Kyle Hunt

Biography

Originally hailing from Dallas Texas, Kyle received his bachelor's degree in trombone performance from Oklahoma State University. Following this, he accepted a teaching assistantship at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he taught introductory piano, low and high brass, and songwriting for the Unit One program. Kyle received his master's degree in jazz performance under the tutelage of James Pugh and is currently in pursuit of a doctorate in the same program.

As a performer, Kyle has been described by his peers as diverse in skillset, and a captivating soloist. His experiences range from playing in jazz trios to full-size professional orchestras, and everything in between. Some of his recent distinctions as a performer include winning first prize in the solo competition hosted by the Ladies’ Music Club of Oklahoma in 2017, and as a member of the Greenwood Trombone Octet, winning first prize in the ensemble competition hosted by the Women’s Brass Conference at Arizona State University in 2019. In that same year the Greenwood Octet was also invited to give featured performances at the American Trombone Workshop in Washington D.C., and in Santa Fe Argentina at the Trombonanza Festival. In more recent years, Kyle has been invited to perform at the Jazz Education Network conference in 2020, 2022, and in January 2024 at the upcoming conference in New Orleans. Kyle is also the lead trombonist in the award-winning Illinois Jazz Trombone Ensemble, which last year won the American Trombone Workshop ensemble competition and came in Runner-up in the International Trombone Association’s jazz ensemble competition.

While predominantly a trombonist, Kyle enjoys playing many instruments, and strives to be an effective low brass doubler with no shortcomings. His other interests include electronics/technology, cooking, and other mediums of art such as film, theatre, and physical art.