Biography

Known for his “breathtaking” sound as a "musician of the highest order,” Ryan Nielsen is a rare trumpet artist equally at home in classical music, jazz, and contemporary styles.

A devoted teacher and clinician, his popular YouTube channel, Ryan’s Trumpet, has thousands of subscribers from around the globe. His book, The Classroom Guide to Jazz Improvisation, written with his dear friend and mentor John McNeil, was published in May 2024 by Oxford University Press and became a #1 New Release on Amazon. Graduates of Dr. Nielsen's studio are working throughout the United States and beyond. In addition to music careers, he loves helping students catalyze their music training for success in other fields.

Nielsen has toured, performed, and/or recorded with the Kobie Watkins Grouptet (Origin Recording Artists), Ra Kalam Bob Moses (Smithsonian-recognized artist), Delfeayo Marsalis (National Endowment of the Arts Jazz Master), and the Summit Brass, to international acclaim. In 2024, Nielsen released an all-video solo album—Triple B Blues—with such jazz luminaries as Bobby Broom, Ryan Hanseler, Christian Dillingham and Will Ledbetter, and Kobie Watkins.

Nielsen has presented at the International Conference on the Arts in Society, the International Trumpet Guild Conference, the International Association of Jungian Studies, was a juror for the Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition, and was recently named the Jazz Editor of the International Trumpet Guild Journal.

Nielsen has an abiding interest in trauma therapy as well, and is currently earning his certification in BodyDreaming: An Approach to the Treatment of Developmental Trauma.

Education

Teaching

Presentations

Scholarly/Creative Works