well as the Phantom Regiment (IL) and Cadets of Bergen County (NJ).

Her experience with drum corps includes serving as color guard caption head for Bluecoats (OH), Crossmen (TX), Madison Scouts (WI), Carolina Crown (SC), Phantom Regiment (IL) and Santa Clara Vanguard (CA). On a high school level she has had the honor of leading the color guard programs at Marian Catholic (IL), Plymouth Canton (MI), Spring High School (TX), Winston Churchill (TX), LD Bell (TX), Flower Mound (TX) and Lincoln Way Community (IL). In addition, she served nine years as the color guard coordinator for The Army All American as well as a long-time consultant/choreographer with The Spirit of America Marching Band and winter percussion.

For 2020, Jennifer has been named the Guard Caption Supervisor/Designer for the Madison Scouts Drum & Bugle Corps.

PATTY BEGGY – EQUIPMENT

As a performer, Patricia Beggy began dancing, twirling and marching at the age of 6 and continued until she aged out at 21. Her first year in the pageantry activity ended with an American Legion State Championship in twirling, and her last year ended with an American Legion State Championship in Drum Corps. She studied dance for over 15 years, including attending Dartford College of Movement Studies in England and was a company member of The Performance Dance Ensemble. Ms. Beggy has taught, consulted and judged for Baton Twirling, Cheerleading, Drum and Bugle Corps, Marching Bands and Winter Guard. She is actively involved with judge education programs and travels as a clinician for various judges’ associations throughout the as well as Canada, England and the Netherlands. She has been a visual judge both nationally and internationally for more than 30 years and holds judging credentials in all four visual captions. Her Winter Guard International focus is in both the Equipment and Movement captions and she is one of only a select few judges who have judged at the world class level in both captions at World Championships in the same year. In addition to judging, Ms. Beggy has master’s Degrees in both Education and Administration and recently retired from the position of Elementary School Principal from the Cambridge Public Schools, in Cambridge MA. Patricia highly values giving back to the community and has served 11 years on the Central Middlesex County Association for Adults with Disabilities Human Rights Commission and for 10 years was on the Board of Directors for the non-profit CitySprouts.org, receiving their Community and Environmental Impact Award for her service.

DANIEL NIEBAUER – GENERAL EFFECT

Mr. Niebauer is currently a 30 plus year member of the New York Federation of Contest Judges as well as Caption Chief for the Ny-Penn Judging Division. He is also a charter member of the Ontario Drum Corps and Color Guard Judging Association. He has served as Visual Caption Chief for the NYFCJ, ODCA, and the New York Field Band Conference. Mr. Niebauer currently adjudicates for WGI, DCI and the American Legion National Championship Contests. He has adjudicated for DCA, CSJA, ISSMA, NJA, CJA, Penn. Fed, & The American Legion National Championships and BOA, as well as guest judge for many State, Regional & International Championships all over the World. He has personally designed, coordinated, consulted or directed over 300 Marching Bands, Drum Corps and Color Guards in the past 35 years. Staff Director for 13 years of: “The Qualifier’s Marching Band Camps.” His units have earned over 400 first place trophies or championships and he currently is the drill designer for 4 Marching Bands and teaches Drill Design Fundamentals for the Music Dept. at Mercyhurst College. Mr. Niebauer is still currently a clinician on Visual Design and Visual General Effect and has given numerous power point presentations throughout the nation and Europe. He has been a Band and Assistant Band Director for many local High Schools, and he has taught at Edinboro State University as an Associate Professor in the Jewelry and Sculpture Department. He has taught at the High School level and College level for 20 plus years, and is presently the Vice President of Operations and co-owner of Ralph Miller Jewelers & Gallery, Jan & Dan’s Jewelry, Inc., and RMJ Restorations, Inc.

BOBBY GLASS – MOVEMENT

Bobby Glass currently resides in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania and has enjoyed many years in the pageantry arts as a performer, instructor, and adjudicator. His marching career started in high school and continued afterwards with the Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps from 2008-2012, Cadets2 2012, and then one winter each with Field of View (2009) and Black Watch (2011). Recently, Bobby served as one of the designers and head instructors for the Red Land/West Shore School District color guard programs for the last 10 years. He has also been involved with various other marching band and indoor color guard programs in the Pennsylvania and Maryland areas such as Towson University, and AMP. He has been an adjudicator since 2015 and works with various circuits in the Northeast. Professionally Bobby holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Central Penn College and is currently a Project Manager and Designer for Field and Floor FX.

FRANK MILLER – EFFECT VISUAL

Being literally born into a Drum Corps lifestyle with his father as a lead soprano player for the Pittsburgh Rockets Frank was a mascot for the drum corps the day he was born. At a very young age (6) Frank had the privilege of beginning his percussion studies privately under some of the premier orchestral and rudimental specialists known in the percussion world at that time. Early on with instruction from William Hammond, (and Bill's student Mary Sorick) his passion to constantly want to drum lead him to become one of the youngest members of NARD performing in individual snare drum contests throughout the Midwest and East coast while winning numerous individual events before the age of 12 and also placing in the top ranks of DCI's snare drum individuals at the early age of 13. He continued his studies with several other private teachers in the likes of Michael Blazer, Michael Kumer (Duquesne Univ), Jan Fung and his esteemed collogue and friend Rande Sanderbeck (director of percussion at ETSU) while marching his way through several small drum and bugle corps before joining the well-known drumline of the Finleyville Royal Crusaders where he stayed until 1981. In 1982, Frank was hired as the percussion caption head for the Steel City Ambassadors a Sr. Drum and bugle corps from Pittsburgh, PA where he stayed to teach for the next 10 years. Now, during all this time, Frank had always had a very strong interest in art, painting, architecture, and many types of design and had been writing for winter guards and marching bands in the local Pittsburgh area but really wanted to find a way to utilize these artistic qualities into his life outside of the pageantry world. The answer was the Gateway Institute of Design where he studied CAD and was reassured of his true love for design. Frank is also very proud to be one of the founding members of the Pittsburgh Percussion Project where he has been credited for introducing the students of the Pittsburgh region to the indoor percussion activity. PPP successfully performed in the PIW division for WGI as finalists in 2003-2006. Currently, Frank is recognized primarily as a visual designer, clinician, and judge, his involvement in the marching music activity from a student, to teacher, designer and consultant spans over 40 years. He has been an accredited adjudicator with some of the most esteemed judging associations and pageantry organizations around the globe including the AIA, FFJC, MEJA, PFCJ, PIMBA, Drum Corps Europe, Drum Corps International, Winter Guard International, and Music for All, just to name a few. In his current work as a visual design specialist, he continues efforts to educate in the importance of individual student training, and design quality within a variety of marching music activities throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and Japan.

CHRIS HESTIN – EFFECT MUSIC

Chris Hestin has been an active WGI Percussion adjudicator, serving recently on the WGI Percussion Steering Committee and currently as the WGI Percussion Judge Coordinator. He also had served as the Percussion Judge Coordinator for the Mid-East Judges Association, Percussion Association, Rocky Mountain Percussion Association, and Three Rivers Winter Ensemble Association. Chris also annually presents judge training clinics for various circuits in anticipation of the winter season. In the fall he adjudicates for Bands of America/ Music for All, PIMBA of Western Pennsylvania, and several other circuits around the country.

Chris served from 2011 through 2013 as the Percussion Caption Head and Arranger for the Spirit of Atlanta Drum and Bugle Corps, having previously served in the same capacity for the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps and as Percussion Specialist for the Kiski Area School District. His passion for the activity began as a member of the Phantom Regiment and has continued through years of teaching, coordinating, and arranging.

He holds BAs in Music Education and Music Composition from Indiana University of PA having studied with Dr. Gary Olmstead, Dr. Jack Stamp, and Daniel Perlongo. While pursuing a master’s in music technology from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh he focused on commercial scoring and sound design with Bill Purse. He continues to be inspired by the endless possibilities of melding acoustic and electronic sound mapping in the pageantry arts.