Irvin Mayfield

The New York Times has recognized "[Irvin] Mayfield's development from child prodigy - he began playing the trumpet at age nine to one of the city's most ambitious musical entrepreneurs." Born in the Crescent City in 1977, Irvin Mayfield is the latest in an illustrious line of New Orleans trumpeters and has quickly established himself as one of the most decorated jazz musicians of his generation. He co-founded the New Orleans-flavored Latin jazz band Los Hombres Calientes with percussionist Bill Summers, and also leads his own band - the Irvin Mayfield Quintet - in addition to the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, which he serves as Founder and Artistic Director. Mr. Mayfield also served as Artist-in-Residence at Dillard University from 1995-2005, founding the Institute of Jazz Culture at Dillard in 2003. In September 2003, Mr. Mayfield was unanimously appointed to the post of Cultural Ambassador for the City of New Orleans by the United States Senate, the United States House of Representatives, the Governor's Office of the State of Louisiana, the Louisiana State House of Representatives, the Louisiana State Senate, the City of New Orleans, the New Orleans City Council and the New Orleans Aviation Board - establishing himself as a musician who embodies and represents the great New Orleans jazz legacy, as well as an international jazz and cultural spokesperson. In addition, Mr. Mayfield has accepted Artist-in-Residence appointments to both the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA), Riverside Christ Church Cathedral, New Orleans and Tulane University. In the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Mr. Mayfield has dedicated himself to the ongoing efforts to rebuild and revitalize New Orleans' rich cultural heritage. He is helping lead several committees dedicated to bringing New Orleans back. Among those boards in which Mr. Mayfield is a member are: The Louisiana Rebirth Advisory Board; The Bring New Orleans Back Commission Cultural Sub-Committee; and The Hyatt New Orleans District Rebirth Advisory Board. Mr. Mayfield has also participated in several hurricane-related fundraisers, including the critically-acclaimed Higher Ground benefit concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, where Mr. Mayfield offered an emotional performance of Just a Closer Walk with Thee that was dedicated to his father, who sadly was identified as a drowning victim of the flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. As a Basin Street Records artist, Mr. Mayfield has released 10 albums, and has appeared on or produced dozens of other records. His latest recording, released in 2005, is Los Hombres Calientes' Volume 5: Carnival was recently nominated for Billboard Latin Jazz Album of the Year.