Stephen Menotti

Stephen Menotti, born in Pennsylvania, grew up in a vibrant musical community, starting piano and later trombone at the age of eight. Drawn to a variety of musical genres, he developed a strong affinity for jazz alongside his orchestral training. During his undergraduate studies at Oberlin Conservatory, he immersed himself in contemporary music, joining the new music ensemble, collaborating with composition students and improvisers, and focusing increasingly on modern repertoire. The challenges unique to contemporary music quickly became central to his artistic development. “For me, the most inspiring or healthy challenge we face in performing contemporary repertoire is the need to adapt to a variety of musical styles and unique performance situations.”

After two years as a freelancer in New York, performing regularly with the International Contemporary Ensemble and The Knights Chamber Orchestra, Stephen moved to Europe to study contemporary trombone with Mike Svoboda at the Hochschule für Musik in Basel. Encouraged by mentors and colleagues from the Lucerne Festival Academy, this step deepened his engagement with new music and led to his first collaboration with Studio Musikfabrik in 2009.

He has since appeared as a soloist with the Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the SWR Orchestra at Donaueschinger Musiktage, Basel Sinfonietta, Klangforum Wien, and Ensemble Modern. His performances span major festivals such as the Lucerne Festival, Warsaw Autumn, and the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. In addition, he has taken part in staged productions of Karlheinz Stockhausen’s operas with the Birmingham Opera Company, Musica Viva Munich, and Theater Basel.

One particularly formative experience was performing Stockhausen’s BASSETSU-Trio for trumpet, basset horn, and trombone with Marco Blaauw and Fie Schouten. “Playing chamber music of this nature from memory requires immense trust between colleagues, and the result can be so exceptional and enriching that it has inspired me for years since.” This commitment to deep musical collaboration not only with performers but also with composers has remained a guiding force in his career. “Each of us can develop a great catalogue of experimental or unconventional sounds on our instruments, but it is through the collaboration with composers and a further exploration of our instrument’s capabilities as a team that continues to inspire me and can often lead to real discoveries.”

Stephen lives in Basel, where he is a member of Collegium Novum Zürich and principal trombonist of the Basel Sinfonietta. Since 2024 he is a member of Ensemble Musikfabrik.