Michael Brotherton
“Some days you get up and put the horn to your chops and it sounds pretty good and you win. Some days you try and nothing works and the horn wins. This goes on and on and then you die and the horn wins.”
About Michael
Before starting trumpet in 6th grade band, Michael took violin lessons at the age of 6 and piano lessons at ages 8-10. The son of two choir directors in a family of 6, Michael was exposed to a variety of musical settings throughout his childhood. During middle and high school, he played trumpet with several rock and big band groups. Michael was also a participant in many concert and jazz honor bands at the county, regional, state and national level.
Michael received his Bachelor of Music performance degree from Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina, where he received the “Outstanding Orchestra Member” and “Outstanding Senior Music Student” awards.
In 2022, Brotherton received his Master of Music performance degree from East Carolina University, where he enjoyed playing leading roles with the Symphony Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Combo, and Baroque Ensemble. During this time, Michael was also a graduate teaching assistant with the ECU Marching Pirates.
Expecting to graduate in 2025, Michael is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Trumpet Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Colorado Boulder. During his time there so far, Michael has received first place in the graduate solo division of the National Trumpet Competition, been a finalist at the CU Boulder concerto competition, and won the position of Principal Trumpet with the Longmont Symphony.
Michael’s Instructional Approach
Practice Tips
Favorite Tunes
Pop – Say So – Doja Cat
Funk – Always Let Me Go – Nine Sparks Riots
Jazz – Peri’s Scope – Bill Evans
Baroque – Eternal Source of Light Divine – Handel
