Gullett

Derek Gullett was appointed principal trombonist of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra in the spring of 2025 by music director Jun Märkl. He began performing with the group in June 2025.

Originally from Uniontown, Ohio, Derek studied with James Albrecht, principal trombonist of the Reno Philharmonic, and Richard Stout, second trombonist of the Cleveland Orchestra, in his earlier years. He later enrolled at the Curtis Institute of Music as the Edwin B. Garrigues fellow to further his studies with Nitzan Haroz and Matthew Vaughn, principal and co-principal trombonists of the Philadelphia Orchestra, respectively. Later, he began supplementary studies on bass trombone with Blair Bollinger, bass trombonist of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Partway into his time at Curtis, he started to perform with the Philadelphia Orchestra on both tenor and bass trombone and can be heard on numerous recording projects of theirs. As a student, he spent his summers as a trombone fellow with the National Repertory Orchestra and a trombone and euphonium fellow with the Music Academy of the West, where he studied with Mark Lawrence, former principal trombonist of the San Francisco Symphony, and Weston Sprott, second trombonist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Additional studies with Joseph Alessi, principal trombonist of the New York Philharmonic and professor of trombone at the Juilliard School, were also extremely influential in his development. Some of his other engagements include appearances at the Bravo! Vail Music Festival on a program presented by the New York Philharmonic as well as serving as the solo trombonist of the Breckenridge International Festival of the Arts Chamber Orchestra. In the summer of 2023, he served as the principal trombonist and bass trumpeter of the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra in Lucerne, Switzerland. He has also had the honor of appearing as guest principal trombonist with the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Ottawa, Ontario, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the Erie Philharmonic. During the 2025 winter season, Derek served as acting second trombonist of the Sarasota Opera Orchestra.

Over the course of his career thus far, Derek has had the opportunity to tour the world with many ensembles and has performed in coveted halls such as Marian Anderson Hall, Severance Hall, KKL Luzern, Musikverein Wien, Hilbert Circle Theatre, David Geffen Hall, and Carnegie Hall. He has also had the pleasure of collaborating with world-renowned conductors including Franz Welser-Möst, Michael Tilson-Thomas, Osmo Vänskä, Marin Alsop, JoAnn Falletta, Jun Märkl, John Williams, Rafael Payare, Hannu Lintu, and Yannick Nezet-Seguin. 

In addition to being a passionate performer, Derek is equally at home in a teaching environment. He has served as the Instructor of Brass at Girard College in Philadelphia and maintains a studio of brass musicians of all ages and skill levels. Many of his students have seen success in their musical endeavors through earning degrees in music and being appointed in professional ensembles.

Outside of performing and teaching, Derek also takes some time to compose and arrange music of his own. He has premiered numerous original works of his, most notably a trombone quartet, pieces for solo brass, and various other works for chamber brass ensemble.

Derek is a performing artist for the Edwards Instrument Company and Greg Black Mouthpieces.