COMMUNITY & CULTURE
RISING STARS IN MUSIC
Dawn Weber
St. Louis-based Dawn Weber is a world-class trumpeter
and prolific songwriter whose high-energy stage presence
mesmerizes. Her style ranges from jazz, rock, R&B, swing
and salsa, to hip-hop and funk. She currently leads her own
bands, Electro Funk Assemble, Dawn: Unplugged, and
Naked Rock Fight. She shared her journey with Gazelle.
I grew up in a tiny farm town in Iowa on the border of
Wisconsin and Minnesota. When I was in the fifth grade,
students were asked to pick out instruments to start in
beginning band. I thought I was going to play the flute, but
when I picked it up, I couldn’t even make a sound.
When they put a trumpet in my hand and I blew through
it, out came this big giant note that came out so easy. I was
asked to try to play more, and the notes kept coming out.
I guess it was the trumpet that actually picked me! Once I
started playing it, I couldn’t put it down. I was one of those
kids that practiced my instrument every day for hours
and enjoyed it. Even on Christmas Day, after opening my
presents, I would tell my family that I had to go and practice
my trumpet. My family thought I was weird. I guess I was,
but I think that is how most professional musicians were as
kids. There was this striving for perfection, and it was never
good enough, so I worked my tail off.
By the time I was in eighth grade, I knew that I wanted to
be a professional trumpet player. I was watching the movie
Star W and the music caught my attention. I heard the
ars
trumpets in the underscoring playing this amazing music,
and it hit me that those trumpet players were getting paid
to play that awesome music for that movie. That is when I
knew I wanted to play professionally.
But I knew I wasn’t going to get very far in my small
home town in the middle of farm county USA. I found
a performing arts high school, North Carolina School
of the Arts, and hopped on a Greyhound bus when I
was 16. I arrived in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and
started my training. I continued my intense training at The
Cleveland Institute of Music. I was being groomed to be
an orchestral player, but I was also playing in rock bands,
Latin bands, and taking jazz lessons. This gave me training
and experience in other genres.
After graduating, I moved to St. Louis and broke into the
scene. I started to sub with the St. Louis Symphony, and
also started playing with the group, Vargas Swing. On a
dare, I sang a song with the group and then began to sing
more and more. I started to write songs and brought them
to the group. Before I knew it, I was a singer/songwriter/
front personality/horn player.
29
I guess it goes to show that you never know where life
is going to take you, and even though you think you
know what you are going to do, you might end up doing
something else. I had no idea that I would become a singer
and songwriter as well. I did always know that I wanted to
be a professional musician, and I shed lots of blood, sweat
and tears to get there. I was put here on this earth to make
people happy with my music. That is always my goal.
For upcoming shows featuring Dawn, visit her website
at dawnweber.com.
SAVVY I SOPHISTICATED I SASSY