Alan Aungst

BATTERY CAPTION HEAD / ENSEMBLE COORDINATOR

Alan Aungst began marching percussion with the Dartmouth High School Marching Band and Indoor drumline in Dartmouth, Massachusetts (2010-2014).  His drum corps career began with the Spartans in 2012 and then Carolina Crown from 2013-2014.  Alan then moved to Riverside, California to attend Riverside City College and perform with RCC Indoor Percussion (2015-2018).  While in Riverside, he also began performing with the Blue Devils snare line (2015-2017).

Since 2014 Alan has worked professionally with many high schools in Southern California. Alan also worked with The Cadets (2018-2022).  Alan graduated from Cal State Long Beach and works full-time in real estate. 

This is Alan’s 6th year with Dark Sky Percussion.

WILLIAM MITSUK

CO-BATTERY CAPTION HEAD / TENOR INSTRUCTOR

William is a performer and percussion educator living in Santa Barbara, California. This will be his 5th season as an instructor at Dark Sky Percussion. Since 2015, William has been a Drum and Bugle Corps and Indoor percussion participant in California marching with Pacific Crest (2015), Blue Devils B (2016), Blue Devils (2018), Dark Sky Percussion (2016), and RCC (2017-2019).

His teaching experience includes Blue Devils B (2019-Present), The Blue Stars (2020-2022), and Vessel Indoor Percussion (2020). He has been a caption head/arranger of many programs in the Santa Barbara area and is looking to expand his compositional skills wherever possible. He also provides private music lessons for students of all ages and experiences for Tenor and Snare.

William’s marching career has allowed him to be featured professionally in television/internet shows such as The Bachelorette, Jimmy Kimmel, and Drop the Mic.

”I am grateful to be able to give back to the community, which has given me so much.” - W.M.

Kheffy Cervantez

BASS DRUM INSTRUCTOR / BATTERY MANAGER

Kheffy began his indoor marching career in 2013 with the PIO group, Valley Independent Percussion. Returning in 2014 for his second year on Bass drum he helped lead the group to their first PIO Bronze medal.

After graduating from Tulare Union, Kheffy traveled to Southern California to perform with the 6-time World Champion PIW group - Riverside City College. Kheffy spent 5 years at RCC (2015-2019) helping win a championship title in 2015 and 2018. Kheffy performed for two consecutive seasons with Blue Devils B (2013-2014), and one season with the Concord Blue Devils in their 2017 production "Metamorph".

Kheffy has instructed at several schools around the Central Valley both as a Percussion Educator and Visual Designer. Kheffy was also contracted as a Bass Technician for Blue Devils B (2019-2020) and the Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps (2021 - 2022).

2025 will be his 3rd year on staff at Dark Sky Percussion.

Mike Dow

BASS DRUM INSTRUCTOR

Mike Dow began his marching career at age 16 with the Crossmen. He performed for 4 years with the Crossmen and aged out of DCI with Madison Scouts in 2006. During this time, Mike also performed in WGI with United Percussion. 

Mike later went on to work at United Percussion, first as a bass drum instructor, and later moved on to staff and ensemble coordinator. Mike also spent summers on the percussion staff at the Troopers, Carolina Crown, Madison Scouts, The Cadets, and the Crossmen.

He has also done work as a teacher and designer for several high school programs in the NJ/PA area, as well as adjudicated in the percussion and visual captions.

Mike currently lives in Los Angeles, where he works for UCLA’s IT Services.

2025 is Mike’s 3rd season instructing at Dark Sky.

Gilbert Nazari

BASS DRUM INSTRUCTOR

Gilbert Nazari is a music educator and elementary school teacher based in Southern California. His performance experience includes groups including Dark Sky Percussion, RCC, Blue Stars, Mandarins, and Blue Devils. Since 2016, Gilbert has taken on teaching roles across Southern California at schools such as Burbank HS, Crescenta Valley HS, San Marcos HS, Santa Barbara HS, Arcadia HS, Rancho Starbuck IS, and Temple City HS. Additionally, he served on the percussion staff at Dark Sky Percussion, Pacific Crest Drum, and Blue Stars.

Gilbert earned his B.A. from the UCSB in Philosophy and Political Science in 2020. His research interests have included questions in theory about the nature of justice, equality of opportunity, and responsibility. Recently, Gilbert just earned his M.A. in Teaching and is working as a full-time Music and Performing Arts teacher in Temple City USD.

Gilbert also enjoys long-distance running, fiction books, and making coffee for his friends.

Anthony Burger

SNARE DRUM INSTRUCTOR

Anthony is an instructor and student from Moreno Valley, CA. He has been teaching high schools in the inland empire and currently teaches at Canyon Springs High School and Rancho Verde High School in Moreno Valley, CA. Anthony currently goes to school and works at Cal State San Bernardino where he is pursuing a degree in Cyber Security.

Anthony's performance experience includes the RCC Fall Marching Tigers, Dark Sky Percussion, Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corp, and RCC Indoor Percussion. Anthony is happy to be back at Dark Sky as staff for the 2025 season and give back to the activity that has meant so much to him.

Abel Trujillo

SNARE DRUM INSTRUCTOR

Abel is an educator from San Bernardino. He has worked with multiple schools in the Riverside and Upland area.

Abel's performance experience includes SB Percussion, Carolina Crown, and Broken City Percussion. He is excited to be on the other side of the activity helping grow Dark Sky.

Ethan Evanoff

CYMBAL INSTRUCTOR

Ethan has been teaching high schools in Southern California and currently teaches at La Habra HS, Impulse DBC, Canyon Hills JHS, and Ayala HS

Ethan’s performance experience includes the RCC Fall Marching Tigers, RCC Indoor Percussion, The Academy DBC, and Vessel (Indoor / DBC). Ethan is excited to join the 2025 DSP Staff with the return of the cymbal line.

Asher Isquierdo

CYMBAL INSTRUCTOR

Asher is an instructor from the Coachella Valley, currently holding the visual caption head position at Coachella Valley High School. His marching experience extends from Vessel Drum and Bugle Corps to RCC Indoor Percussion, having also been a part of the Dark Sky visual ensemble in 2020. Asher is extremely grateful to be able to return to the organization as a member of the staff.

Frankie Peacock

TENOR INSTRUCTOR

Frankie Peacock is a percussionist from the San Francisco Bay Area who is currently a graduate student at UCLA studying percussion performance.

Their marching experience includes James Logan High School Marching Band and Color Guard, Blue Devils B, Vessel Indoor, Niner Noise, Aftershock Drumline, and Dark Sky Percussion.

As a percussionist, they have performed with the UCLA Philharmonia, Act III Theater, the Santa Monica Symphony, the Berlin Opera Academy, Chicago Summer Opera, and the California Young Artists Symphony.