Jonathan Bumpus
Jonathan Bumpus is a trombonist, composer and educator living in Rochester, NY. Originally from the small college town of Pullman, WA, Jonathan began playing trombone at age eleven. After being selected as lead trombone in the NAfME All-Northwest Jazz Band in high school, he went on to study jazz performance at Whitworth University in Spokane, WA, where he was the university’s 2016-17 Presser Scholar. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in jazz performance at the Eastman School of Music.
Equally adept in a variety of styles, Jonathan has experience performing with ensembles like the Spokane Symphony, the Couer d’Alene Symphony, the Eastman Trombone Choir, the Bob Curnow Big Band, the Dave Rivello Ensemble, and the Camp of the Woods Music Staff. He has been fortunate enough to perform alongside jazz luminaries like Pat Metheny, Branford Marsalis, Wycliffe Gordon and Chris Potter.
Jonathan currently plays lead trombone in the renowned Eastman Jazz Ensemble, studies trombone with Mark Kellogg and composition and arranging with Bill Dobbins, and works as a teaching assistant in jazz combos and jazz history. Inspired by trombonists like Jack Teagarden, J.J. Johnson and Jimmy Cleveland, Jonathan works to help trombonists develop “trombonistic” ways of improvising that take advantage of the natural strengths of the instrument and allow for personal expression.