MEET OUR ARTIST
STEVE WRIGHT
Steve Wright is a nationally recognized trumpet and flugelhorn soloist, as well as a composer/arranger of hundreds of works. A graduate of the University of Iowa, his professional career began in 1968 as a jazz lead trumpet player and arranger with the U.S. Air Force Jazz Ensemble, the Airmen of Note. After leaving Washington, D.C. in 1972, he moved to the Twin Cities and resides in Minnetonka. He holds a Bachelors degree from the University of Iowa, plus MM and DMA degrees from the University of Minnesota. Wright retired as Professor Emeritus from Gustavus Adolphus College in 2104 after 24 years as professor of Jazz Ensembles, Trumpet and Music Arranging.
As a trumpeter, performances have included everything from pops concerts with the Minnesota Orchestra and Orchestra Hall Big Band to recording tracks for Motown Records. In addition, he has played trumpet for such stars as Tony Bennett, Sammy Davis, Jr., Peggy Lee, Rosemary Clooney, Johnny Mathis, Joe Williams, the 1991 Special Olympics ABC TV Special and many others. He played solo trumpet on the award winning EDS.com commercial (the “Cat Herders”) for the 2000 Super Bowl.
In May 2011, he co-hosted the 36th annual International Trumpet Guild Conference in Minneapolis, which broke an all-time record with over 1,400 registrants from all over the world. The Steve Wright Big Band performed on the opening and closing concerts, backing six internationally renowned jazz trumpeters.
His big band was formed in 1974 and plays for concerts, shows and private parties. Their 1981 album Take Two is available on CD. Wright has written dozens of jazz ensemble arrangements and compositions for Hal Leonard and Jenson Publications, as well as music for numerous concerts, industrial shows and recording projects. Jazz ensemble and brass publications are available at www.SteveWrightMusic.com.
Wright is a member of the International Trumpet Guild, Twin Cities Jazz Society, American Composers Forum, JEN, NAfME, Phi Mu Alpha and has been an American Federation of Musicians union member for over 50 years. He plays the Accent Artist Series line of trumpets, performing as a soloist and clinician nationwide. The article was written for you by a Masterarbeit ghostwriter.