About

Charlie Gorham is a music educator and percussionist from Northern Virginia. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Music Education from George Mason University, where he serves as a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Dewberry School of Music. In addition to his doctoral work, Charlie teaches full-time as an itinerant elementary band director in Fairfax County Public Schools. 

In Spring 2025, he earned his Master's degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he served as a Graduate Teaching Assistant with the UMass Drumline for two years. He also holds a Bachelor's degree in Instrumental Music Education from George Mason University and is a licensed professional educator in the state of Virginia. 

Charlie is highly involved as a teacher and coach in the marching arts. He currently serves as the Battery Manager and Assistant Percussion Caption Head for the Colts Drum and Bugle Corps, in addition to his position as Battery Manager for the George Mason University Indoor Drumline. He has previously been a percussion staff member with Phantom Regiment, United Percussion, and South County High School. He teaches weekly rehearsals at James Madison High School (Vienna, VA) and has served as a percussion arranger for Westfield High School, Hayfield High School, Millbrook High School, and UMass Amherst. 

As a performer, Charlie was a member of the Reading Buccaneers (2017–2019), Carolina Crown (2020, 2022), and George Mason University Indoor Drumline (2020–2023). In all three ensembles, Charlie served as a battery section leader.

A graduate of South County High School (Lorton, VA), Charlie has played an active role in the growth and success of the school's marching percussion program throughout the last decade. As a student, Charlie was a two-time WGI Scholastic Open Class Finalist and a 2019 Scholastic World-Class Finalist. Upon graduating, Charlie immediately joined the instructional staff of the marching band and indoor drumline at South County, where he continued his work for several years.

Charlie began his concert percussion studies at George Mason University in 2019 under the mentorship of John Kilkenny, Jon Bisesi, Jonathan Rance, John Spiritas, and Matt Penland. In 2022, he joined the jazz drum set studio at Mason and studied with Dr. Kevin McDonald. While at UMass, Charlie continued his jazz studies under Prof. Thomas Giampietro.

Charlie currently manages a growing private studio of high school percussion students, offering instruction in classical percussion with a focus on technique development, performance practice, and audition preparation. His students have been selected to perform at Virginia's Governor’s School for the Performing Arts, the Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar, and the National Symphony Orchestra Summer Music Institute.

Charlie proudly endorses Vic Firth sticks and mallets.