Akinmusire, Ambrose

Ambrose Akinmusire was born on May 1, 1982, in Oakland, California.

He is an American avant-garde jazz composer and trumpeter. He studied at the Manhattan School of Music, the University of Southern California (M.A.) and the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz in Los Angeles. In 2007, he won the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition and the Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition, two of the most prestigious jazz competitions in the world. The same year, he released his debut recording, Prelude... to Cora (Fresh Sound New Talent label). He moved to New York City and began performing with Vijay Iyer, Aaron Parks, Esperanza Spalding, and Jason Moran. He participated in Moran's innovative multimedia concert event, "In My Mind: Monk at Town Hall, 1957." He caught the attention of Bruce Lundvall, then President of Blue Note Records and made his debut on the Blue Note label in 2011 with the album When the Heart Emerges Glistening. His third album, "The Imagined Savior is Far Easier to Paint," was released in 2014. The album "Origami Harvest" was included in The New York Times' Best Jazz of 2018. His sixth studio album, "On the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment" (2020), received a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Instrumental Album. Akinmusire received the 2014 North Sea Jazz Festival's Paul Acket Award, the Doris Duke Artist, and the Doris Duke Impact Awards.