Christopher Martin joined the New York Philharmonic as Principal Trumpet, The Paula Levin Chair, in September 2016. He previously served as Principal Trumpet of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) for 11 seasons, and he has enjoyed a distinctive career of over 20 years in many of America's finest orchestras. Martin has served as Principal Trumpet of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Associate Principal Trumpet of The Philadelphia Orchestra, a post he won at age 22.
Praised as "brilliant…impeccable" by the New York Times and a musician of "effortless understated virtuosity" by The Chicago Tribune, Martin made his New York Philharmonic solo debut in October 2016, performing Ligeti's "Mysteries of the Macabre," led by then Music Director Alan Gilbert.
Martin has appeared as soloist multiple times nationally and internationally with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Riccardo Muti. Highlights of his solo appearances include the 2012 World Premiere of Christopher Rouse's concerto "Heimdall's Trumpet," Panufnik's "Concerto in modo antico" with Muti, a program of 20th-century French concerti by André Jolivet and Henri Tomasi and more than a dozen performances of J.S. Bach's "Brandenburg Concerto No. 2." Other solo engagements include performances with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Seiji Ozawa's Saito Kinen Festival Orchestra, Atlanta and Alabama Symphony Orchestras and the National Symphony Orchestra (OSN) of Mexico.
Martin's discography includes a solo trumpet performance in John Williams's score to Steven Spielberg's Lincoln (2012), the National Brass Ensemble's Gabrieli album and CSO Resound label recordings including the 2011 release of CSO Brass Live. He has also recorded John Mackey's "Antique Violences," a concerto for trumpet and wind ensemble written for Martin, with Jerry Junkin conducting the Dallas Winds.
Dedicated to music education, Martin has served on the faculty of Northwestern University and coached the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. In 2016, he received the Edwin Franko Goldman Memorial Citation from the American Bandmasters Association for outstanding contributions to the wind band genre. Martin and his wife Margaret, an organist and pianist, enjoy performing together in recital.
