James Thompson is currently Professor of Trumpet at the renowned Eastman School of Music. He has been the Principal Trumpet in various world-class orchestras. Currently he is solo trumpet of the Symphonica Toscanini under the baton of Lorin Maazel.

Thompson has been active both as a soloist and a teacher. He has actively encouraged new compositions for the trumpet. He has taught trumpet and brass ensemble at Northern Arizona University, the National Conservatory of Music in Mexico City and McGill University in Montreal, Canada. In 1979 he was a prize winner of the First Maurice André International Trumpet Competition. At the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Opening Ceremonies he performed a jazz/gospel trumpet solo and was seen on television by more than three billion people.

Thompson can be heard on London Decca recordings with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and Telarc’s Atlanta Symphony releases. He is a Yamaha Performing Artist.