About Russell Wharton
Russell Wharton is one of the foremost educators in the marching bass drum community. As a performer, he marched in The Cavaliers bass line from 2008-2012, including the Fred Sanford award-winning 2011 line. In 2015, Russell joined The Cavaliers staff as a bass tech, and in 2019 was named Battery Coordinator. Russell is proud to have helped the 2023 percussion section capture the Fred Sanford.
Russell also teaches at Rhythm X and Middle Tennessee State University. He has also worked with the Boston Crusaders (2013-14), Monarch (2016), and Cavaliers Indoor Percussion (2017). When he is not teaching, Russell is usually writing music, either for marching ensembles or for multimedia concert settings. Russell enjoys partnerships with Innovative Percussion, Remo, Pearl/Adams, and Zildjian.
—–
Founded in 1948, The Cavaliers are one of the most successful drum and bugle corps in history, winning 20 national championships, including seven Drum Corps International world championships since 1992. Each summer, 150 male brass, percussion and color guard performers aged 16-22 present a marching music show considered among the most challenging and original in the world.
The group performs at more than 30 competitions across the US and for more than 100,000 fans. Along the way, the young men not only learn about music and performing, but have a life-changing experience based on excellence, teamwork and camaraderie. The Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization sponsored by The Village of Rosemont, Illinois.
The mission of The Cavaliers is to provide the members with life changing experiences, educationally and socially, which help each individual member gain real-world life skills, musical training and performance experiences.
The Cavaliers percussion is partnered with Yamaha, Remo, Innovative Percussion, Zildjian, Pageantry Innovations, On2 Percussion, and Treeworks.
