Michael Sachs

Praised by critics for exemplifying “how brass playing can be at once heroic and lyrical” (Cleveland Plain Dealer), Cleveland Orchestra Principal Trumpet Michael Sachs is recognized internationally as a leading soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, teacher, author, and clinician. He is the longest-serving principal trumpet in Cleveland Orchestra history, and recently received the International Trumpet Guild’s highest honor, the ITG Honorary Award, given annually to individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the art of trumpet playing. 

Highlights of Mr. Sachs’s many solo appearances with the Cleveland Orchestra include the world premieres of John Williams’s Concerto for Trumpet and Wynton Marsalis’s Concerto for Trumpet—both written for and dedicated to Mr. Sachs—as well as Michael Hersch’s Night Pieces for Trumpet and Orchestra and Matthias Pintscher’s Chute d’Etoiles. In addition, he was the featured soloist for the U.S. premiere of Hans Werner Henze’s Requiem. Other solo appearances include those with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.  

From 1988 until 2023, Michael Sachs served as chair of the brass division and head of the trumpet department at the Cleveland Institute of Music. He has also taught at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. He has served on served on the faculty of leading summer festivals—including Aspen Music Festival, National Brass Symposium, National Orchestral Institute, Summer Brass Institute, and Summit Brass—and regularly presents master classes and workshops throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia.   

Mr. Sachs is the author of numerous publications with the International Music Company, Theodore Presser, and Carl Fischer Music. From 2008 to 2014, he served as editor of the “Inside the Orchestra Section” column for International Trumpet Guild Journal. Committed to the evolution of quality equipment, Mr. Sachs was extensively involved in the acoustic design and play-testing for Bach Stradivarius trumpets.   

Originally from Santa Monica, California, Mr. Sachs attended the University of California at Los Angeles, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history before continuing studies at the Juilliard School. His former teachers include Ziggy Elman, Mark Gould, Anthony Plog, and James Stamp. Prior to joining the Cleveland Orchestra, Michael Sachs was a member of the Houston Symphony Orchestra.  

Mr. Sachs joins the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music in 2024.