PAS Hall of Fame 2026 Inductees Announcement
PAS Hall of Fame 2026 Inductees Announcement
by
May 8, 2026
We are thrilled to announce the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame Class of 2026. This year, we celebrate six extraordinary individuals whose contributions have fundamentally shaped the percussive arts.
This cohort represents a breadth of influence from the heights of orchestral innovation and jazz mastery to the frontiers of contemporary composition and world percussion. We are incredibly proud to acknowledge their achievements and are honored to welcome them into the PAS Hall of Fame during the lead-up to PASIC 2026, November 11–14.
Please join us in congratulating our 2026 Inductees:
- Michael Burritt
- Tom Gauger
- Giovanni Hidalgo
- Steve Smith
- Sylvia Smith and Stuart Saunders Smith
These individuals have elevated the drum and percussion community through their talent, dedication, and unwavering passion. Their influence has been felt across generations, and their legacies continue to inspire the field. Learn more about each of the inductees:
Michael Burritt
Having performed on four continents and in more than forty states, Michael Burritt is one of his generation’s most accomplished percussionists. He is in frequent demand performing concert tours and master classes throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia and Canada. Mr. Burritt has been soloist with the Indianapolis Symphony, United States Air Force Band, Dallas Wind Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, Richmond Symphony Orchestra, Nexus, Amadinda Percussion Group, Third Coast Percussion, Ju Percussion Group (Taiwan), Percussion Art Quartet (Germany) and the Amores Percussion Group (Spain). Mr. Burritt has three solo as well as numerous chamber recordings. In 2018, he recorded his Home Trilogy with the world renown percussion group Nexus and recently released a new recording of solo and chamber works by Alejandro Viñao with the Grammy Award winning Third Coast Percussion. In addition, Burritt has had several collaborations with the Pulitzer Prize winning composer Joseph Schwantner. In 2006, he recorded the Schwantner Percussion Concerto with the Calgary Wind Ensemble on the Albany label and in 2022, Burritt premiered Fast Forward, a new chamber concerto written expressly for him by Joseph Schwantner.
Mr. Burritt has performed as soloist in some of the world’s great concert halls, including his debut recital in Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall in 1992, The Purcell Room London, The Kennedy Center, the National Concert Hall (The Egg) in Beijing and the Shanghai Open House. He has been a featured artist at nine Percussive Arts Society International Conventions. Mr. Burritt has extensive chamber and orchestral experience and has performed with the Chicago Chamber Musicians, The Chicago Symphony, Nexus, Third Coast Percussion and The Peninsula Music Festival Orchestra.
Mr. Burritt is also active as a composer, with three concertos to his credit as well as numerous solo and chamber works for marimba and percussion. His works for solo marimba have become standard repertoire for the instrument and are frequently required repertoire in international competitions. Commissions include The World Marimba Competition in Stuttgart, Germany, The Paris International Marimba Competition, Nexus and Paris Percussion Group. Zildjian recently commissioned Mr. Burritt to compose a 30 minute work in celebration of the company’s 400 years anniversary in 2023. Mr. Burritt is published with Keyboard Percussion Publications, C. Alan, Masters Music and Innovative Percussion. Burritt is also an artist/clinician and product design/consultant for Malletech, where he has developed his own line of marimba mallets and the MJB Signature Marimba. He is an artist/educational clinician with the Zildjian Company, Evans Drum Heads and Yamaha Drums. Mr. Burritt held the position of President of Percussive Arts Society from 2021-2022, was a member of the Board of Directors from 1996 – 2008, was a contributing editor for Percussive Notes magazine from 1991-2006 and was chairman of the PAS Keyboard Committee from 2004–2010.
Mr. Burritt currently holds the Paul J. Burgett Distinguished Professorship and is Professor of Percussion at The Eastman School of Music where he is only the third person in the history of the school to hold this position. Prior to his appointment at Eastman, Mr. Burritt was Professor of Percussion at Northwestern University from 1995-2008 where he developed a program of international distinction. Mr. Burritt received his Bachelor and Master of Music Degrees, as well as the prestigious Performers Certificate from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York.
Thomas Gauger
Thomas Gauger is a distinguished percussionist whose career spans over four decades of elite performance, influential pedagogy, and industry-leading innovation. A graduate of the University of Illinois, Mr. Gauger’s early career included performing with the Harry Partch Experimental Ensemble and serving as Principal Percussionist of the Oklahoma Symphony.
In 1963, at the invitation of Erich Leinsdorf, Mr. Gauger joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra. During his 42-year tenure (1963–2005), he performed and recorded alongside legends and PAS Hall of Fame Members Vic Firth, Arthur Press, and Frank Epstein. As a member of this “Big Five” orchestra, he toured the globe, including the historic 1979 cultural mission to China.
A dedicated educator, Mr. Gauger served as Professor of Percussion at Boston University and the BU Tanglewood Institute for 34 years. He is celebrated for cultivating a culture of collegiality and for his deep personal investment in his students’ success. His pedagogical lineage includes principal players in the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, and Houston Symphony.
Beyond the stage, Mr. Gauger is a noted composer and craftsman. He authored the percussion classic “Gainsborough” and founded Gauger Custom Percussion Products, where he designed and manufactured specialized mallets that became the professional industry standard.
Through his mastery of performance, his contributions to instrument design, and his mentorship of the next generation of percussionists, Tom Gauger has left an indelible mark on the world of music.
Giovanni Hidalgo
Giovanni Hidalgo is a widely respected Latin percussionist who has expanded the possibilities of Afro-Caribbean rhythm while remaining grounded in the traditions passed down through his family. Through decades of performance, recording, and teaching, he has reshaped how Latin percussion is performed and understood in contemporary music. Born in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, Hidalgo grew up in a family deeply rooted in music. His father, José “Mañengue” Hidalgo, was a well-known conga drummer, and his step grandfather, Fernando “Nando” Hernandez, was also a musician. Immersed in rhythm from an early age, Hidalgo began performing publicly by the age of five and quickly developed a reputation as a prodigious talent. Hidalgo studied at the Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico, where he strengthened his technical foundation and knowledge of music theory. His command of the congas, timbales and bongos were marked by speed, precision, and expressive phrasing. His international career took off in the 1980s, including his tenure with Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nations Orchestra, which brought his artistry to global audiences. Since then, Hidalgo has collaborated with an extraordinary range of artists across genres, including Tito Puente, Carlos Santana, Paul Simon, Mickey Hart, and NEA Jazz Masters McCoy Tyner (2002) and Eddie Palmieri (2013). He has released ten solo albums and contributed to more than 100 recordings, including multiple Grammy Award–winning and nominated projects such as Planet Drum and Hands of Rhythm.
Beyond his extensive recording work, Hidalgo remains an active and sought-after performer worldwide, appearing in settings that range from international festivals and major concert venues to smaller ensemble collaborations. Recent performances include the 2024 Dead Ahead Festival with Mickey Hart; Lavoe Sinfónico at Simón Bolívar Stadium in Caracas, Venezuela; appearances with the Luis Perico Ortiz Latin Jazz Big Band at the Centro de Bellas Artes de Caguas in Puerto Rico; and a 2024 performance with the David Chesky Trio at Dizzy’s Jazz Club at Lincoln Center. Equally significant is Hidalgo’s role as an educator and mentor. A former Afro-Caribbean and Global Percussion Styles faculty member at Berklee College of Music, he has influenced countless musicians through workshops, masterclasses, and his online percussion school. In recognition of his contributions as both an artist and educator, Berklee awarded him an Honorary Doctorate of Music in 2010.
Steve Smith
Steve Smith’s drumming, while decidedly modern, can be best described as a style that embodies the history of U.S. music. Steve is active as a bandleader with his group Steve Smith & Vital Information, has performed as a featured sideman with many artists, including Zakir Hussain’s Masters of Percussion, Steps Ahead, Hiromi-The Trio Project, and is a prolific educator/clinician making DVDs and writing drum books.
Steve grew up in the Boston area and started playing drums at the age of nine in 1963. Studying with Bill Flanagan in Brockton, Massachusetts, Smith spent two years on a practice pad before earning the privilege to move to the snare drum. After one year on the snare, he received his first drumset. After high school he studied music at the Berklee College of Music from 1972-1976 with Alan Dawson and Gary Chaffee as his private instructors.
During his time at Berklee, Smith toured with the Lin Biviano Big Band, played with the free-jazz group The Fringe (featuring George Garzone), performed with Buddy DeFranco (on a recommendation from Alan Dawson) and played every kind of gig from straight-ahead jazz to weddings and Bar Mitzvah’s to Top 40 bands. Steve Smith left Berklee after passing an audition for Jean-Luc Ponty in the Fall of 1976. Smith worked with Jean-Luc Ponty during 1976-1977, playing on Ponty’s landmark album Enigmatic Ocean. His seven years as the drummer with Journey (1978-1985) was the time the group recorded their enduring body of work. He has been leading his own jazz-rock-fusion group Vital Information since 1983. As a session musician, he played on recordings that have sold over 100 million copies worldwide, including recording artists Bryan Adams, Mariah Carey, Savage Garden, Tina Arena, Zucchero and Ray Price. In the jazz world, Smith has been part of several Buddy Rich tribute bands, worked with the group Steps Ahead, and played with such adventurous jazz musicians as Mike Mainieri, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Mike Stern, Dave Liebman, Ahmad Jamal, and Bill Evans, among many others.
Smith produced and played on a series of sixteen jazz albums for the Tone Center label from 1997-2005 featuring players such as Frank Gambale, Stu Hamm, Oteil Burbridge, Larry Coryell, Tom Coster, Jerry Goodman, Howard Levy, Anthony Jackson, Steve Marcus, Scott Henderson and Victor Wooten. His release The Best Of Steve Smith-The Tone Center Collection is a sample of some of his favorite tracks from those collaborations. In 2022 Wounded Bird Records released The Complete Columbia Recordings, a four CD set of the first four Vital Information albums.
Starting in 2001, Steve started studying rhythms from India focusing on the vocal artform Konnakol. He quickly came to the attention of many elite musicians from India and went on to tour with Zakir Hussain, V. Selvaganesh, U. Shrinivas and many other Indian artists. Smith has integrated Indian rhythms into his drumset playing and the music of his group Vital Information. From 2016-2020, Steve Smith toured with the group Journey (for the first time since 1983), the group in which he recorded nine albums featuring numerous iconic hits. In 2017, Smith was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and in 2023, he was inducted into the Zildjian Hall of Fame.
Smith was voted #1 All-Around Drummer in the Modern Drummer Magazine Readers Poll for five consecutive years, 1987-1991. The 2008, 2009 and 2010 Drum! Magazine readers voted Smith #1 Jazz Drummer. In 2001, Steve was named by Modern Drummer Magazine as one of the “Top 25 Drummers of All Time.” In 2002, he was voted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame and his 2003 Hudson Music DVD Steve Smith Drumset Technique / History of the U.S. Beat was voted #1 Educational DVD by MD readers. Hudson Music released Steve’s DVD Standing on the Shoulders of Giants in 2008 and was voted Best DVD of 2009 by the readers of Drum! Magazine. Smith was voted #1 Fusion Drummer in the 2012 Modern Drummer Readers Poll and in 2017 Steve topped an unprecedented three categories in the MD Readers Poll: #1 Rock Drummer, #1 MVP and #1 Education Product (for his Hudson Music Book/DVD Pathways of Motion). In 2018, MD readers voted Smith #1 Classic Rock Drummer. In 2022, Modern Drummer Magazine published the book Steve Smith Legends Book Vol. 7, which includes all five of Steve’s MD cover stories, plus a new interview, exclusive photos, transcriptions and more.
Smith is currently touring and recording with his band Vital Information and continues to perform clinics and masterclasses around the world.
Sylvia Smith and Stuart Saunders Smith
Sylvia Smith is a distinguished editor, scholar, and performer who has dedicated her career to shaping the landscape of contemporary American music. As the founder and owner of Smith Publications and Sonic Art Editions, she has established a premier source for serious 20th and 21st-century American art music. Under her rigorous editorial direction, the house has become synonymous with innovation and excellence, earning six Paul Revere Awards for graphic design and notation.
Dr. Smith’s work is driven by the belief that publishing is a vital act of making public the values and aesthetics of visionary composers. Her catalog reflects a meticulous balance of originality and craft. She takes a special interest in commissioning works for solo percussion, including The Noble Snare, Marimba Concert, Summit, and most recently, Vibraphone Century.
Beyond her work as a publisher, Dr. Smith is an accomplished percussionist known for her expertise in percussion theater and spoken text. She tours North America as part of the Sylvia Smith Percussion Duo and has performed at prestigious venues and events, including Merkin Hall in New York, with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, and numerous Percussive Arts Society International Conventions (PASIC). Her performances can be heard on labels such as New World Records, oodiscs, and 11 West Records.
A respected scholar, Dr. Smith has published extensively on music notation and curated significant concert series featuring the music of John Cage. In recognition of her transformative contributions to music, she was awarded the American Music Center Letter of Distinction in 1988.
Stuart Saunders Smith was a prolific and transformative figure in contemporary music, leaving a legacy of over 300 works that redefined the boundaries of percussion. A master of “trans-media” systems and rhythmic complexity, Smith’s compositions—ranging from solo vibraphone to percussion theater—challenge performers to develop a new musical language blending intellect with deep emotion. Smith is widely regarded as a pioneer of vibraphone literature; his Links Series of Vibraphone Essays and solo works like Plenty are considered peerless contributions to the instrument’s repertoire. His work also brought significant innovation to the marimba, glockenspiel, and drumset, often incorporating spoken text as a core musical Element.
A dedicated educator, Smith served on the faculty at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) for many years and mentored countless students alongside his wife, Sylvia. He was a lifelong champion of the arts and a cornerstone of the Percussive Arts Society (PAS), where he served as a research editor, founding member of the New Music/Research Committee, and a frequent PASIC composer. The recipient of numerous honors—including a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship and the PAS Service Award—Smith continued to compose from his home in Vermont until his passing in June 2024. His crowning achievement in developing a serious literature for vibraphone is The Night Suite, a five-night suite of vibraphone solos. The Night Suite was commissioned by Berndt Thurner and first performed in Vienna as separate solo events, as they were composed. In January 2026, his wife Sylvia organized the first performance of the entire Night Suite at UMBC.
