Background, professional training and performance history
Austin Hass was born in Portland and raised in Vancouver. He was introduced to the drums at the very early age of 2 when he got his first drum set. Austin's love for music was fostered during his years at Mountain View High School where he performed with their award-winning jazz band and wind ensemble. During this time, he studied drum set privately with Kelly Pierce and received weekly percussion masterclasses from Chris Whyte. Post high school, Austin was led to where he earned his BA in Music at Central Washington University in 2017. Currently, Austin is pursuing his MM in Jazz Studies from the University of Oregon where he is studying drum set privately with Gary Hobbs and performing with the Oregon Jazz Ensemble.
As a performer, Austin has been heard at the Monterey Jazz Festival, Jazz in the Valley, the JEN Conference, the Next Generation Competition, the NAFME Conference, the WMEA Conference, aboard the Norwegian Jewel Cruise Ship, The Midwest Clinic and many of the Northwest's premier jazz clubs. Austin has been fortunate to perform with many great jazz artists on the scene today including Wayne Bergeron, Brad Leali, Kate Reid, Dmitri Matheny, Alan Ferber, Jeff Coffin, Bobby Shew, Dick Oatts, Scott Wilson, Christian Howes, Jiggs Whigam, Walter Blanding, Jim Rotundi, Terell Stafford, as well as many other prominent local musicians throughout the Pacific Northwest.
As an educator, Austin has directed and taught a wide array of styles and ensembles. He has coached jazz combos and percussion ensembles, vocalists and instrumentalists, given several clinics and seminars on percussion and the drum set, and taught many private students. Some of Austin's positions include combo coaching for the U of O jazz combos, percussion instructor for the award-winning West Valley High School Marching Band, percussion instructor for the Sounds of Summer marching percussion camp, as well as camp counselor and drum set assistant for the CWU Jazz camp. He was also on faculty teaching drumset at Yakima Valley College and is currently a jazz graduate teaching assistant for the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance.
Artist statement and teaching philosophy
"My goal as a teacher is help student fulfill their personal goals and interests while also guiding them towards new goals that I feel are important for them. I want lessons to be entertaining and fun for the student while also addressing things that we can work on together. Above all I want students to leave their lessons feeling energized and confident in the material we cover."
Instruments & classes taught
Austin teaches drum set, mallet percussion, timpani and snare drum.