Remington Thomas
Remy Thomas is a percussionist performer and educator based out of Rochester, NY and Dallas, TX, specializing in a combination of both classical and marching percussion. Originally from the Dallas area, Remy is currently a student at the Eastman School of Music, where he has finished his Bachelor’s and is be pursuing a Masters in Percussion Performance with esteemed Professor Michael Burritt. There, he is a performing member of numerous groups including, but not limited to, the Eastman Percussion Ensemble, Eastman Philharmonia and the Eastman Wind Ensemble. The latter of which he has been featured as principal percussionist for an upcoming album. Remy has also been featured on several recordings with the Eastman Percussion
Ensemble under Michael Burritt, ensemble and solo, working closely on classical chamber percussion ensemble and solo repertoire as well. In addition, he freelances around New York and has performed with orchestras such as the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the Syracuse Orchestra, and the New York State Ballet. Most recently, he participated in the recording of Rapsodie Espagnole with the Buffalo Philharmonic for their upcoming Ravel album. Remy has private lesson studios both in Rochester and in Texas, and has taught at local high schools such as Victor High School (Victor, NY), Plano East Senior High (Piano, TX) and McKinney Boyd High School (McKinney, TX).
Remy has a love for the marching arts, and spent much of his youth dedicating himself to this craft. He carries this on by teaching for the world-class Drum and Bugle Corps, Phantom Regiment, specializing in the drumline and teaching under Jesus Sanchez, Matthew Penland and Tyler Sammons. He spent several years performing with the Santa Clara Vanguard under renowned teachers Paul and Sandi Rennick, with one of the year’s groups winning the Fred Sandford award in 2019 for best percussion performance.
Most recently, Remy won first place in the multi-percussion division for the Black Swamp Percussion Competition in 2023 with his performance of Thirteen Drums by Maki Ishii. He also received first place in the Drum Corps International (DCI) Individual and Ensemble Competition in 2019 and 2021, with his self-composed tenor drum pieces Amalgam and Unraveled, respectively. Remy was the tenor solo champion two years in a row at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC) in the high school division, and he was also a finalist at the Modern Snare Drum Competition in Cleveland, Ohio in 2023.
Remy dedicates himself to both his passions– the classical and the marching percussion styles– and wishes to push the boundaries in combing the two. He has aspirations to perform, teach and compose and wishes to revel in the new of percussion, while respecting and conserving the past. He believes that percussion is an its infancy, and with that comes exciting opportunities to innovate and shape the future of the artform.