Arranger, composer, trumpeter, and educator Jamey Simmons grew up in Wisconsin and knew early on that music was his unique gift. He earned his Bachelors of Music at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire and his Master of Music in Jazz and Contemporary Media at the Eastman School of Music where he studied under jazz composer and arranger Fred Sturm. Simmons is currently Director of Jazz Studies at Middle Tennessee State University where he teaches courses in jazz, and directs Jazz Ensemble I.
As a trumpet player, Simmons toured with the Glenn Miller Orchestra across the United States, South America, and Japan. Active on the Nashville professional music scene, he has made appearances with artists as diversified as the Hornheads, the Temptations, Dave Weckl, Buddy DeFranco, Macy Gray, Lee Konitz, Duffy Jackson, and the Nashville Jazz Orchestra. He has written arrangements and compositions that have been performed by the the Glenn Miller Orchestra, the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the Buffalo Symphony Pops, and the Brussels Jazz Orchestra. His first original jazz sextet CD, Gold Refined in the Fire, features New York saxophonist Scott Robinson. Active as a commissioned composer and arranger, Simmon’s published compositions and arrangements are available through Heritage Jazz Works/ Lorenz Music, really good music.com and Kjos Music Publishing.