Darci Wright is a recent graduate from Florida State University, where she earned her Doctor of Music in Percussion Performance with a Certificate of Specialized Studies Program in College Teaching. She also earned the Master of Music degree in Percussion Performance from FSU in 2023 and her Bachelor of Music Degree in Music Education at the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith in 2021, where she graduated with Honors Magna Cum Laude. Her primary teachers include Dr. John W. Parks IV and Dr. Tommy Dobbs.

 

At FSU, Darci’s assistantship responsibilities included assistant-coaching the award-winning FSU Percussion Ensemble, managing and coordinating percussion equipment logistics, maintenance, acquisition, budgeting and purchasing, and teaching Percussion Methods for non-percussion Music Education majors. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, she is also an avid performer within the College of Music. Performances at FSU with ensembles such as the University Symphony Orchestra, Wind Orchestra, Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, and FSU Percussion Ensemble, including the 2023 Percussive Arts Society International Convention IPEC Winners Showcase and National Tour. She has also been a guest on multiple chamber recitals, including FSU’s Festival of New Music in 2022 and 2024. Darci continues expanding her performance experience outside the FSU College of Music. She serves as utility percussion for the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia Gulf Coast, and Tallahassee Ballet, alongside regional chamber groups such as the Bay Area Choral Society. 

 

An avid educator, Ms. Wright has also gained teaching experience through working with the FSU Summer Music Camps and TriState Band Festival. Her appointment duties included presenting masterclasses and clinics, coaching percussion ensemble electives, serving as an audition adjudication, coaching percussion sectionals for large ensembles, teaching applied lessons, and assisting with gear logistics. Further, she teaches private percussion lessons (classical, drum set, marching) in Tallahassee. Students of Darci’s have regularly achieved honorary positions, including placing in All-District, All-State, All-County, and earning superior ratings in Solo and Ensemble.

 

Outside of her performing and teaching endeavors, Darci also excels in academic and professional development. With her high level of performance skills and high GPA, she was invited and accepted into Pi Kappa Lambda, Phi Chapter, one of the most honorary achievements a musician can receive. In 2022, Darci won the Percussive Arts Society Cloyde Duff Scholarship, rewarding her with the opportunity to attend the largest convention in our field for free and be paid to attend. While at UAFS, Darci earned numerous academic achievements, including the Academic Excellence Award in Music Education, Outstanding Music Education Internship Award, and achieving Dean’s List every semester of her undergraduate career.  She was also involved in numerous academic organizations including the Percussive Arts Society, National Association for Future Music, and Kappa Kappa Psi.

 

As a student of Dr. John W Parks IV, Darci quickly gained interest in recording high-quality audio/video projects. After taking Dr. Parks’ Recording DIS class, she further developed her previous recording skills and has recently accepted a position with The Percussion Pedagogy Podcast, hosted by Dr. Tommy Dobbs, as an audio editor/curator. Within the percussion studio, she assists Dr. Parks with the "Again, But Better" Podcast, serving as associate producer. She has also gained experience building click tracks as the result of rehearsal, performance, and recording tools. Her treatise, Implementation of Click Tracks in Classical Percussion Performance and Recording, examines the historical evolution of click tracks and their contemporary applications in percussion chamber music performance and recording. Addressing ensemble-specific challenges, such as stage position, time-of-arrival discrepancies, rehearsal preparation, and workflow, her study considers technical factors, including software configuration, signal routing, and demarcation strategies, to evaluate the benefits of using click tracks in chamber music settings. By positioning these practices within broader performance aesthetics, the study identifies click tracks as tools that enhance precision, synchronization, and overall musical outcomes in classical percussion settings. Her most recent article, "The Transformative Role of Recording in Percussion Practice," can be found in Percussive Arts Society's Percussive Notes June 2026 publication. 

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She is a proud endorser of SABIAN Cymbals.