Alex Jokipii has been Principal Trumpet with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra since 1998. A native of Escanaba, Michigan, Alex’s earliest training began at age of 11 on his mother’s high school band trumpet. He began advanced musical studies at Western Michigan University, majoring in trumpet and music education. As part of his undergraduate curriculum Alex enrolled for one year at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Finland, where he studied with Timofei Dokschitzer, the celebrated Principal Trumpet of the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra. After returning home, Jokipii completed his bachelor’s degree in music education at WMU, earned a Master of Music in trumpet performance from The Juilliard School, and began to pursue his Doctor of Musical Arts. Prior to being awarded his DMA, he won the position of Principal Trumpet with the Charleston (South Carolina) Symphony Orchestra, also serving on the performance faculty of Charleston Southern University as adjunct professor of trumpet. Jokipii has appeared numerous times as a soloist with the Buffalo Philharmonic, Ars Nova Chamber Musicians, Amherst Symphony, and the SUNY Fredonia Wind Ensemble. In November 2017, he performed the world premiere of Finnish composer Jaakko Kuusisto’s Trumpet Concerto, composed for him and recorded by the BPO in May of 2018. Additionally, Jokipii has performed as a guest Principal Trumpet with the Dallas Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, and the Aspen Festival Orchestra, and has performed with the New York Philharmonic, the Helsinki Philharmonic, the Savannah Symphony, and the Rochester Philharmonic. He teaches privately, and is also on the performance faculty at SUNY Fredonia.