Mr. Matthew Cole was born in Houston, TX. Mr. Cole completed his Bachelor of Music Education in Instrumental Music from Pacific Lutheran University. He earned a Master of Music and Conducting degree from the American Band College at Sam Houston University, Texas. Mr. Cole achieved his National Board Certification in Instrumental Music in 2010 and recertified in 2018. He has performed and guest conducted multiple ensembles throughout Washington including the North Cascade Concert Band, San Juan Music Educators’ Association HS Honor Band, the Fourth Corner Jazz Ensemble and the Washington Wind Symphony. Mr. Cole is active as an adjudicator for both junior and senior level solo/ensemble and concert ensemble competitions. He has served on staff with the American Band College and is currently on staff with the Western International Honor Bands. He was recently named a 2020 Grammy Teacher of the Year Quarterfinalist.  He taught 9 years in Bellingham, WA. This is currently Mr. Cole’s 10th year with the Tahoma Bands!

The Tahoma Instrumental Music program has grown from 53 students in 3 ensembles to almost 200 over the last 10 years.  Tahoma High School now offers 3 Concert Ensembles, 2 Jazz Bands, 2 Percussion Ensembles, 1 Orchestra, a competitive Field Show Ensemble, 2 Pep Bands, a Parade Ensemble and a Color Guard program.  We have students involved in multiple youth symphony orchestras.  Tahoma has students auditioning into honor ensembles at the state, regional and national levels (Concert, Marching, Symphony, Orchestra and Jazz). Over 80% of our participating students play more than one instrument in various ensembles. 

The Band, Percussion, Orchestra and Color Guard members are all supported by our Tahoma Band Boosters.  We have a very active and inclusive booster organization. The door is always open to parents, private teachers, relatives, graduates,  and community members!

Jon is our lead percussion instructor at Tahoma High School. Jon attended Tahoma High School from 2018-2022, as well as Central Washington University from 2022-2024, where he majored in Music Education. 

Jon is currently taking some time off from school to focus on performing with ensembles around the country and getting teaching experience through multiple programs across the state. 

As a performer, Jon has performed with Tahoma HS (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021), CWU Marching Band (2022, 2023), Emerald City BOOM (2019), Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps (2020, 2021, 2022, 2024), UW Winter Drumline (2025), and IMPACT Percussion (2022, 2023, 2024, 2025). 

Jon will be spending this summer on tour with the Seattle Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps. As an educator, Jon has taught at AC Davis High School, West Valley High School, Cedarcrest High School, and Tahoma High School.

Aidan is one of our Percussion Techs this season at Tahoma. Aidan attended Tahoma High School from 2019-2023. Aidan has spent multiple seasons in the marching arts on a wide variety of instruments. 

He has performed on synth, xylophone/glockenspiel, vibraphone, snare drum, bass drum, flubs, and drumset at ensembles around the state. Aidan has performed with Tahoma HS (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022), UW Marching Band (2023, 2024), UW Winter Drumline (2024, 2025), Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps (2020, 2021), Seattle Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps (2024), and IMPACT Percussion (2023, 2024). 

Aidan will be spending this summer on tour with the Seattle Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps, where it will be his second season with the group. 

Al is one of our Battery Techs this season at Tahoma. Al originally moved to the United States from Brunei in 2021, where he enrolled in Tahoma High School and attended from 2022-2023. Al has spent all of his seasons dialing in his skills as a marching bass drummer, and has seen incredible success in a very short amount of time. 

Al has performed with Tahoma High School (2022), UW Drumline (2023, 2024), and UW Winter Drumline (2025). 

Al will be spending this summer on tour with the Seattle Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps. 

Charlie is one of our Battery Techs this season at Tahoma. 

Charlie has performed with the Seattle All-City Band (2019), Seismic Sound (2019), UW Marching Band (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024), Seattle Cascades (2024), and IMPACT Percussion (2025). 

Charlie has been with us since 2024 and will be teaching with the Seattle All-City Band this summer!

Born and raised in Washington, Cathleen is a Tahoma graduate who went through the band and color guard program and is now back to guide the next generation of Bears through their color guard journey.

Cathleen began taking dance classes at age 5 and quickly fell in love, leading her to train at several dance studios around the Puget Sound. Her primary dance styles are Ballet and Contemporary, but she has also trained in tap, Jazz, and Flamenco. As a member of the Tahoma Band program 5th - 12th grade, when she learned about color guard, she was immediately interested due to her dance background. During her time with the Tahoma Color Guard, Cathleen was a featured soloist and a Co-Captain and went on to participate in DCI with Eruption Drum and Bugle Corps. After this, she spent time coaching color guard at Tahoma and at Bellingham High School. In 2021, Cathleen joined Rhapsody Winterguard as a performer for the virtual season and submitted a solo to WGI, receiving a Superior rating and advancing to finals.

Cathleen graduated from Western Washington University with her BFA in Dance, a BA in Spanish, and a minor in mathematics and was named Outstanding Graduate in Dance. After this, she lived abroad in Cazorla, Spain for a year, working as an English Language and Culture Assistant in a primary school. In addition to being the Color Guard Instructor at Tahoma, Cathleen currently works as a Paraeducator, Dance Instructor, and is pursuing performance opportunities as a professional dancer.