Home » Jazz Musicians » Chad McCullough
Chad McCullough
Heralded for his “solos of mercurial poetry and high craft.” (Chicago Tribune) Chicago-based trumpeter/composer Chad McCullough is active throughout the world. Dan McClenaghan writes, “He is a rare instrumentalist who makes each note sound as if it were imbued with a deeper meaning. Certainly a player with great chops, his approach is one that is measured and deliberate, often introspective, sometimes gorgeously melancholic, and one that employs a continuity of mood and atmosphere …”
His bands have performed at many festivals, including the Festival of New Trumpet Music (New York), the GG Jazz Festival (Russia), Chicago Jazz Festival, The Earshot Jazz Festival (Seattle), Halifax Jazz Festival, and The Appeltuin Jazz Festival (Belgium). His albums have been released internationally on Calligram, Origin Records, ears&eyes records, Monks and Thieves, and Shifting Paradigm. He’s a frequent collaborator with many musicians/ensembles, including groups with; Bram Weijters, Atlantic Road Trip, Matt Ulery, Dana Hall, Ryan Shultz, Neal Alger, James Davis, Rob Clearfield, and Tim Hagans and has performed with Maria Schneider, Miguel Zenon, Stafford James, Michael Shrieve, Avishai Cohen, Kendrick Scott, Claudio Roditi, Chad Lefkowitz-Brown, Charles Tolliver, Ambrose Akinmuserie, Steve Coleman, Dave Douglas, and many more.
Chad holds a M.M. from the University of Washington, and a B.M. from the University of Idaho, where he was a Lionel Hampton Scholar, and was the first student to graduate with a jazz emphasis on his degree. In 2009 he participated in the jazz & creative music workshop at the Banff Centre in Canada. He was awarded a DCASE grant for an intensive study with Grammy-nominated trumpeter Tim Hagans from the City of Chicago, and is currently on the jazz faculty at DePaul University and the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Chad plays custom AR Resonance mouthpieces and instruments.
Awards
3x recipient, Chicago DCASE grant
AR Resonance artist
Gear
AR Resonance
Suprema trumpet
Soave 4-valve flugelhorn
Tags
Chad McCullough: Transverse
by Jack Bowers
Would all those who can locate North Macedonia on a map please raise your hands. Not many, it seems. For the benefit of those whose hands remained motionless, it is a part of the Balkan Peninsula in southeast Europe whose boundaries overspread parts of half a dozen Balkan countries including Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia and Kosovo. So much for geography. What is relevant for the purpose of this review is that the country has an active jazz scene, one that ...
Continue ReadingChad McCullough: Transverse
by Dan McClenaghan
Chance encounters can be fortuitous and fruitful. Trumpeter Chad McCullough, on a visit to Macedonia to convene with family, found his way into a small cafe in Skopje, the capital of Independent North Macedonia, where he encountered a local trio: pianist Gordon Spasovski, bassist Kiril Tufekcievski and drummer Viktor Filipovski. McCullough had his horn with him. He was invited to sit in. A musical connection came about and eventually Transverse happened--the group's first “recording together on American soil" (a quote ...
Continue ReadingJames Davis' Beveled: Arc and Edge
by Mark Corroto
Trumpeter James Davis' sextet is aptly named Beveled--a word that means transforming a sharp, square edge into something smoother, more refined. That concept of reshaping and softening defines both the ensemble's instrumentation and its sonic character. Davis sets the tone by trading his bright trumpet for the warmer, more introspective voice of the flugelhorn. He deepens this resonance by adding a second flugelhorn, played by Chad McCullough, alongside two bass clarinetists, Geof Bradfield and Michael Salter. The bass clarinet, known ...
Continue ReadingJames Davis' Beveled: Arc and Edge
by Jack Bowers
Beveled, according to Webster's, translates roughly to “slanted" or “grooved." On Arc and Edge, flugelhornist James Davis' Chicago-based sextet clearly has its own slant on contemporary post-bop jazz wherein the groove ranges from typically improvised passages to cutting-edge motifs and classical chamber music, using a second flugelhorn, two bass clarinets and rhythm to flesh out the leader's sonically unique and harmonically sophisticated compositions. The second flugelhorn is that of Chad McCullough. Geof Bradfield and Michael Salter man ...
Continue ReadingAlyn Cosker: Onta
by Neil Duggan
Ayr is a coastal town situated in the southwest of Scotland. It is enjoyed by tourists for its scenic beach and as the location of the birthplace of the national poet Robert Burns. It also serves as the inspiration for Onta, the third album from drummer Alyn Cosker, who makes this his love letter to the town of his birth. Buddy Rich fan Cosker is often found with The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra. In his solo career, he ...
Continue ReadingChad McCullough: In These Hills, Beyond
by Dan McClenaghan
Trumpeter Chad McCullough started his recording career in Seattle at Origin Records, releasing five albums between 2009 and 2015 under his name or as a co-leader with pianist Bram Weitjers. It was a successful run that earned him the “Rising Star" tag. A move to Chicago to teach, the release of his “Best of Year" pick, 2020's Forward (Outside In Music), and the subsequent starting up of his Calligram Records that has taken his artistry and his career to the ...
Continue ReadingAlex Beltran: Rift
by Hrayr Attarian
Chicago-based saxophonist Alex Beltran delivers a tour de force with Rift, an exploration of identity in a musical form. Beltran, who grew up in two distinct cultural spheres, those of his Latino father and his white mother, describes in the liner notes how he never fit with either side of the family. This became a source of inspiration for his cohesive debut as a leader, which features seven of his compositions and a cover of the electronic duo, Sylvan Esso's ...
Continue ReadingNew Live Recording From Trumpeter Chad McCullough on Calligram Records
Source:
Calligram Records
Reflecting on In these hills, beyond , trumpeter and composer Chad McCullough says “this album is a celebration of life, but it wasn't planned that way. I just wanted to play great music with my friends, as lofty a goal as I have most of the time. However, the recent passing of my grandfather added more weight to everything.” On tour with his quintet last year, McCullough realized midway through the first concert that it was his grandfather’s birthday. “It ...
read more
Enter the Origin Records Matt Jorgensen/Chad McCullough 2-CD Giveaway
Source:
All About Jazz
All About Jazz members are invited to enter the Origin “2-CD" giveaway contest starting today. We'll select FIVE winners to receive the CD's below at the conclusion of the contest on December 6th.Click here to enter the contest
(Following Matt Jorgensen at AAJ automatically enters you in the contest.)
Good luck! Your Friends at Origin Records
Matt Jorgensen—Tattooed by Passion
Inspired by the paintings of his late father-in-law, the prominent abstract-impressionist artist Dale Chisman, drummer Matt ...
read more
Catching up with Chad McCullough
Source:
Seattle Jazz Scene
Trumpter Chad McCullough has had a busy 2010 and things haven't been letting up.
After a January spent performing in Europe under his own name, touring and recording earlier this year with Andrew Olivers Kora Band, McCullough is currently on an 14 city tour across Canada and the western U.S. with the international cooperative group Tunnel Six featuring Ben Dietschi, saxophones (Toronto, ON); Andrew Oliver, piano (Portland, OR); Brian Seligman, guitar (Toronto, ON); Ron Hynes, bass (Halifax, NS) and Tyson ...
read more
Seattle Jazz Artists Head to Europe
Source:
Seattle Jazz Scene
As we had previously mentioned, Ray Vegas East/West Trumpet Summit, featuring Seattle musicians Thomas Marriott, Jeff Johnson and Matt Jorgensen, just returned from a week in Switzerland performing at Marians Jazzroom. Next week will see more concerts throughout Europe featuring Seattle jazz musicians. Trumpeter Chad McCullough has four up-coming shows (three of which feature John Bishop on drums). Chad McCullough and Michal Vanouck Sun, Jan 17: De Kombinatie, The Hague, Netherlands Chad McCullough & Bram Weijters Quartet, Featuring ...
read more
Jazz Musician of the Day: Chad McCullough
Source:
Michael Ricci
All About Jazz is celebrating Chad McCullough's birthday today!
JAZZ MUSICIAN OF THE DAY Chad McCullough
Trumpeter / composer Chad McCullough has been on the Seattle music scene for over a decade, and has been an integral voice in many bands and projects throughout the country. Working as a soloist, lead player, and chamber musician... more
Website | Videos | Articles
Follow Chad McCullough
Put AAJ's Musician of the Day ...
read more
Trumpeter Chad McCullough Interviewed at AAJ
Source:
All About Jazz
Seattle trumpeter Chad McCullough has been working hard to garner a reputation in his hometown and beyond as a versatile, creative musician. McCullough has performed with a wide range of artists, including Jay Thomas, Claudio Roditi, Marc Seales, Thomas Marriott, Ingrid Jensen and Bob Florence. He's toured extensively with the Glenn Miller Orchestra in the jazz trumpet chair, and also as the band's pianist.
McCullough's debut recording, Dark Wood, Dark Water (Origin Records, 2009), taken from the title of a ...
read more
“Stunning, chilled lyricism and compositional acuity.”
- Downbeat Magazine
“Chad McCullough has a pealing sound centered in the trumpet’s
middle register, though he’ll freely dart above and below. He stays
light on his feet, as if not too enraptured with himself or his handsome
mobile sound...
- Kevin Whitehead
Primary Instrument
Trumpet
Location
Chicago
Willing to teach
Beginner to advanced
Credentials/Background
I've taught private lessons for over 15 years, with many of my students ranking at top levels at festivals and competitions.
Clinic/Workshop Information
I've worked with Elementary - College bands, as well as choirs, running clinics ranging on topics from improvisation, breathing, rehearsal methods, how to practice, Jazz history, jazz tradition, articulation, rhythm section rehearsals... Chad has been a clinician for several festivals and schools, including: Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival Edmonds Jazz Connection Kentridge HS Tyee HS Kentlake HS Mountlake Terrace HS
Photos
Music
Urban Grassland
From: The Sky CriesBy Chad McCullough
Three Pillars
From: Dark Wood, Dark WaterBy Chad McCullough
Videos
Similar
Joe Locke
vibraphone
Wayne Horvitz
keyboards
Dave Glenn
trombone
Anthony Branker
composer / conductor
Steve Myerson
piano
Craig Buhler
woodwinds
Helge Lien
piano
Chembo Corniel
percussion
Justin Vasquez
saxophone, alto
