Mr. Jonah Kappraff
Jonah Kappraff is a trumpet player and private instructor based in Baltimore, MD. After training at the Oberlin Conservatory and Boston University, Jonah spent a decade freelancing in Boston before relocating to central Pennsylvania in 2015. In Boston, Jonah was a regular member of the Lexington Symphony, Marsh Chapel Collegium Musicum and the avant-garde Boston Modern Brass Quintet, and performed frequently with the Boston Ballet, Boston Pops, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Monadnock Music Festival, and Odyssey Opera. In Pennsylvania, Jonah performed with the Williamsport Symphony, York and Harrisburg Symphonies, Pennsylvania Chamber Orchestra and the Penn’s Woods Music Festival. Additionally, he was featured as a guest soloist with the Penn Central Wind Band and in performances of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto no. 2 with the Allegretto Chamber Orchestra and the Nantucket Baroque Festival. Jonah is principal trumpet with the Boston-based Ambient Orchestra (dir. Evan Ziporyn), a group with whom he has recorded and toured nationally and internationally.
Jonah performs regularly with the orchestra of Bach in Baltimore, the Alexandria and York Symphonies, and the Peacherine Ragtime Society Orchestra. He is also principal trumpet of the Maryland Winds. Alongside freelancing from Philadelphia through Washington D.C., Jonah maintains a robust private studio serving students from age 8 to 80, mentoring trumpeters who frequently compete in state and national competitions and honors ensembles. Additionally, he holds the position of lecturer in music at Stevenson University and the Peabody Institute and has been on the faculty of the Peabody Preparatory division since 2020.
As a recitalist and clinician, Jonah has presented solo recitals and masterclasses at Keene State College, MIT, Harvard University, Bucknell University, and Lycoming College. His primary trumpet teachers include Roy Poper, Terry Everson, Steve Emery and Andrew Balio.
