Louie Eckhardt, trumpeter
About Louie
Dr. Louie Eckhardt is a trumpeter, educator, and advocate for new music. He is currently on the faculty at the University of Wyoming, where he teaches applied trumpet and related coursework while directing the university's trumpet studio.
An active orchestral musician, Dr. Eckhardt has performed with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra, Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, Acadiana Symphony Orchestra, Rapides Symphony Orchestra, Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and the Victoria Bach Festival, and formerly served as principal trumpet of the Monroe Symphony Orchestra. He currently serves as principal trumpet of the Hastings Symphony Orchestra and performs with the Cathedral Brass Quintet.
He has also appeared at the Vail International Dance Festival and has presented recitals, masterclasses, and clinics throughout the United States and internationally, including residencies with the Fundación Sinfonía Concertante de Panamá at the Universidad de Panamá, Instituto Nacional de Música de Panamá, and Casa de Cultura de Panamá.
A passionate champion of contemporary music, Dr. Eckhardt is the founder and Artistic Director of the INTEGERS New Music Series and has commissioned and premiered numerous works for trumpet by emerging and established composers. His debut solo recording, Afterlives, scheduled for release in fall 2026, features commissions written over the past decade by Anthony Donofrio, Eris DeJarnett, Douglas Hedwig, and others.
As a Baroque trumpeter committed to historically informed performance, Dr. Eckhardt has performed with La Follia Austin Baroque, American Bach Soloists, Mercury, San Francisco Choral Artists, and Bach Society Houston.
Before joining the University of Wyoming, Dr. Eckhardt served on the faculty of Hastings College in Hastings, Nebraska, where he taught trumpet and music history, conducted the Hastings College Band, and served as chair of the Department of Music and Theatre.
Dr. Eckhardt holds degrees from Hastings College (B.M.), The Pennsylvania State University (M.M.), and Louisiana State University (D.M.A.). His principal teachers include Daniel Schmidt, Langston J. Fitzgerald III, and Brian Shaw, with additional studies under Denny Schneider, Keith Benjamin, John Thiessen, Charles Lirette, and Vance Woolf. He is a member of the Lincoln Musicians' Association, Local 463 of the American Federation of Musicians.