Frank Greene
Trumpet Player Frank Greene grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area in the city of San Jose, California. Frank’s early trumpet studies with friend and trumpet teacher Bill Nicolosi led him to perform with Dave Eshelman's San Jose City College Big Band while Frank was still in High School. Bill Nicolosi was also the one who gave Frank his first exposure to the music of Maynard Ferguson.
Trumpet Player Frank Greene continued on to play Lead Trumpet in the famed One O'clock Lab Band at the University of North Texas (formerly North Texas State University) after high school. He was awarded the Marvin Stamm Scholarship and studied trumpet with gifted brass professor John Haynie and with the famed brass guru, Don Jacoby. Prior to graduation, Frank joined the Woody Herman Thundering Herd Big Band (playing alongside Roger Ingram) ... and later a chance to fulfill a lifelong dream: Playing lead trumpet and recording with the Great Maynard Ferguson!
Frank Greene moved to New York City where he enjoys an extremely varied musical life after touring with Maynard Ferguson. Frank has played for the hit Broadway show " The Producers", starring Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane, as well as solo trumpet, lead trumpet and section trumpet for the original motion picture soundtrack "The Producers--the Movie." Frank is presently playing Disney's ... The Little Mermaid on Broadway and has just returned from a tour with the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra.
Trumpet Player Frank Greene's recent Live, Recording, TV appearance and Tour Credits include: Lead Trumpet in the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni Orchestra (Led by Slide Hampton), Lead Trumpet in the Clark Terry Big Band, Lead Trumpet in the Roy Hargrove Big Band, Lead Trumpet in the McCoy Tyner Big Band, Lead Trumpet in the Frank Foster Big Band, Lead trumpet in the Jimmy Heath Big Band, Lead trumpet with Lou Rawls, Dianne Reeves, John Williams, Natalie Cole, The Dave Brubeck Big Band, Soundtrack Recordings for Disney animated movies, Music for NBC Sports and NFL Films (Football Highlights),The Jon Faddis Big Band (formerly the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band), Gerald Wilson Big Band (with Jon Faddis on Lead Trumpet), the Maria Schneider Orchestra, the Bob Mintzer Big Band, the Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (formerly the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra), as well as playing on David Letterman, the Today Show and Sessions @ AOL with Paul Anka, Queen Latifah and Kevin Spacey … Frank has performed and recorded with Ray Charles, Vanessa Williams and Chaka Khan
Trumpet Player Frank Greene performs on a Benge 3X Professional Model Trumpet with a Bach 5B rim with several underparts ... a Bach "1 1/4 C" underpart for the Little Mermaid (Broadway); a Bobby Shew underpart for playing Lead in the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni Big Band, the Jimmy Heath Big Band, and the Frank Foster Big Band. A slightly different underpart for playing Lead with the Roy Hargrove Big Band; and a Bach 1C bottom for the Village Vanguard Big Band Band, the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra and the Bob Mintzer Big Band. Frank uses a Bobby Shew bottom when he plays lead trumpet with Clark Terry's Big Band and a Di Nacola bottom when he plays Lead with Frank Wess's Little Big Band. Frank performs on a Yamaha Model 631 Flugelhorn (rose brass bell) and a silver Benge Piccolo trumpet. Frank also has a four valve Yamaha long bell piccolo trumpet too.
Trumpet Player Frank Greene states, "I actually think that most trumpet players spend too much time "behind" the horn. I used to constantly ask Maynard and watch him .... He and Don Jacoby both said "the audience is out there ... Get a sound out there they can hold on to !!!!" Maynard for sure understood air compression and had equipment that suited him, but so do many trumpet players I meet! Maynard was a road dog that never got to practice much. I really like to be goofy and play high notes like anyone, but it's kind of "play by the rules before we break the rules." We have to play our etudes and Arbans and various technical exercises and learn from proper jazz and Big Band Lead Trumpet Masters such as Al Porcino, Snooky Young, John Audino, Conrad Gozzo, Arnie Chycoski, Bill Chase (on Woody Hermans Band), Earl Gardner, Jon Faddis, Byron Stripling, Wayne Bergeron etc. But mostly ... just make a sound that you like and play it out there. Most guys we admire did just that. My book can help, and maybe try to get a lesson with Wayne Bergeron, Chris Jaudes, Tony Kadleck, Walter White or myself ... Trumpet players who have to play loud Lead parts, but also extremely relaxed parts on a very regular basis. On the broadway play "The Little Mermaid" ... we have a four bar switch from Fluglehorn. to Piccolo trumpet - Someone like Chris Jaudes, for instance, can tell you how to do that well -- and also tell you how to have the endurance to paste the double high "A" late late late into the set with Paul Anka! Then show you how to play proper style in a Brass Band. So can Wayne Bergeron, Walter White and guys like this! They are not just high note Jockeys. We have to play the high notes well and everything else too on the gig. Crazy ... Most of us played with Woody Herman, Buddy Rich and Maynard ... I just want to steer guys in this direction so they can learn to play efficiently without injury. And the guys I have mentioned (in addition to Frank!) have played for years with guys like Buddy Rich and Maynard Ferguson injury free!! -
I wrote my trumpet method book "Brass Concepts" while I was out on tour with Maynard. I wrote my trumpet method book "The Quiet Mind" after years of playing on Broadway while living here in New York City and seeing great player after great player folding because of nervousness. It seemed strange that they couldn't "turn it off" and play like I knew they were able. That's the reason I wrote "The Quiet Mind." I am also releasing "Quiet Mind Meditations" soon as well as "Brass Concepts II" -- Frank Greene