Brad Gunson

Brad Gunson plays with many bands both as a leader and a sideman under a spectrum of circumstances. He leads a rock/jazz/funk/electric/brass band called Gunson Roses which plays his music and popular songs. His jazz group, The Beautiful Mess, plays venues all over NYC. His large band, called The Big Gun Show, features him in front of a full cast of talented players and featured guests playing his music and more popular songs with grandiose arrangements. He also collaborates with musicians from the East Coast and abroad. His compositions and arrangements have been played by many fine bands around the world. He has made several records as a leader, co-leader, and sideman. Visit the music page to listen to some of the recordings made by some of his creative groups.
He is best known as a trombone and guitar player, but he has also been caught singing and playing music with many different instruments regardless of style, age, race, categories, labels, genres, and the blurry lines which divide us all. As a composer, he writes new music of his own. As an arranger, he likes to ruin music by more popular artists.
He is a musician from the Maryland suburbs north of Washington DC, south of Baltimore, and west of Annapolis. The fourth son of the eight children of a tradesman has always had a love for the creative. He currently lives, performs, teaches, and studies in New York City, though he is fortunate enough to have played music with some incredible people both in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. He has taught guitar and trombone as faculty at New York University and throughout the Mid Atlantic at music stores, public and private schools, and within his own studio.
Over the past ten years Brad has been able to share, perform, learn, teach, record, and discuss music with a lot of great people and bands. Some of these include John Scofield, Wayne Krantz, Lenny Pickett, George Garzone, Memo Acevedo, Chris Potter, Rich Shemaria, Mark Patterson, Brian Lynch, Jim McFalls, Josh Davis, Kenny Werner, Frank Russo, Dave Ballou, Tim Murphy, Brad Shepik, Robert Dick, Ben Frock, Russell Kirk, Dave Schroeder, Eric Trudel, Dave Spivey, Rodrigo Recabarren, Jackie Coleman, Edwin Vasquez, Jim Snidero, Gary Thomas, Mike Gambone, Rod Hamilton, Dan Marcellus, Kevin Rose, Bob Brooks, Nathan Ellman-Bell, Jon Burkholz, Sean Anthony, Adam Hopkins, Josh Schwartzman, Jon Rogerson, Geoff Rohrbach, Take Toriyama, Vardan Ovesapian, Mike Lollis, Eze Jackson, Matt Jones, John Baldwin, Matt Dickey, Tom Harold, Jim Hanna, Takehiro Shimizu, James Clark, Yasmine Iliya, Todd Marcus, Paul Safy Jr., Sandy Asirvatham, Jason Prover, Aaron Rockers, Nick Myers, Deen Anbar, Evan Crane, Jon Lijoi, The Bridge, Jimmies Chicken Shack, The Kelly Bell Band, Fools and Horses, The Sentimental Journey Orchestra, Euphonius Phunk, The Players, The Great Expectations Band, The Fabulous Fantoms, The Sandy Dayton Orchestra, The Helmut Licht Big Band, The Whit Williams Big Band, The Eubie Blake Jazz Orchestra, Subatomic Particles, Rumba Club, the Recessionals Jazz Band, Night of the Living Funk, and more.
He graduated from Arundel High School in Anne Arundel County Maryland, earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz and Commercial Music Performance from Towson University in Northern Baltimore, Maryland, and a Masters of Music Degree in Jazz Studies from New York University in New York City.

“Gunson Roses is the best band name!”
-John Scofield

“Don’t you think people will confuse Gunson Roses with that other band...?
-Dr. David Schroeder
Director of Jazz Studies
New York University

“I'd put some money on his big-band antics being worth the trip”
-The Baltimore City Paper