About
Isaac Mayhew is a composer and trumpet player based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. A recipient of the Pi Kappa Lambda Composition Award and a winner of the 23rd Annual Eric Stokes Song Contest, his piece Ataraxis 2.3 for bassoon and electronics was featured at the 2017 International Double Reeds Society conference. His pieces have been performed at venues around the country including the Draw Art Gallery in Appleton, Wisconsin, Studio Z in Saint Paul, and the McIntosh Theatre in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Isaac's music has been programmed by a variety of performers including soloists Nikki Melville, Jacob Fernandez, Derrick Hahn, Alek Wasserman, and Evie Werger as well as ensembles such as the Lawrence University Symphonic Band, the Liquid Jungle Quintet, the Zenith Saxophone Quartet, and Front Porch. His music can be heard on the album “why can’t the world be poetic” released by himself and Evie Werger in 2019, as well as on the albums "Sputter (SHRINKS THE) Box (2020) and "Convergence" (2021). Isaac strives to create music that has the capability to engage a wide range of audiences while maintaining a high level of artistic integrity. He draws influence and inspiration from the works of a great many composers such as Aaron Copland, Igor Stravinsky, Alan Hovhaness, and David Maslanka.
Isaac also works to promote new music as a performer. He was a founding member of the Liquid Jungle Quintet, an ensemble dedicated to the advancement of new music for brass quintet. The group worked with members of Mnozil Brass, the Atlantic Brass Quintet, Lakeshore Rush, and members of the chamber collective Decoda, performing around the Midwest and at the Atlantic Brass Quintet Summer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. In 2020, he released his first solo album, “Walking Songs,” a compilation of miniatures for trumpet by Twin Cities composers in commemoration of their personal experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Isaac holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music Composition from Lawrence University, where he studied primarily from Asha Srinivasan, Joanne Metcalf, and Benjamin Klein. He received additional instruction from Andrew Seager Cole, Marcos Balter, Sam Pluta, Jeff Kurtenacker, and Joel Puckett. Isaac is a member of the American Composer's Forum, the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), and the Millennium Composers Initiative.