Al Moffatt, marching manager of the Avedis Zildjian Company for the past 35 years, died on July 15, 2016 at the age of 69. “Members of Zildjian cymbal lines were used to seeing Moffatt appear at numerous drum corps rehearsals and at contests, often with new cymbals and gongs to replace damaged or worn out equipment,” wrote Michael Boo in a tribute to Moffatt posted on the Drum Corps International website. “He knew many of the performers by name.” Al Moffat began serving as the PASIC Marching Percussion Festival stage manager in 1991 and received a special award for his services at the festival in 2009. Occasionally, he also served as the timing and penalties judge. Alfred Thomas Moffatt was born on January 5, 1947 in Akron, Penn. He graduated from Valley Forge Military Academy in 1964 and VFM Junior College in 1966 as a 2nd Lieutenant, and was a member of their drum corps. He marched with the Hawthorne Caballeros for three years and attended Lebanon Valley College. Al entered the Army and became a Ranger in 1970. After graduating from Temple University with a degree in English, Al worked as a teacher in Centennial school district from 1974–83. He also taught their drumline and indoor color guard.

In 1981, he took over Moffatt Music from his father and began working for Zildjian. He was a distributor, sales rep, and the company’s Marching Consultant for Drum Corps. Al worked with numerous school band programs, locally and across the nation. Most notably, he worked with Upper Moreland HS for over 40 years until his death. He became a respected judge and worked with Cavalcade, USBands, MAPS, and WGI.

Moffatt was also heavily involved in Boy Scouts. He helped over 100 scouts attain the rank of Eagle, enabled trips to Philmont Scout Ranch, and was a recipient of the District Award of Merit, Silver Beaver Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award among others.