Utah Trombone Authority 

Who ARE These Guys?

James Nova (Tenor and Alto Trombones) is the Assistant Principal/Second Trombonist of the Utah Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed, recorded and appeared in television broadcasts with the Boston Symphony and Pops and performs as Principal Trombone of the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra as his Utah schedule allows.

Before moving to Utah, Jim was an active freelance performer in the Boston area, and previously held positions as second trombone of the Pacific Symphony Orchestra in Orange County, California, principal of the Rhode Island Philharmonic and Vermont Symphony, and assistant principal of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared as soloist with the New England Conservatory’s Jordan Winds, and performed with the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra, as Principal Trombone of the Colorado Music Festival in 2002, and as Second Trombone of the Haddonfield (NJ) Symphony for the 1995-1996 Season. 

Jim Nova’s recently released solo CD, Albanian Rhapsody, contains music for trombone and orchestra by his loving father, Anesti Nova, who planted the earliest seeds of musical love in his son, encouraging his development all along the way. The music is ethnically charged, deriving much influence and flavor from Mediterranean folk styles and melodies reflecting the Nova family’s background. It is at times tragic, languid and yet uplifting as it chronicles, with the trombone as storyteller, the journey of the Nova family through hardships and eventual triumph over adversity. It is available on his website www.jimnova.com.

Jim first picked up a trombone at age 9, studying privately during his high school years with George Sanders of the Hartford Symphony. He was then accepted to the prestigious and highly competitive Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he studied with Glenn Dodson, then Principal Trombone of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Jim pursued graduate study in Boston at the New England Conservatory, with Norman Bolter of the Boston Symphony. He also attended the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan in 1994, and was a member of the Tanglewood Music Center Fellowship Orchestra for three summers, from 1996-1998.

Jim performs primarily on an S.E. Shires large bore tenor trombone: 2GM bell, Axial Flow Valve, TB47 slide, 2.5 leadpipe and a Greg Black Custom mouthpiece.

 Will Kimball (Tenor and Alto Trombones) is Associate Professor of Trombone at Brigham Young University. He has been a guest recitalist or clinician at many of the country’s most prestigious institutions, including Juilliard, Cincinnati Conservatory, Yale, Indiana University, University of North Texas, San Francisco Conservatory, Arizona State University, Boston University, and University of Iowa. In particular, his research on breathing for brass players has led to a number of clinics and scholarly articles.

He has won principal trombone positions with the Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra and Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. Additional orchestras he has performed with include the Utah Symphony, Utah Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra at Temple Square, Phoenix Symphony, Shreveport Symphony, Utah Festival Opera, and New England Philharmonic. He has performed chamber music with members of the Atlantic Brass, Pittsburgh Symphony, Boston Symphony, and Phoenix Symphony.

Kimball’s jazz experience includes performances at jazz festivals in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the United States; membership in Pittsburgh’s Balcony Big Band; and performance on the jazz and pop portions of the nationally-released motion picture, “The Sandlot.”

His recording credits have included music for ESPN, the Discovery Channel, and Disney, as well as soundtracks for motion pictures such as “The Sandlot,” “Mountain of the Lord,” “Son of the Mask,” and “Forever Strong.” Other recordings include music for the Nauvoo Pageant, the CD “Love is Spoken Here” with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and “Lincoln Portrait” for the Clinton Presidential Library (Little Rock, AR). 

 Dr. Kimball’s students have been accepted at many of the nation’s most prestigious universities and conservatories, including Juilliard, Indiana University, University of Michigan, University of North Texas, and Arizona State University. His students have also been winners or finalists at numerous international competitions, including the International Trombone Association Van Haney Orchestral Excerpt Competition, Eastern Trombone Workshop Solo Competition, National Association of Negro Musicians Concerto Competition, Leonard Falcone Euphonium Competition, and MTNA Chamber Music Competition.

He received his Bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, from Brigham Young University, where he studied with Daniel Bachelder. He also studied extensively with Larry Zalkind of the Utah Symphony. He obtained his Master’s degree at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, where he studied trombone with Murray Crewe and euphonium with Brian Bowman. He began work toward his doctorate at Boston University, where he studied with Scott Hartman,and completed his doctorate at Arizona State University, where he studied with Gail Wilson.

 Mark Ammons (Tenor and Alto Trombones) is an Assistant Director of the School of Music at Brigham Young University where he is responsible for Admissions and Scholarships and over sees the jazz program.  His past posts have included being the Chairman of the Horne School of Music at Snow College in Ephraim, Utah where he was also the Director of Jazz Studies, professor of trombone and low brass, chamber music coordinator, conducted the Snow College Chamber Singers, and taught courses in music history.  Prior to joining the faculty at Snow College, he taught at Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri, and El Camino Community College in Torrance, California, as well as private schools in northern and southern California. 

Mark received his Bachelor of Music degree in Trombone Performance and a minor in French from Brigham Young University.  His Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in Trombone Performance—with additional fields in Choral Conducting and Orchestration—were earned from the University of Southern California.  His primary teachers have been David Summers, Daniel Bachelder, and Terry Cravens.

Mark is the Second Trombonist with the Ballet West and Utah Chamber Orchestras and the trombonist for the Burnside Septet.  He also performs with the Sounding Brass Quintet, as well as Utah's Ultimate Trombone Ensemble, and is an active freelance jazz and classical performer and recording artist.  He has recorded extensively with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square as well as on numerous national, regional, and local commercials, film scores, and labels.  Mark has been a featured soloist throughout the United States and internationally in England, Poland, Israel, France, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, and the Bahamas.  He was a co-founder of and solo principal trombonist with the Utah Premiere Brass, principal trombonist for the Orchestra at Temple Square, and a regular performer with the Utah Symphony.  

Dr. Ammons is the author of books and articles on music history, popular music, famous musicians and artists, nineteenth-century brass bands,  and musical instruments in world cultures.  He is an active guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator in Utah and throughout the United States.

Mark and his wife, Mindy, live in Provo, Utah with their children Jon, Liz, Hilary, and Will - and dog, Lucy.

Russell McKinney (Bass Trombone) is the Bass Trombonist of the Utah Symphony Orchestra, a position he has held since 1989. He also serves as Director of Low Brass Studies at the Horne School of Music at Snow College and is Assistant Lecturer of Bass Trombone at Brigham Young University.  Rusty is a staff member  at First Presbyterian Church of Salt Lake City as Music Director and as Managing Director of the church's Community Concert Series . He  is also the Founder and Music Director of UUTE, Utah's Ultimate Trombone Ensemble.  UUTE's membership includes area professionals as well as the top student talent from music schools in the Salt Lake Valley. 

Before coming to Utah, he was bass trombonist of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra during the 1988-89 season as a sabbatical replacement, participating in all activities including tours and recordings with the Grammy Award winning orchestra. He has held positions with the Chattanooga Symphony and the Eastern Philharmonic Orchestra, the faculty orchestra of the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, NC. He has served as a substitute musician with both the Baltimore Symphony and the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington, D.C., as well as the Kennedy Center Orchestra of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Previously, he has held adjunct teaching positions at The University of Utah's School of Music, Westminster College in Salt Lake City and at Southern College, Collegedale, TN and Lee College in Cleveland, TN. He was the bass trombone instructor and chamber music coach at the Eastern Music Festival from 1984 to 1988. 

Rusty has been featured as soloist with the University of Utah's Wind Symphony and the Utah Youth Symphony. He has also appeared as soloist with the Peabody Wind Ensemble and with the Greensboro Concert Band. He has presented solo recitals and master classes at Ithaca College, (Ithaca, NY), Idaho State University (Pocatello), and Snow College, (Ephraim, UT). He also appeared with the Utah Symphony Trombone Section in a master class given at the 1998 International Trombone Festival in Boulder, CO. and was a featured soloist at the 2003 Annual 76+4 Trombones concert at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 

Rusty attended the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, MD receiving several awards including Peabody's Gustav Klemm Award for exemplary work in his chosen field of study, Trombone Performance. He also received orchestral and chamber music training at the Chautauqua Institute in Chautauqua, NY, as a Bellinger Orchestra scholarship student in the Chautauqua Festival Orchestra. He is married to Linda and they have three children and five cats.