Draft:Matthew Guilford, bass trombone

Matthew Guilford

Matthew T. Guilford is a prolific American bass trombonist. Originally from Massachusetts, Mr. Guilford received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from New England Conservatory. He is an Edwards Performing Artist, and has been in demand as a performer and educator for more than 30 years.

Performance Career

Currently Mr. Guilford is the solo bass trombonist of the (United States) National Symphony Orchestra. Prior to being appointed to this position he was the bass trombonist of the San Francisco Opera Orchestra. In addition to these full time positions, Mr. Guilford has performed with many other leading American orchestras, including performances with the Baltimore Symphony, Boston Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony, and many others.

Mr. Guilford has been an active chamber musician throughout his career. He is a current member of the Post Classical Ensemble, Washington Trombone Ensemble, and National Symphony Orchestra Trombone Quartet. In addition, he has also performed with the Chicago Music of the Baroque and the Kennedy Center Chamber Players.

In addition to his ensemble work, Mr. Guilford is an in demand domestic and international soloist. Recently he has been a featured soloist performing works by James Kessler, Eric Ewazen, and James Stephenson. Mr. Guilford has been a soloist with the National Symphony on several occasions. In 2014 he was a featured soloist at the International Trombone Festival, accompanied by the Eastman Wind Ensemble.

Mr. Guilford can be heard on many recordings. He is a soloist with the Washington Trombone Ensemble on their 2012 album “The Road Not Taken”. He can also be heard on the numerous National Symphony Orchestra recordings with Rostropovich, Slatkin, and Noseda conducting.

Pedagogy

As a pedegog, Mr. Guilford was the senior lecturer of trombone at the University of Maryland from 1994 through 2024, and has taught for the National Orchestral Institute since 1996. Mr. Guilford’s instruction has guided the musical growth of numerous trombonists throughout the world. In addition to these long standing positions, he has given master classes and workshops throughout the world. Recently he has been in residence at the DC Trombone Workshop, the 2022 Trombonanza in Santa Fe, Argentina, and given masterclasses at New England Conservatory and Boston Conservatory.

His former students have gone on to perform and teach at highly recognized ensembles and universities throughout the world. This includes faculty positions at Delaware State University and St. Olaf College, and trombonists in the President’s Own United States Marine Band, Pershing’s Own United State Army Band, the St. Louis Symphony, Bruckner Orchestra Linz, and the Swedish Radio Symphony, as well as many other colleges, universities, and professional ensembles.

Publications & Commissions

Mr. Guilford has written articles for the ITA Journal and been quoted in stories published by the New York Times and Washington Post. In 2022 Mr. Guilford published 17 Advanced Etudes for Bass Trombone.

Throughout his career, Mr. Guilford has supported the development of new works for bass trombone. He has been involved in commision projects for many significant works in recent years. This includes both works for solo bass trombone, contrabass trombone, and trombone ensembles. Recent works include Kevin Day’s Slide Game for trombone ensemble, Madeline Lee’s Nyiri Sky for tenor and bass trombone soloists with trombone sextet, and Frank Gulino’s Out of the Darkness for bass trombone and piano.