About

Originally from Birmingham, Alabama, Robert Garrison is a New York City–based freelance trumpeter recognized for his versatility across classical, baroque, and jazz traditions. He performs regularly with leading orchestras and ensembles throughout the United States and abroad and recently served as Acting Principal Trumpet of the Sarasota Orchestra during the 2025–2026 season.

Garrison has appeared with many of the world’s foremost orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, New York City Ballet, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, The Knights, Alabama Symphony Orchestra, Utah Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, and Nashville Symphony, among others. He has also performed as guest principal trumpet with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and the Rochester Philharmonic, and previously served as Acting 2nd Trumpet with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2022, he joined the New York Philharmonic on tour to Stillwater, Oklahoma, during the orchestra’s residency at Oklahoma State University.

His career has included performances recognized among the year’s “Best Classical Music Performances,” by the New York Times, including the Spoleto Festival premiere of Rhiannon Giddens’s opera Omar, the New York Philharmonic’s reopening of David Geffen Hall in 2022, and MusicAeterna’s 2019 U.S. tour.

As a soloist and chamber musician, Garrison has appeared at the Crescent City Chamber Music Festival and Tanglewood Music Center, performing works such as Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 and Shostakovich’s Concerto for Piano, Trumpet, and Strings. Dedicated to the advancement of contemporary music, he has collaborated with emerging composers, including recording Katie Jenkins’s Radiate, winner of the 2021 Women Composing for Trumpet competition, and commissioning Shelbie Rassler’s …and soon you will be on its shore…, which premiered in 2024 at Mississippi State University.

As a composer and arranger, Garrison explores the intersection of jazz and classical idioms, writing for brass quintet, large brass ensemble, and trumpet ensemble. His arrangement of Kevin McKee’s Vuelta del Fuego for seven trumpets won third prize at the 2018 National Trumpet Competition.

Garrison holds degrees from the University of North Texas and The Juilliard School, where he studied with many of the field’s leading pedagogues, including Christopher Martin, Raymond Mase, John Thiessen, Caleb Hudson, Jason Bergman, Ryan Anthony, and Tanya Darby. He has further refined his artistry at leading festivals including Tanglewood, Aspen, Spoleto, Brevard, and the National Orchestral Institute.

A Yamaha Performing Artist and Patrick Mouthpieces Artist, Garrison is also recognized for his digital presence and educational outreach. His work on social media—particularly through his Instagram account, @robbygarrisontrumpet—has been featured by the International Trumpet Guild as a model for musicians integrating digital platforms into their artistic practice. Through both performance and teaching, he is committed to making music engaging, accessible, and inspiring for audiences and young musicians alike.