Dr. Paul Brewer, Associate Professor and Director of Instrumental Music at Aquinas
College holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Music Composition and Jazz Pedagogy from
the University of Northern Colorado. Dr. Brewer also holds a Bachelors and a Masters
degree in Music Education from the University of Central Oklahoma. In addition to
his teaching duties, Dr. Brewer has been active as a professional trombonist since
1970. While jazz is his main musical endeavor, Dr. Brewer has also played in a variety
of musical ensembles including everything from orchestral groups to rock and roll
bands. His many years as a trombonist in musical theater productions also gave Dr.
Brewer the opportunity to work with celebrities such as Mickey Rooney, Ann Miller,
Richard Harris, Robert Goulet, and many others.
As a jazz performer Dr. Brewer has performed with such greats as J.J. Johnson, Max
Roach, Urbie Green, Mel Torme, Randy Brecker, and many others. Dr. Brewer also plays
the jazz trombone chair in the Grand Rapids Jazz Orchestra and the lead trombone chair
in the Gull Lake Jazz Orchestra in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Dr. Brewer and his wife, Dr.
Robin Connell, also perform together in the duo to quintet format where they both
play and sing together. They can be heard together on Robin's CDs, Travellin and A
Beautiful Friendship and on their collaborative CD, Eddie's Here.
Among his many contributions to the field of jazz education, Dr. Brewer has been chosen
three times to lecture at the prestigious International Association for Jazz Education
annual conference (twice in New York City and once in Toronto). Dr. Brewer is also
the author of a method book titled, The Jazz Trombone Soloist - Practice regimens
for the development of interpretation and improvisation in jazz (2016). Dr. Brewer
is also called upon each year to adjudicate jazz festivals and to perform as a guest
soloist on public school jazz band concerts. Along with his tenure at Aquinas College,
Dr. Brewer was also on the jazz faculty for twenty-two summers (1990 - 2011) at the
Interlochen Arts Camp held each summer in Interlochen, Michigan.
At Interlochen, Dr. Brewer taught many wonderful students from all over the world
among them, five-time Grammy Award winner Norah Jones and Dr. Brewer's son, Matt
Brewer, an upright and electric bassist currently performing with the great drummer/composer
and Academy Award nominee, Antonio Sanchez.
At Aquinas College Dr. Brewer is the Director of Bands, both concert and jazz. Dr.
Breweralso teaches instrumental conducting, instrumentation and orchestration, jazz
improvisation, studio trombone, History of Popular Music, jazz piano applications
and techniques, band and orchestra literature and interpretation and Modern Analytical
Techniques (Music after 1900). Additionally, Dr. Brewer is the Director of the Aquinas
College Jazz Camp that takes place every June.
