Laurie Frink renowned trumpeter and educator

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The late Laurie Frink was considered the first great woman lead trumpeter in jazz.

In fifth grade, Frink began playing in her school band and continued on throughout college. She attended the University of Nebraska and played trumpet in the Jazz Lab Band. She was the only female member of the band in the early 1970s. Frink went to New York to study jazz and lead trumpet with Jimmy Maxwell, a famous lead trumpeter.

Frink went on to work with jazz greats such as Gerry Mulligan, Benny Goodman, George Russell, Mel Lewis, and more. Frink continued to study jazz trumpet and lead playing from Carmine Caruso. Her diverse career included several Broadway shows, radio and television jingles, movie soundtracks, and guest appearances with artists such as the Talking Heads, David Bowie, and David Sanborn. Her versatility as an artist led to performances with the Manhattan Brass Quintet, the Saturday Brass Quintet, the Gramercy Park Brass, and Concordia.

Prior to her death in 2013, she was a faculty member at the New England Conservatory in Boston.