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Administrative Staff
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Dr. Daniel Fong
“Dr. Dan” marched nine years with the Sacramento Mandarins where he was a soprano and mellophone soloist and one season with the Seattle Imperials. He received the Joe “Fong Award for the Most Outstanding member in 1981. Dan has written every Mandarins field show brass chart from 1982 until 2011. He was the Mandarins’ Brass Caption Head from 1982-1993, from 2005-2008, and from 2012- 2016. He currently arranges music for the Mandarins Brass Academy, a program that teaches brass students of all skill levels in the Sacramento region. He remains active teaching several high school bands in the Sacramento area and the Sac State Marching Band.
DR. DANIEL FONG
President and CEO
JW Koester
J.W. Koester has served as director or manager with several top-tier corps such as: Phantom Regiment during the 2008 DCI World Championship season, Santa Clara Vanguard during the 1999 DCI World Championship season, Vanguard Cadets during the 1991 and 1993 Division II finalist seasons, and most recently as the Corps Director for Spirit of Atlanta. He also worked with Drum Corps International (DCI) as the national coordinator for Division II & III corps. In 2018, he was inducted into the Santa Clara Vanguard Hall of Fame.
In his 30 years as a designer, instructor and consultant, Koester has worked with performing ensembles throughout eight states. A percussionist since 1967, he has performed with groups including the Santa Clara Vanguard (winning three DCI World Championships and five Best Percussion Section Awards), the San Jose State University Marching Band, the West Valley College Wind and Percussion Ensembles, and numerous community theater musical productions. Koester is currently Lead Instructor for the Price Charter School Winter Percussion Ensemble, Percussion Coordinator for Oak Grove High School Marching Band and Winter Percussion Ensemble, and also a Project Engineer with a semi-conductor capital equipment company.
JW KOESTER
Corps Director
Santiago Sabado
Santiago Sabado is from Shingle Springs, CA. He holds his Masters of Music in Instrumental Wind Conducting, and his Bachelor of Music in Music Education and Trumpet Performance from Sacramento State University as well as his Teaching Credential in Music. While attending Sac State he studied trumpet with Gary Dilworth and conducting with Dr. Clay Redfield and Dr. Robert Halseth. He also participated in conducting workshops with Dr. Mallory Thompson, Dr. Jack Stamp and Dr. Peter L. Boonshaft.
Santiago has been with Mandarins since 2006 in various roles. He marched trumpet in 2006 and was Drum Major 2007 till his age-out in 2009. He then joined the Visual and Brass staff in 2010.He taught the corps from 2010 to 2015 and served as the Brass Co-Caption Head 2014-2015. He currently serves as the Assistant Corps Director for the Drum & Bugle Corps and is the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the Mandarins Music Academy.
In his career Santiago has taught all grade levels from kindergarten through college. He is currently the Director of Athletic Bands at Sacramento State University where he runs the Marching Band, Sac State Indoor Percussion Ensemble, and Winter Guard. He is also concurrently the Director of Choirs for Ponderosa High School in Shingle Springs, CA. He previously held the position of Director of Bands at Camerado Springs Middle School, Director of Instrumental Music at Ponderosa where he served as the Visual and Performing Arts Department Chair, and Director of Music for Pioneer Union School District in Somerset, CA where he taught and coordinated all music curriculum for grades K-8. During the summer, Santiago teaches at the Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp in Pollock Pines, CA. There he directs concert band and jazz. He is also founder and host of the Gold Country Jazz Festival, a non-competitive festival meant to encourage the growth of jazz programs in the community and in the region. Santiago has been the Guest Conductor for the Western Slopes 6th grade Honor Band in El Dorado County, CMEA Capitol Section High School Honor Band, CMEA Capitol Section Middle School Honor Band and the Bi-County Amador/Calaveras County Middle School Honor Band.
He has served as the Vice President, President, and currently holds the position of Higher Education rep for CMEA Capitol Section. Santiago is a member of other professional organizations such as CBDNA, CBDA, NAfME, CAJ, NCBCDA, CCDA. Santiago is passionate about music and even more passionate about students. He believes that music is transformative and all students should have access to a high quality music education at every stage of a student’s academic career and life.
SANTIAGO SABADO
Director of Special Projects
Kathleen Bakergumprecht-Davies
A do-it-all volunteer for a growing World Class drum corps organization, Kathleen Bakergumprecht-Davies is an integral piece of the Mandarins’ puzzle.
Kathleen’s involvement benefits all aspects of the Mandarins organization, including fundraising, prop building and professional support. She has provided legal counsel for the Sacramento corps, led the charge to gather donations for the corps’ equipment and kitchen trailers, and has been crucial in securing grant money. Also, Kathleen helped implement the Mandarins’ online store and revamped their souvenir operations by acquiring a trailer and arranging for booths, displays, and point-of-sale functionality.
A consistent donor of time as well as financial resources, Bakergrumpecht-Davies played a key role in developing the Mandarins’ home event, the DCI Capital Classic drum corps show in Sacramento, and created and manages the corps’ whistleblower committee.
KATHLEEN BAKERGUMPRECHT-DAVIES
Fundraising Chair
Jim Tabuchi
Jim Tabuchi began with the Mandarins when he was a lead soprano, mellophone and flugelhorn player in the late 70’s and early 80’s and is known as one of the first non-Chinese members of the Mandarins. He went on to earn an Electrical Engineering and Masters in Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley and the University of Washington, respectively. He had a successful career in high-tech, working at Hewlett-Packard and Agilent Technologies. He held numerous leadership and senior management positions such as the Asia Region Manager, Business Development Manager, Worldwide Marketing Manager and Strategic Planning Manager.
Jim retired early and on his first day of retirement he joined back with the Mandarins first as a trumpet tech, then he was “demoted” to become the Corps Director in 2009 and was “demoted” again to become the Executive Director in 2013. Most recently he has been “demoted” to the Drum Corps International Board of Directors where he is the Chair of the Strategic Marketing Committee, and a member of the Finance and Member Affairs Committees.
In Jim’s “spare time” he was the Program Director for the Catalyst Leadership Development Program and is a Senior Fellow and Member of the Board of Directors for the American Leadership Forum. He is also a Director of Organizational Development at Kaiser Hospital in South Sacramento.
Jim has amazing support from his wife Jo Ann and twin boys, Nick and Tim, who are also
JIM TABUCHI
Executive Advisor
Raymond Mar
Ray Mar, or “Mr. Mar”, as he is known to the marching members, started his involvement as a parent booster in 1982 and became corps director in 1983. At the time, the corps was in the midst of a rebuilding period and was functioning solely as a parade corps.
Under Ray’s leadership, the Mandarins returned to the field in 1984 and made an appearance at the DCI Championships in 1986. While narrowly missing finals that year, the experience provided a base upon which to build for the future. The Mandarins went on to win eight DCI World Championships including seven in Division III and one in Division II in 2001. The corps was also twice awarded the prestigious Spirit of Disney award, signifying outstanding achievement in educational and entertainment programs for youth.
Under Ray’s direction, the Mandarins entered the Division One ranks, making a successful debut in 2003. In 2013, Ray was inducted into the DCI Hall of Fame. After 30 years as corps director and executive director, Ray now serves as an advisor to the Mandarins.
