Jun Iida

Jun Iida

Musicians | Instrument: Trumpet | Location: New York City

Iida displays a modern approach that embraces Marquis Hill, as much as Lee Morgan.

—Earshot Jazz

Updated: February 12, 2024

Born: May 15, 1991

Trumpeter, composer, educator, and recording artist Jun Iida (Joon Ee-da) has quickly established himself as a highly sought after musician. A recording and performing artist, Iida has performed extensively throughout the U.S. at notable jazz clubs, theaters, and festivals with his sextet and as a sideman.

Originally from St. Louis, MO, Iida has lived in Seattle, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Los Angeles, and has recently relocated to New York City. Iida has internalized the different styles of music from each region, making his approach to composing and arranging appealing and unexpected with his subtle amalgamation of contemporary jazz, blues, pop, hip-hop, soul, and classical music.

The son of Japanese immigrants, Iida’s mother, a semi-professional koto (Japanese harp) player, had a profound influence on his love of music. Iida says, “My mother was always playing music around the house. She loved all types of music, especially classical, and I spent my formative years listening to Brahms, Tchaikovsky, and Mendelssohn. My mother wanted to make sure we didn’t lose our culture and language, so she also taught us Japanese folk and children’s songs. But I also listened to jazz, blues, soul, rock & roll, and hip-hop, which were all prevalent in St. Louis when I was very young.”

Iida began studying the piano when he was five years old and subsequently started playing the trumpet when he was nine after listening to his mother’s Louis Armstrong album, Hello Dolly! Although Iida was mainly attracted to jazz when he was young, his interests encompassed a wide range of styles, and he performed in several classical orchestras and wind ensembles throughout his high school and college years. Iida went on to study classical music at the Cleveland Institute of Music and jazz at Case Western Reserve University, where he also studied aerospace engineering.

Iida’s debut album as leader, Evergreen, was released January 19, 2024 on Origin Records.


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Liner Notes

Jun Iida: Evergreen

Read "Jun Iida: Evergreen" reviewed by Gary Fukushima


They are everywhere, dotting the undulating terrain of the great Pacific Northwest, from the winding, twisting shorelines of Puget Sound to the mountains that rise in the distance in every direction: the Olympics to the west, the Cascades to the east, Mt. Baker to the north and the majestic Rainier to the south. The trees are a constant, comforting blanket over this land, ever-present, ever-green. Jun lida has called this place home for the past three years, another ...

8
Album Review

Jun Iida: Evergreen

Read "Evergreen" reviewed by Nicholas F. Mondello


Evergreen from trumpeter/flugelhornist Jun Iida is a textural panorama of multi-cultural jazz flavors, offering original and known fare. Each of the ten tracks is a portrait, and they display fine solo and ensemble playing. To describe Evergreen in one word is to call it “intriguing." “Gooey Butter Cake," one of six originals from Iida, opens things in a jovial, hippity-hop, jny: New Orleans-esque groove which develops into a trumpet-bass solo ride, with solos following from pianist Josh Nelson ...

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“Iida displays a modern approach that embraces Marquis Hill, as much as Lee Morgan.” (Earshot Jazz)

“The debut album from trumpet/flugelhorn player Jun Iida, “Evergreen,” is among the most imaginative and original jazz albums we’ve listened to (yet) in 2023. As you listen to the opener, “Gooey Butter Cake,” an original by Jun, you’ll quickly realize why we consider him an “up and comer” – a true winner!” (Contemporary Fusion Reviews)

"EVERGREEN is a unique modern jazz album that sounds like no other

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Publicist

Mouthpiece Music

Concerts

  Thu, May 9
New York, NY
Jun Iida Quartet
Silvana
Thu, May 9. 7:00 pm
  Mon, May 13
New York, NY
Jun Iida - Evergreen Release Show
Nublu 151
Mon, May 13. 7:00 pm
  Fri, Jun 14
New York, NY
Jun Iida Trio
Joanne Trattoria
Fri, Jun 14. 7:00 pm
  Sat, Jun 15
New York, NY
Jun Iida Trio
Joanne Trattoria
Sat, Jun 15. 7:00 pm
  Sun, Jun 16
Brooklyn, NY
Jun Iida Quartet
Threes Brewing
Sun, Jun 16. 6:00 pm
  Fri, Jun 21
New York, NY
Jun Iida
Soapbox Gallery
Fri, Jun 21. 7:00 pm
May9Thu
Jun Iida Quartet
Silvana
New York, NY
Jun14Fri
Jun15Sat
Jun16Sun
Jun21Fri
Jun Iida
Soapbox Gallery
New York, NY

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