James Estes James Estes (Cornet) has a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Southern Mississippi and a M.S. Degree from the University of Illinois-Urbana. Mr. Estes was a Graduate Assistant at the University of Miami and completed all the coursework and qualifying exams for the Ph.D. Degree in Music Education. In addition to his formal education, Mr. Estes was a private trumpet student of Vincent Cichowicz of the Chicago Symphony and later studied with Gilbert Johnson, formerly Principal Trumpet of the Philadelphia Orchestra. He was co-Principal Trumpet of the Florida Philharmonic Orchestra for 23 years. In his career Mr. Estes has performed with many of the most famous names in music, opera and ballet including Luciano Pavarotti, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Rudolph Nureyev, John Williams, and Itzhak Perlman. In popular music Mr. Estes performed with Ray Charles, Peter Nero, Dionne Warwick, Doc Severinsen, Herb Alpert, and Frank Sinatra, Jr. among many others.
In November, 2008, Mr. Estes became certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. He is a member of the International Trumpet Guild and the American Federation of Musicians.
As a performer, Mr. Estes currently appears as Principal Trumpet in several orchestras, including The Academy Orchestra, The South Florida Philharmonic, and was recently appointed Principal Solo Cornet of the Orchid City Brass Band.
