Chuck Ricotta has served as Percussion Director and Arranger for the University of Michigan Marching Band since 2002. He also currently holds the position of Percussion Arranger for the Penn State University Marching Blue Band. His previous instructional experience includes roles with the Phantom Regiment Drum & Bugle Corps and the Penn State University Indoor Drumline. In 2021, he was selected as the percussion arranger for the Intercollegiate Marching Band, which performed during the halftime show of the NCAA College Football National Championship Game.
An accomplished orchestral musician, Chuck has held the position of Principal Percussionist with the Flint Symphony Orchestra since 2004 and performs actively throughout the region. His performance credits include engagements with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Michigan Opera Theatre, Ann Arbor Symphony, Traverse City Philharmonic, New World Symphony (Miami, FL), and the National Repertory Orchestra (Breckinridge, CO). As a soloist, he has been featured with the Flint Symphony Orchestra, the University of Michigan and Penn State University Percussion Ensembles, and at Carnegie Hall with the Concordia University Ann Arbor Wind Ensemble.
Chuck holds degrees from both the University of Michigan and Penn State University, where he received the Performer’s Recognition Award. He is an educational artist for Yamaha Percussion, Zildjian Cymbals, Remo Drumheads, and Innovative Percussion. His original compositions for percussion ensemble are published by Tapspace Publications, LLC.
Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Chuck maintains a private teaching studio and remains an active contributor to the percussion community as a performer, educator, and arranger.