We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lindsay Ross. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lindsay below.
Lindsay, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
There’s a quote, “Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.” It really speaks to me. I have many interests, but nothing sets me “on fire” as much as music does. I love to play trumpet. I love collaborating with other musicians. I feel fulfilled by the process of putting a program together and rehearsing it. It’s an incredible feeling. I’m not sure if there’s an exact moment when I decided I wanted to be a musician professionally, but it was around the age of 15.
Lindsay, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I have been playing trumpet for 15 years. All of my female friends were playing flute, but I wanted to play trumpet. (Funny enough, I have a lot of flutist friends now.) As a lifelong asthmatic, playing trumpet hasn’t been without challenges. My lung capacity doubled in my first year of playing and I knew it was meant to be.
I have been freelancing in New York for the past few years and I am on the path to become a professor, I just started my Doctorate this fall. I feel most at home when playing in a brass quintet and in the pit orchestra of musical theatre productions.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
Even some creatives don’t realize how much of ourselves we put into our work. For better or for worse, it can sometimes be difficult to separate ourselves from our art. The upside is that large projects – recitals, shows, etc. – are so satisfying when everything comes together, when all of the preparation and rehearsal pays off. It’s more than just a job, and while it can be frustrating at times I always love it more than I don’t.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
I love playing the trumpet for a variety of reasons. One goal that is partially driving my journey is to be the role model that I needed when I was a kid. I am often the only woman in the room when working with other trumpet players and/or brass players. I really could have benefitted from knowing more women who played trumpet, especially when I was in high school. I recently graduated with my Master of Music degree and now I am working on my Doctorate. The goal here is to be a professor, to be the role model that I needed for future generations.
I’m very thankful that I have been able to perform in several spaces where everyone else in the ensemble is a woman or nonbinary – in other words, no men. (Shout out to EGALitarian Brass, Calliope Brass, and Flora’s Fanfare!) Being in a space where I don’t have to feel the weight of representing my gender has done wonders for my self esteem, and I have noticed that I have more confidence when advocating for myself in spaces where I am the only woman. I love to perform, I am always trying to create more gender inclusive spaces in the brass world. I am so glad to have found community amongst other women who play brass instruments.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.lindsayrosstrumpet.com/
- Instagram: @lindsaytrumpet96
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClnNup8iRa0vyD3BB9g-XBA
Image Credits
@meidayphoto Francesca LaMarca Sacco Photography