Dr. Christopher Wilson is the Principal Trumpet of the Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra and Artist/Associate Professor of Trumpet at Arkansas State University. The Journal of The Music Critics of North America described Wilson's playing as "eloquent" and "masterful" in a 2018 review. He is an active soloist and clinician and has performed throughout the United States, Italy and Japan, including multiple featured performances at International Trumpet Guild Conferences. Previously, Wilson was a member of the United States Air Force Band in Washington, DC, where he was a featured tour soloist performing the Arutunian "Trumpet Concerto."
Wilson has performed for numerous dignitaries and audiences around the world, including Presidents George W. Bush and Barrack Obama. In 2004, he performed at the funeral of former President Ronald Reagan. Live television broadcasts include a Veterans Day Celebration at the Strathmore Concert Hall in Bethesda, MD, which aired on PBS in 2008, and a Memorial Day performance at the National Capitol, which also aired on PBS in 2006 in collaboration with the National Symphony Orchestra.
Wilson released New Horizons in 2013, a solo album of new, original recital pieces for trumpet. The album was featured on National Public Radio as its "delight of the week." He often performs with the Arkansas Symphony, the Nashville Symphony, the Memphis Symphony and the Wheeling Symphony orchestras.
Wilson received his doctoral degree in trumpet performance at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, where he studied with Steve Hendrickson and Charles Daval. He earned a master's degree in performance and a bachelor's degree in music education at the University of Arkansas, where he studied with Wiff Rudd and Robert Bright.
Wilson's students have gone on to win positions in military bands, prestigious graduate schools and have competed multiple times at the National Trumpet Competition. In addition to his teaching at Arkansas State University, Wilson has been a clinician and faculty member at the Music for All Summer Symposium; the Orvieto Musica in Orvieto, Italy; and the Tennessee Governors School for the Arts. He teaches and performs at the Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute at Quartz Mountain. Wilson is a Yamaha Performing Artist/Clinician.
