vernon johnson joins cascades & current caption heads

The Cascades are proud to announce taking the artistic helm of the Cascades Percussion section is venerated percussionist Vernon Johnson from the greater Portland/Vancouver area. Mr. Johnson got his innocent start as a percussionist with the Blue Devils B drum corps and continued his marching career with the Blue Devils A Corps until he aged out as the Most Valuable Performer.

Mr. Johnson has arranged and taught percussion with various prestigious organizations around the country, some of which include: The Cadets Drum & Bugle Corps, The Velvet Knights , Momentum, Oregon Crusaders Indoor, Union High School, Upland High School, Etiwanda High School and is currently the Percussion Director at Skyview High School in Vancouver, Washington.

Mr. Johnson was a featured performer in Blast, has worked for Disney and with such distinguished percussionist as Tom Aungst, Tom Float, Paul Rennick and Thom Hannum.

Four year staff veteran Sean Schwartz will be assisting Vernon in moving the Cascades percussion section into a new era for the organization. Sean will be assuming the role of the Percussion Caption Manager and all of the responsibilities that is associated with the new administrative position in 2012.

The brass section will also be experiencing some shifting roles this season. The 2011 Brass Caption Head,
Zach Smith, will be restructuring his role this coming summer as he is happily engaged and getting married prior to the 2012 DCI tour. Zach will be assuming the role of Brass Caption Manager which allows the
flexibility needed to enjoy their first summer as newlyweds. Congratulations Zach!

We are excited to have Stephen Menefee leading the 2012 Cascades Brass Line as the Brass Caption Head. "Steve has designed and taught the Cascades brass section for over 15 years in multiple roles and has been integral in establishing our teaching philosophies, style and success of the modern Cascades. We are so proud to have him involved at such a high level in 2012”, stated Cascades Corps Director, Ron Comfort. Mr. Menefee is currently the Director of Bands at Ferndale High School in Ferndale, Washington.

In his fourth season with the Cascades, we are so pleased to have Benjamin Adams continuing his success as the Color Guard Caption Head. Mr. Adams is a highly sought out designer holding a Music Education Degree from Florida State University and choreographing for numerous highly successful organizations in the Pacific Northwest. Mr. Adams is the Founder/Director of Summit Winterguard and lives in Portland, Oregon.