Senior Airman Austin Pierce

SrA Austin T. Pierce is a percussionist in the United States Air Force Band of the Pacific-Asia at Yokota Air Base, Japan. SrA Pierce currently serves in the Publicity Section and plays drum set in Pacific Showcase and Final Approach.

 

SrA Pierce entered Air Force Basic Military Training in May 2019 and graduated in July 2019, reporting for duty at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas as a percussionist in the Air National Guard Band of the Southwest. SrA Pierce then successfully auditioned for a vacancy in the active duty Regional Band career field and was assigned to the USAF Band of the West at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.

 

Prior to joining the Air Force, SrA Pierce was a paid snare drum musician with the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums Corps from the age of eleven to nineteen, performing in two Virginia International Tattoos and the Fortissimo Tattoo in Ottawa, Canada. Additionally, SrA Pierce taught percussion lessons for Soundscapes, an El Sistema-inspired program that fosters transformative life skills in children. SrA Pierce received his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies degree from the University of North Texas, where he studied drum set with Ed Soph, Quincy Davis, José Aponte, and Mike Drake. He also studied snare drum, marimba, vibraphone, and timpani with Paul Rennick, Mark Guiliano, Ed Smith, and Corey Robinson.

 

2018 Bachelor of Music, Jazz Studies, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas

2019 Basic Military Training, Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas

 

Air and Space Achievement Medal

Army Achievement Medal

Air and Space Outstanding Unit Award with one oak leaf cluster

Air Force Good Conduct Medal

National Defense Service Medal

Global War on Terrorism Service Medal

Humanitarian Service Medal

Basic Military Training Honor Graduate Ribbon

Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon (Pistol)

Air and Space Training Ribbon

 

 

(Current as of January 2023)