Nate Kaniecki is a multi-instrumentalist from Wheeling, WV. He began playing trumpet and piano in 6th grade and later majored in percussion in college, earning a degree in Percussion Performance from West Virginia University in 2022. While at WVU, he performed with Orchestra, Wind Symphony, Percussion Ensembles, and Jazz Band. Along his musical journey, he’s taught both private lessons and group classes, working with groups ranging from 5 to 75 in size, and has arranged music for groups as large as 20. 

Ryder Merritt is an accomplished musician. From a very young age, he pursued his musical interests in Los Angeles, California, where he studied Japanese Taiko drumming for two years. Ryder started playing the upright bass in middle school. After his family relocated to Morgantown, Ryder joined the District Advanced Orchestra. In 2023, he was selected as All State 2nd Chair Bassist. Then went on to be selected for 1st Chair Bassist for University High School’s orchestra his Freshman year.

Currently, Ryder is a percussionist in the award winning UHS Marching Band, and also plays bass and drums for the UHS Jazz Ensemble. He was placed in the AP Music Theory class a year ahead of requirements. In addition to his traditional training, Ryder has performed on the drums and guitar in a local rock band with the Pop Shop. He is also the guitarist of Jombo Jazz, which recently had a summer residency at the Morgantown Art Bar.

Ryder’s music taste is eclectic. A lover of the intricacies of jazz, he is also an avid fan of rock and roll. 

Drew is a graduate of West Virginia University (WVU), where he earned both a Master of Arts in Musicology and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education, and has spent almost a decade building a career focused on percussion education, performance, and research. His educational career has included work with all ages from pre-kindergarten to collegiate students, in all major areas of percussion. His primarily focuses are on marching percussion and West-African drumming, dancing, and gyil traditions. 

Currently, Drew is a private percussion instructor in the Morgantown community and serves as a percussion instructor for the WVU marching band, Westwood Middle School, Canon-McMillan High School, and Fort Cherry High School drumlines.

Beyond teaching, he is an active percussionist, performing on drums regularly with the band Indigo & Orange, and steel pan with the band Them Donkey Boys. He is a founding member of the newly formed Bessemer Ensemble, which is an experimental chamber group focusing on contemporary compositions for steel drums. Drew is also a core member of and has recorded with the group, Cassidy Paige and the Corner Booth Band, composing and playing both the bass guitar and percussion parts on their album Common Thread, released in 2025.

As a scholar and researcher, Drew has conducted extensive field work and research in Ghana, having studied Ga, Ewe, Dagara, Birifor, and Dagomba musical traditions. His specific interest focuses on the gyil traditions of the Birifor communities in the Upper-West region of Ghana. More broadly, Drew’s research focuses on global community musicking and the impact of space and place on musical traditions. Additionally, Drew has studied abroad in Basel, Switzerland, where he learned and participated in the Swiss rudimental drumming traditions, specifically during Basel’s Fasnacht festival. In the future, he hopes to expand his research and performance further into this musical tradition. 

Through his connection to WVU, as a student and now teacher, Drew has had the opportunity to perform and share not just local stages, but international ones as well, including multiple  performances at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in 2019 and 2024, as well as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City with The WVU Marching Band in 2025.

Drew is an active member of the Percussive Arts Society, Society for Ethnomusicology, and National Association for Music Educators. He resides in Morgantown, WV serving the local community and surrounding areas of North-Central West Virginia and South-Western Pennsylvania.