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BIOGRAPHY - Chuck has been playing the trumpet for 28 years and has been making a living at it ever since he left the nest, and has over 20 CD credits to his name. Most recently, Chuck played trumpet for pop star John Mayer's 2006 world tour in addition to recording horns a song on the new Norah Jones record on Blue Note. MacKinnon has performed and associated with many of the top names in jazz including the Duke Ellington Orchestra, the Cab Calloway Orchestra, Joe Henderson, James Moody, Rufus Reid, Randy Brecker, Sam Rivers, Bob Mover, Mike Clark, Kenny Brooks, and Dred Scott. Chuck has also performed with crossover groups including Norah Jones, Isaac Mizrahi, Charlie Hunter, Benevento and Russo, Peter Apfelbaum, Will Bernard, Groove Collective, Dig, and the soul jazz band, Gravy, which he co-led and recorded the "Live at Brunos" CD in 1999.Chuck was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area where he learned extensively in his youth by sitting in with local piano legend, Smith Dobson. He also played in the working bands of Bay Area masters: Mark Levine, Bruce Forman, Noel Jewkes, and Harvey Wainapel. Chuck studied at UCLA before earning his Bachelor of Music degree from William Patterson College in Wayne, NJ and his Master of Music in Composition degree from California State University at Hayward. Chuck thrived on the San Francisco jazz scene from 1995-2000 and gave jazz trumpet masterclasses at University of Santa Cruz, Sonoma State University, California State University East Bay, State University at San Jose, and various high schools. He has taught New York City inner-city music programs and travels to teach the Stanford Jazz Workshop and the Lafayette Summer Music Workshop.
Currently Chuck resides in New York City where he composes and leads his own bands. Chuck works extensively as a sideman in jazz, rock, pop, hip hop and private party bands. In addition, he is also in demand as a composer/arranger having completed five commissions for big band, a staff arranger for JC Hopkins' Biggish Band, and won a Downbeat Magazine Award for Best Extended Composition by a collegiate musician in 1996.
He is pioneering many new sounds for the trumpet, often experimenting with delay, distortion, and live samples. Chuck completed a 2002 CD "We Own the Moon" of completely improvised psychedelic live electronica music with his cooperatively led trumpet/bass/drums trio, Spielplatz, which has performed in Heidelberg, Germany.
MacKinnon's very latest project, The Chuck MacKinnon Mactet, an all acoustic venture, is the culmination of his musical career and features his three horn writing. "New Transmission" debuted on Krispytone in April, 2006.