Faculty & Staff
Ethan saake
Accompanist
TBHS
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Samantha Barton
Accompanist
TMS, TSMS
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Joseph Eckelkamp
Show Choir Accompanist
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Bobby Picker
Choreographic Assistant
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about our directors
Andrew Drinkall
Andrew Drinkall is currently Director of Choral Activities and is the Performing Arts Chair at Troy Buchanan high School. He is co-director of the Eighth Grade Choir, Women’s Choir, Freshman Choir, Concert Choir and the TBHS show choirs, Express and Soundwave. He also co-directs the annual musical and maintains a private voice studio. During his 23 years at TBHS the choirs have received consistent superior ratings at festivals and contests, and in 2005 the TBHS Men’s Choir was selected to perform at the MMEA state music convention in Osage Beach, MO. Under Drinkall, Troy show choirs have had opportunities to travel and compete at prestigious competitions in places as far away as California and Canada.
Drinkall holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Coe College in IA and a Master of Music Education degree from Vander Cook College of Music in Chicago. He was awarded the “Wal-Mart Teacher of the Year” award in 2003 as well as being named to Who’s Who Among High School Teachers for the last 15 years. Drinkall has served as Choral Vice President for the Northeast District of MMEA and also served as the Assistant Director for the Midwest European Honor Choir.
Andrew just finished serving as the ACDA R&S Chair for Missouri Show Choir and is currently the R&S Chair for SWACDA Show Choir. He is a member of ACDA, MMEA and MSTA and, most importantly, he is the father of 16 year old Ainsley!
Ryan Cooper
Ryan Cooper is the Assistant Vocal Music Director at Troy Buchanan High School. He is the co-director of Intermediate Choir, Freshman Choir, Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, and the TBHS show choirs, Express and Soundwave. He also co-directs the annual musical and teaches private voice lessons.
Ryan received his Bachelor’s of Science in Education from the University of Missouri and plans on pursuing a Masters in Education.
Ryan is an active member of MMEA, NaFME, ACDA, MCDA, and is the Northeast District Representative and Northeast All-State Coordinator for the Missouri Choral Directors Association. He is also the 6th Grade Vice President for the Northeast District of MMEA.
As a former student, Ryan is excited to be a part of the Troy school district as a Music Educator. This program is where he found his love and passion for music and hopes to pass that same love for music on to his students through meaningful experiences and the enthusiastic nature of his rehearsals! Ryan and his wife welcomed their first child, a beautiful baby girl named Ruby, in August 2019.
Meghan Pieper
Meghan Pieper is the Director of Choirs at Troy South Middle School. In addition to teaching grade-level choirs at TSMS, she directs Tonali-T, the competitive middle school show choir, and co-directs the middle school musical.
Meghan has a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Truman State University and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Missouri.
She previously taught in the Hannibal Public Schools and she worked with the Missouri Summer Music Institute at Mizzou prior to joining the Troy Choral Department. She has directed both high school and middle school musical theatre productions, as well as drama classes, and she also teaches private studio lessons.
Meghan has been a clinician and guest conductor for choirs in the northeast Missouri area and has appeared as a featured soloist with jazz and concert bands. She is a member of ACDA, NAfME and Sigma Alpha Iota.
Meghan enjoys spending time with her wonderful family. She is married to Chris Pieper, a middle school band director and Troy Buchanan graduate. They have two children, Bennett and Eleanor, who are their pride and joy.
Mairyn Dodson
Mairyn Dodson is the director of choirs at Troy Middle School. In addition to teaching grade-level choirs at TMS, she assistant directs Tonali-T, the competitive middle school show choir, and co-directs the middle school musical.
Mairyn graduated from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, where she received her Bachelor of Music in Music Education. While at Millikin, she founded an a cappella group, Dissonance, that went on to win first place at the ICCA Midwest Quarterfinals. She also served as President of Millikin's chapter of the National Association for Music Education and President of Millikin's flagship choir, the University Choir. Her time in choirs has taken her all the way across the world, including touring in Spain in 2017.
While at Millikin, she music directed two musicals at Millikin University through the Pipe Dreams Studio Theatre. Mairyn started a contemporary a cappella camp for 9-12th graders, called Project A Cappella, at which she serves as camp director and Women's Clinician. Mairyn also is a member of NAfME, ACDA, Alpha Chi Omega, and Sigma Alpha Iota.
In addition to her passion for teaching, Mairyn enjoys spending time with friends and family, and she is thrilled to be a part of the Troy Choral community!
about our staff
Guy Grimstead
Guy Grimstead joined the TBHS family in January 2015 as the Choral Department Music Assistant. He assists Mr. Drinkall and Mr. Zart in the TBHS choral office and accompanies for many of the choral groups in the Troy R3 District along with both TBHS show choirs. In 2017 he also started wearing the hat of PAC Coordinator to facilitate the scheduling, upgrades and functionality of our beautiful new Hungate Perfomring Arts Center.
Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, he comes from a long line of musical performers. In 1992, He received a B.A. in Music Theory and Composition from Bethany University in Scotts Valley, CA. He has been performing professionally and instructing music students privately for 30 years.
His main work experience has been as a worship leader for a variety of churches throughout California and Tennessee. While being classically trained on piano, he also enjoys performing standards from the great American songbook. In 2006, he relocated to the Palm Springs area to perform nightly at Bing Crosby’s Restaurant and Piano Lounge in Rancho Mirage. He met and married a lovely lady from Troy and they recently moved back to Lincoln County to raise their children in this great community.
Along with producing recordings for a number of artists the last 20 years, Guy has also released three CDs of his own…“Meditations” - a spontaneous recording of relaxing piano improvisations; “LIVE at Bing Crosby’s” - a tribute to Sinatra hits; and recently “My Favorite Hymns” – his original piano arrangements of classic gospel hymns.
The last few years, Guy has stayed busy creating custom showchoir arrangements for a variety of schools throughout the region and nation.
His passion in the classroom is to utilize technology and fun to help students get the most out of learning. In his leisure, he loves spending time with his wife Mande and their three small boys working on GFB (The upcoming "Grimstead Family Band").
Joseph Eckelkamp
Joseph Eckelkamp is an accomplished solo recitalist, chamber musician, accompanist, and cabaret arranger. His work for the Lincoln County R-III school district has included playing for musicals, concerts, competitions, and festivals for TBHS as a pianist and horn player, arranging and performing for Tonali-T show choir, and daily accompanying duties at TMS & TSMS. He has performed works on piano, F Horn, and organ such as the Fauré Requiem, Carmina Burana with the Nashville Ballet, and selections from the symphonic and chamber works of Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Gershwin, and Schubert among others. His work in theatre has included over 50 separate shows.
He attended East Central College and the University of Missouri - St. Louis studying piano performance under the tutelage of Dr. Jennifer Judd and Alla Voskoboynikova, jazz studies with Jim Widner and Ken Kehner, and music theory with Dr. Diane Tuliatos and Dr. Zachary Cairns. He has studied conducting from professionals with various orchestras and choruses in the greater St. Louis area.
While attending university he worked with musicians ranging from the Arianna String Quartet, Lou Marini, Ney Rosauro, Wayne Bergeron, and Arturo Sandoval, as well as being a studio musician and theatre orchestra performer. Joseph performed for the debut concerts of new works by Dr. Barbara Harbach, and new arrangements by various jazz arrangers.
In addition to his experience as a musician, Joseph apprenticed as a pipe organ builder, worked for Yamaha in their piano sales division, and has worked professionally in entertainment as a lighting designer, stage manager, conductor, and author.
Joseph is passionate about bridging various art forms to teach and learn in multiple disciplines. During his free time Joseph enjoys writing, film reviews, travel, and theatre. Joseph is a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and the Organ Historical Society. His current projects include preparing two recital programs for performance this spring and a number of arrangements for piano 4 hands ensemble.
Cathy Whitworth
Cathy Whitworth was Director of Middle School and High School Choirs in Troy, Mo. for over 30 years. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia and did graduate work at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, studying under Dr. Eph Ehly.
During Cathy's teaching tenure, her choirs consistently earned Honor I ratings at contest and competitions. She has directed over 24 high school musical productions and was the accompanist for 15 other musicals. Her show choirs consistently earned top honors and performed in Iowa, Illinois, Tennessee, Texas, and Florida. Cathy served as the Middle School Honor Choir Coordinator for the state of Missouri for two years, as well as the Northeast District Representative for Music Educators of Missouri for two years.
Since she retired, Cathy is accompanying at Troy Buchanan High School, teaching piano lessons, and directing the choir at First Christian Church. She also directs the music and the pit for the musicals that the Wentzville Christian Church performs each spring.
Cathy is celebrating 36 years of marriage with Bob Whitworth, who is a retired communication technician with Verizon at Boeing. They are proud parents of Thomas, who will soon complete his EMT studies.
Bobby Picker
Bobby Picker is an Alumni of Troy Buchanan High School where he was a member of “Express” Show Choir all 4 years. He was also involved in the men’s acapella group “Dodecaphonics”. Bobby is thrilled to be involved with such an amazing program and doing so alongside an incredible staff. After high school he would go on to attend Lindenwood University where he studied Musical Theatre.
Actively auditioning during school, Bobby received an opportunity to continue performing after of college. He moved to Orlando, Florida and worked as an Equity Singer/Dancer at Walt Disney World. Other venues he could be seen in included: Universal Studios, Busch Gardens Tampa, Six Flags St. Louis, Holiday World, Matt Davenport Productions, Entertainment Central Agency, Frog Choir, and The Muny St. Louis!
Growing up in a smaller town though, Bobby wanted to come back to the community that had treated him so well and felt he could still have music in his life. He now works as an Independent Insurance Agent at K.Flynn Insurance Agency in Troy, MO.
