Glenn Holdaway | Professional Trumpet Player

We had the good fortune of connecting with Glenn Holdaway and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Glenn, can you share the most important lesson you’ve learned over the course of your career?
The most important lesson my music career has taught me is that talent and success have very little to do with one another. There are so many talented people out there who for one reason or another, never seem to make it in this industry. Here are 5 traits that I believe contribute far more to a musician’s “success” than talent does.
Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Today I am mostly known as a horn-section player, but I am hoping that someday I will be a frontman. I’d like to be able to showcase myself more as an artist than as a sideman. Writing horn parts and playing in a section feels very familiar and safe to me; becoming a frontman requires stepping out of my comfort zone. Hopefully I will look back at this interview years later and laugh at this, but it is very scary for me to put myself out there when it comes to writing original music. But I have faith that if I stick with it, it will get easier and more comfortable.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Favorite local places for live music (Pre-COVID 19):
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d love to give a shoutout to my two biggest mentors in my musical career: Fully Fullwood and Jahgun. My life would not be the same if I had not met these two. I’d also love to shoutout Barry Cogert and Albert Alva from The Jazz Angels. They taught me how to improvise and I doubt I would still be playing music today if it weren’t for them.
Website: www.glennholdaway.com
Image Credits
Sean McCracken, Alicia Hauff, Keith Zacharski, Sherry Edwards, Betzi Learning, and Colin Worrel