Gary Cook is Professor of Music and Director of Percussion Studies in the School of Music at The University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. He was Timpanist and Principal Percussionist with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra for over two decades and has held similar posts over the years with the Arizona Opera and other orchestras. From 1994 to 1999 he served as Director of the UA School of Music and Dance. In the summer he is Principal Percussionist with the Crested Butte Music Festival in Colorado and has performed with other summer festivals in Colorado and Nevada. He has performed at the Percussive Arts Society (PAS) International Convention and will become President-elect of the PAS in 2007. A native of Michigan, he holds degrees from the University of Michigan and has traveled widely in the USA, Europe, Scandinavia, Trinidad, Bali and Chile studying, teaching, and performing. Prof. Cook was recognized for outstanding teaching in the College of Fine Arts at the University of Arizona as the first recipient of the coveted Putnam Excellence in Teaching Award in 1990 and the James Anthony Sustained Excellence in Teaching Award in 2005. He is contributing author to such publications as the Percussive Notes and The Encyclopedia of Percussion Instruments. His former students hold distinguished professorships in colleges and universities around the country, perform professionally around the world, and are successful teachers and performers in all areas of music and the arts.