Some have called Jay Ashby “the most overqualified yet underrated musical talent of the last two decades.” Bob Protzman believes that, “Jay Ashby just might be among the most accomplished and successful - yet least known - musicians in jazz.”

We hope that is about to change:

Jay Ashby is more than just another gifted soloist on the jazz trombone. He is a four time GRAMMY-winning producer and multiple GRAMMY-award nominee in various categories, including Arranging and Engineering. He has also been the co-producer, co-engineer, player (trombone and percussion), and even singer on Grammy-winning efforts of jazz luminaries like the Count Basie Orchestra, New York Voices, Paquito D'Rivera, and the venerable Nancy Wilson. His discography includes more than a hundred recordings, ranging in style and genre from Jazz and Pop, to Brazilian and World Music. He has earned an M.A. in composition from Duquesne University, where he also serves as adjunct faculty, and a B.F.A. from Ithaca College in Jazz Studies/Trombone Performance. Ashby has produced, arranged and engineered for & performed, toured, and recorded with many of the most renowned artists in the industry.

In part because of his studies and friendship with trumpet master Claudio Roditi, Ashby developed a strong affinity towards Brazilian music, which resulted in an initial ten year stint as soloist with Astrud Gilberto, and later led to duties arranging, touring and recording with various Brazilian artists including: Tania Maria & Ivan Lins and appearances with the founding fathers of Bossa Nova, Joao Gilberto and Antonio Carlos Jobim.

As a member of the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All-Star Big Band, under the direction of Jon Faddis, Ashby has had the opportunity to play next to some of the most significant figures in jazz today, including Randy Brecker, Slide Hampton and Mulgrew Miller. Other recording/ performance credits include such notables as Stanley Turrentine, Phil Woods, Emily Remler, and Tom Scott.

Jay Ashby has also worked as trombonist, percussionist and arranger with Paul Simon. His continued tenure with Simon includes a number of world tours, the recording of the feature DVD ‘Live from Paris,’ as well as performances on The Today Show, Saturday Night Live, Oprah, on pbs and various other appearances. He performed along side James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, Dianne Reeves, and a host of other artists honoring Paul Simon at the 2007 Gershwin Award Show.

He has also gained recognition as a composer and arranger and has written for projects of many artists including Astrud Gilberto, Louie Bellson, Claudio Roditi, Hendrik Meurkens, Paquito D’Rivera and John Scofield as well as Nancy Wilson and Paul Simon.

Consistent with his musical diversity, Ashby also directs studio operations at Pittsburgh’s Manchester Craftsmens' Guild, an internationally acclaimed multi-faceted arts organization that has made it’s mission to preserve, present and promote jazz.  Jay and his guitarist brother Marty have established MCGJazz, a record label and a state of the art audio and video production company that has since hosted and recorded performances by many of the most respected musicians in jazz, including Joe Williams, Billy Taylor, Dizzy Gillespie and Ray Brown.

Fluent in several languages, Ashby’s musical multi-linguism also includes performances with both the Pittsburgh Symphony and Bavarian folk-jazz cross over group “Unterbiberger Hofmusik,” where he exercises his Yamaha trombones - as an endorser of those instruments - as well as his percussion chops. Ashby has also produced dozens of other projects ranging in style and scope from children’s music to classical, pop and big band jazz.

As an adjunct faculty member at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, his responsibilities have included various jazz ensembles, jazz arranging, jazz history and private trombone instruction. As a clinician, Ashby has worked at colleges, universities and music camps throughout the US, Japan, Central and South America and Europe.

His contributions to music go beyond creative efforts through his continued involvement in the varied community work at MCG and work for philanthropic organizations such as Jazz-Hilft (“Jazz-Helps”) in Germany.