Preston Spisak

Preston Spisak’s deep love for the percussion art form and classical music tradition
inspires him to devote his life towards the mastery of his craft. He is the newly appointed
Principal Timpanist of the Las Vegas Philharmonic and is a student at the Thornton School of
Music, University of Southern California where he is earning his Bachelor’s degree in Music
Performance. There he studies with members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Joseph Pereira
and Jim Babor and performs with the Thornton orchestra, opera, and percussion ensemble.
While in school, Spisak holds timpani positions with the Civic Orchestra of Los Angeles
and California Young Artists Symphony, and he is also an avid freelancer. During his time in
L.A., Spisak has had the privilege to perform under notable conductors such as Carl St. Clair,
Anthony Parnther, and Hans Graf at numerous Los Angeles concert venues, including the
Segerstrom Center and Walt Disney Concert Hall.

In the summers of 2022-2024 Spisak took part in the National Youth Orchestra and
Round Top Orchestra festivals. With NYO he went on tour for performances at Carnegie Hall
and then prominent venues across Europe including the Royal Concertgebouw, Berlin
Konzerthaus, and Lucerne Festival Hall under the baton of Daniel Harding. After many years of
summer music programs Spisak has had the opportunity to learn from esteemed timpanists and
percussionists from top orchestras around the country.

A native of Greenville, South Carolina, Spisak received the majority of his pre-college
training from his incredible mentor Wesley Strasser at the Fine Arts Center of Greenville.