Dave Douglas

Dave Douglas is a prolific trumpeter, composer, educator and entrepreneur from New York City known for the stylistic breadth of his work and for keeping a diverse set of ensembles and projects active simultaneously.

His latest project is GIFTS, an ensemble including guitarist Rafiq Bhatia, drummer Ian Chang, saxophonist James Brandon Lewis and cellist Tomeka Reid. The group released its self-titled debut album in 2024, with a new album, Transcend, released on April 24, 2026.

Douglas’ unique contributions to improvised music have garnered distinguished recognition, including a Doris Duke Artist Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship, an Aaron Copland Award, and two Grammy Award nominations. Douglas’ career spans more than 75 unique original recordings as a leader and more than 500 published works.

In November 2025, Sound Prints, the band Douglas co-leads with saxophonist Joe Lovano, performed for a week at New York’s storied Village Vanguard, unveiling an entire new set of works from both composers. Other ensembles include OVERCOME, with vocalists Fay Victor and Camila Meza plus musicians Ryan Keberle, Jorge Roeder, and Rudy Royston; and If There Are Mountains, a sextet with pianist & co-leader Elan Mehler, featuring haiku and poetry from vocalist Dominique Eade.

Douglas is often engaged in special projects which include big bands, tributes, and multi-trumpet ensembles, such as Dizzy Atmosphere: Dizzy Gillespie at Zero Gravity. In May 2024, Douglas joined composer and saxophonist Trish Clowes in a new project called Eyes Up, for which both Douglas and Clowes contributed new works and performed at festivals in Cheltenham and Bray, Ireland. In November 2024, Douglas debuted a new Quartet with pianist Marta Warelis, bassist Nick Dunston and drummer Joey Baron. After several European performances in 2024–2025, the ensemble released an album Four Freedoms in January 2026.

As a composer, Douglas has received commissions from a variety of organizations including the Trisha Brown Dance Company, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Norddeutscher Rundfunk, Essen Philharmonie, The Library of Congress, Stanford University, and Monash Art Ensemble.

SHOWS