Judith Saxton

Trumpet player.

Saxton has a multi-faceted career as an international soloist, chamber and orchestral musician and educator and has been lauded as a “virtuoso player and superb soloist”. She is a Certified Alexander Technique Teacher (ATI), giving “Healthy Playing Habits” and “Breathing, Breaks and Basics for Mindful Music Making” presentations for universities, festivals, and populations of varying ages across the world. She has presented for International Trumpet Guild (ITG), Eastern Music Festival (EMF), Roads Scholars, Trumpet Festival of the South East, and International Women’s Brass Conference and elder personal care facilities. As a recitalist, Ms. Saxton has performed in the UK, China, Finland, and Brasil, and concertizes nationally with Timothy Olsen, organ, and Allison Gagnon, piano with whom she recorded her acclaimed solo CD Concert and Contest Pieces for Trumpet, distributed globally to the International Trumpet Guild (ITG) membership. As principal and soloist, she leads the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, and is on Eastern Music Festival (EMF) faculty with whom she records annually under Gerard Schwarz’s leadership. She performs regularly with an array of orchestral and chamber organizations on the eastern seaboard of the US. She regularly offers master classes at conservatories, festivals and conferences world-wide as a Conn-Selmer clinician.

A keen advocate of new music, she continues to ardently promote, co-commission and premiere new works; she has soloed with a variety of orchestras and bands in the US and abroad. she has performed with artists as diverse as Joe Morello, Phil Woods, Mannheim Steamroller, the Temptations and as an orchestral musician with the Empire Brass Quintet, Placido Domingo, Mark O’Connor and Joshua Bell. For several seasons, Judith was principal and soloist with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Chicago Chamber Orchestra, Illinois, South Bend, Illinois Chamber, Wichita and Key West/South Florida Symphonies. She was also an extra and substitute with the Chicago Symphony and brass quintet. During her decades-long freelance career, Judith has performed for a variety of shows, commercials, recording sessions, big bands and combos. Chamber credits include Southeast Chamber Brass, Wichita Brass Quintet, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Sierra Brass (Japan tours), Musica Harmonica (Brazil tour), Tromba Mundi, Millar and Monarch Brass ensembles.

Previously, Ms. Saxton was guest principal for the St. Louis Symphony, and an extra for Milwaukee, Grant Park, Sydney (Australia) and Harrisburg Symphonies. She was principal for New York Women’s Ensemble and Virginia’s Blue Ridge Music Festival, and Artist Faculty for Lieksa Brass Week, Finland. Most recently, served 10 years at University of North Carolina School of the Arts as Trumpet Artist/Faculty and Brass/Percussion Chair. Additionally, she was tenured Associate Professor at Wichita State University. She taught previously at Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and Illinois Wesleyan and Northeastern Illinois Universities. She holds board memberships with EMF, and served several terms for ITG, National Trumpet Competition, International Women’s Brass Conference and Fulbright National Screening Committee. A graduate of Mansfield (PA) and Northwestern Universities, Saxton’s most influential teachers were Vincent Cichowicz, Arnold Jacobs, William Scarlett, Susan Slaughter and Michael Galloway.