Trumpeter Michael Rodriguez To Join Faculty Of San Francisco Conservatory Of Music

The San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) today announces the appointment of trumpeter Michael Rodriguez to its faculty. Rodriguez, a Grammy-nominated musician renowned for his artistry as a composer and instrumentalist, joins the cadre of high-profile faculty members in the Roots, Jazz, and American Music (RJAM) program, which welcomed its first class, composed of some of the world's finest young jazz musicians, in the fall of 2017.

"Michael Rodriguez is one of those rare trumpet players who has mastered his craft to the level where he is sought after by bandleaders and artists from Charlie Haden to Chick Corea," says RJAM Executive Director Simon Rowe. "He has a unique voice as a jazz soloist and bandleader and will provide a perfect role model for the aspiring jazz young artists at SFCM."

"I am thrilled to join the outstanding faculty at SFCM," says Rodriguez. "I look forward to being a part of the students' artistic development and learning from them as well."

Michael Rodriguez has performed and toured with Clark Terry, Bobby Watson, Quincy Jones, Joe Lovano, Toshiko Akiyoshi Orchestra, pop icon Jessica Simpson, the Chico O'Farrill Orchestra, Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Lincoln Center Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, Jon Faddis and the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Carla Bley Band and Quintet, the Clayton Brothers, Kenny Baron's Quintet, Conrad Herwig's Latin Side Projects, Harry Connick Jr., Bob Mintzer, Eddie Palmieri Septet, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and the Smithsonian Jazz Orchestra, among others. He is also a member of Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra.

In December 2003, Rodriguez recorded on Charlie Haden's Grammy Award-winning album, Land of the Sun, featuring Gonzalo Rubalcaba and Joe Lovano. He has also recorded on the Liberation Music Orchestra's latest album, Not in Our Name. In 2008, Rodriguez became a member of the Gonzalo Rubalcaba Quintet and recorded Avatar under the Blue Note Label. He and his brother, pianist Robert Rodriguez, have recorded four albums together: Introducing the Rodriguez Brothers, Conversations, Mood Swing, and their most recent album, Impromptu, which was nominated for a Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Album 2015. In March 2013, Rodriguez released his debut solo recording under the CrissCross label entitled Reverence.

Rodriguez studied at the New World School of the Arts in Miami, Florida, at the University of Miami, and at New School University in New York where he received his B.A. He frequently travels the globe as a clinician.

View this release at sfcm.edu.

About the San Francisco Conservatory of Music

Founded in 1917, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) is a global destination for musical excellence, earning an international reputation for producing musicians of the highest caliber. Located in the heart of San Francisco's Civic Center, SFCM's faculty includes nearly 30 members of the San Francisco Symphony as well as Grammy Award-winning artists in fields ranging from orchestral and chamber performance to classical guitar. The Conservatory offers its 400-plus collegiate students fully accredited bachelor's and master's degrees and professional diplomas in composition and instrumental and vocal performance, as well as in newly established, groundbreaking tracks such as Technology and Applied Composition and Roots, Jazz, and American Music. SFCM's collaborations with major Bay Area arts presenters, including the San Francisco Symphony, Opera, Ballet, and SFJAZZ Center, present an unprecedented learning environment for Conservatory students to engage with the world's leading artists. The Conservatory's relationships with Sony Playstation, Skywalker Sound, and other Silicon Valley companies also offer unique opportunities that reinforce the institution's innovative curricular approach in artistic, intellectual, professional, and individual development, a connected learning sequence that gives students an education for life. SFCM's collegiate and Pre-College students have appeared at such storied venues as Carnegie Hall and Davies Symphony Hall and have performed on national radio programs including NPR's Live from Here and Performance Today. Notable alumni include violinists Yehudi Menuhin and Isaac Stern, conductor and pianist Jeffrey Kahane, soprano Elza van den Heever, the Naumburg Award-winning Telegraph Quartet (on faculty as SFCM's Quartet-in-Residence), Blue Bottle Coffee founder James Freeman, and Ronald Losby (President of Steinway & Sons - Americas), among others.

For more information, visit sfcm.edu.