Our Team

Associate Director, Secretary

Dr. Carrie Blosser (she/her) is a trumpet player and educator in the Chicagoland area.

Dr. Blosser teaches private trumpet students of all ages and gives master-classes, lectures, and performances across the country. She maintained a Colorado-based studio of 65 students while collaborating with multiple schools to deliver weekly clinics and also conducted the Rocky Mountain Concert Band for three years. Before starting her doctoral program, Dr. Blosser was the Director of Bands at Cooper, Junior and Senior High School in Cooper, Texas. Her students’ achievements include selection to Pennsylvania, Texas, and Colorado All-State Bands and advancement to the semi-finals of the National Trumpet Competition as Soloists and Ensemble Performers.

Along with her work as a performer and educator, Dr. Blosser currently serves as the co-chair and founding member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee with the International Trumpet Guild (ITG) and is an active member of the International Women’s Brass Conference (IWBC). Carrie is the coordinator of Brass Flexibilities, an IWBC article and video interview series focusing on innovative music careers. She is also an invited mentor for IWBC’s 2021 Mentorship Program and editor for the IWBC newsletter. Dr. Blosser is a clinician for the International Trumpet Guild and judge for both ITG and the National Trumpet Competition. She is published in both the ITG peer-reviewed journal and the IWBC newsletter.

Dr. Blosser received her Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Messiah College, Master of Music in Music Education and Trumpet Performance from the University of Northern Colorado, and Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Colorado-Boulder. Her principal teachers include Dr. William Stowman, Dr. Robert Murray, and Terry Sawchuk.

Associate Director, President

Ashley Killam (she/her) is an international speaker, trumpet player, entrepreneur, and researcher. An advocate for creating change in music, Killam is passionate about building awareness for historically-marginalized voices in music and educating musicians on the importance of creating ethical and sustainable changes to create inclusion in all the music we perform and teach. Killam has presented her lecture series, “Fanfare for the Unheard” to over 130 college and high school music departments in the United States and Canada, featuring new music and providing insight and resources on creating change within individual programs. This resource and Killam’s Catalog of Works for Trumpet by Gender-Marginalized People and/or Black, Indigenous, or Persons of Color became the backbone for the creation of Diversify the Stand.

Along with her work as a speaker and researcher, Killam currently serves as co-chair and founding member of the International Trumpet Guild (ITG) Diversity and Inclusion Committee and on the New Works Committee. Killam was an invited mentor for IWBC’s 2021 Mentorship Program and is also a judge for the National Trumpet Competiton. She is published in both the ITG peer-reviewed journal and the IWBC newsletter.

An accomplished arts administrator, Killam is the Director of Research for Boulanger Initiative, a DC-based non-profit focused on advocating for gender-marginalized composers. Killam’s work with BI involves building the Women & Gender-Marginalized Composers’ Works Database, leading Research Interns, expanding the consulting program, and putting on workshops and residencies.

Killam currently resides in Glendarden, Maryland with her husband and corgi. She holds a Master of Music in Trumpet Performance from the University of New Mexico and a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Vice President

Marcus S. Grant is a composer, trumpet teacher, performer, producer, and content creator based in central Virginia.

Marcus currently serves as Co-Founder and Director of the Trumpeter’s Multitrack Competition and Seminar, professor of Music Theory and Aural Skills at Virginia Commonwealth University, and holds professional affiliations with the National Trumpet Competition and the National Band Association. Marcus has been described by his colleagues and mentors as "an extraordinary musician and pedagogue" (Rex Richardson, 2020), and "a major force in the trumpet world" (Adam Rapa, 2013).

A celebrated and renowned composer and arranger, Marcus' award-winning music has been performed in dozens of conferences and hundreds of recitals across the world and has received a collective total of over 2 million views online. Marcus is a published composer for Rising Tide Music Press and Musicnotes.com.

Marcus received his Bachelor's degree in Instrumental Music Education from Virginia Commonwealth University and his Master's Degree in Trumpet Performance from Indiana University, with an outside area in Arts Administration. His primary trumpet teachers have included Rex Richardson, Kevin Maloney, and Joey Tartell.