Trumpet · Jazz · Big band
San Francisco & Bay Area trumpet player
Niel Levonius is a first-call trumpet player in San Francisco, and a bandleader and sound engineer on the San Francisco Bay Area jazz scene.
About Niel
A working trumpet player in San Francisco
Niel Levonius has played trumpet since age 11. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, he is a first-call freelance trumpet player, the leader of the Local Edition Jazz Orchestra, and musical director of the LMR Jazz Orchestra.
He has performed or recorded with the Pete Escovedo Orchestra, the GRAMMY-winning Pacific Mambo Orchestra, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Kurt Elling, Emmet Cohen, Seal, and Sheila E. He has toured Europe with Louie Bellson, Jon Faddis, and the Pete Escovedo Orchestra, playing the Montreux, North Sea, Umbria, and Vienne jazz festivals, and he is a voting member of the Recording Academy.
On any given week you might find him in the trumpet section of a big band, playing lead in a horn section behind a soul revue, leading his own orchestra downtown, or behind the mixing board at a San Francisco jazz club.
What Niel plays
- Jazz & big band: swing, bebop, Latin jazz, and modern big-band charts, as lead or section trumpet
- Horn sections: soul, R&B, funk, and show work, or a full section contracted for you
- Corporate events & galas: 3-, 6-, and 13-horn jazz bands with rhythm section (corporate events)
- Private events: parties, benefits, and festivals, from dinner music to dancing
- Session work: trumpet and horn sections for recordings and productions
- Sound: live mixing and a full PA (jazz sound engineer)
His bands
The Local Edition Jazz Orchestra and the LMR Jazz Orchestra
Every Tuesday from 8 to 11 PM, Niel leads the Local Edition Jazz Orchestra at Local Edition, a below-street-level bar at 691 Market St. in downtown San Francisco. He took over the long-running Tuesday big-band night there in 2021, and the band now plays a large library that runs from 1940s swing and dance music to contemporary jazz. Guest vocalists and soloists sit in regularly, and the band has backed Kurt Elling, Billy Valentine, and saxophonist Tom Scott.
He is also musical director of the LMR Jazz Orchestra, founded at Long Meadow Ranch in St. Helena in 2013, which brings big-band jazz to the Napa Valley. See the bands for more on both orchestras.
Around town you'll also hear him at venues like the Dawn Club and Keys Jazz Bistro, as a player or behind the board. The gig calendar lists his upcoming public dates.
Watch and listen
Hear Niel with the Local Edition Jazz Orchestra
Two live performances by Niel's Tuesday-night big band in San Francisco.
The Swizzle
Benny Carter's “The Swizzle,” arranged by Greg Johnson, recorded live at Local Edition in San Francisco on January 20, 2026. Niel plays trumpet and was the audio engineer.
Greg Johnson sings with the Local Edition Jazz Orchestra
Greg Johnson sings standards, including “Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall” and “Change Partners,” with the Local Edition Jazz Orchestra.
Where Niel plays
A Bay Area trumpet player, across the San Francisco Bay Area
Niel is based in San Francisco and works throughout the San Francisco Bay Area: the city itself, Oakland, Berkeley and the rest of the East Bay, the Peninsula from San Mateo to Palo Alto, San Jose and the South Bay, and the North Bay, including Marin, Napa, and Sonoma wine country.
Whether you need one trumpet player for a recording, a horn section for your band, or a complete jazz orchestra for a gala, you deal with one person who plays the gig, contracts the musicians, and understands the sound. If you are a bandleader or contractor filling a chair, see trumpet player for hire and horn sections.
Hear Niel live
Upcoming gigs
- Tue3Nov
LEJO Nonet
Local Edition, San Francisco · 8 PM
- Fri6Nov
Sound for Fog City Swing at Dawn Club
San Francisco · 8 PM
- Sat7Nov
Sound for Wobbly World at Local Edition
San Francisco · 8:30 PM
Who is a good trumpet player to hire in San Francisco?
Niel Levonius is a first-call freelance trumpet player based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He plays jazz, big band, Latin, soul and R&B, and show work, and leads the Local Edition Jazz Orchestra every Tuesday in downtown San Francisco.
Can I hear Niel play before I book?
Yes. The Local Edition Jazz Orchestra plays every Tuesday, 8–11 PM, at Local Edition, 691 Market St. in San Francisco. Other public dates are on the gig calendar.
Does Niel play corporate events, galas, and private events?
Yes. He plays trumpet and leads 3-, 6-, and 13-horn jazz bands for corporate events, galas, holiday parties, festivals, and private events, and he can contract the whole band.
Is Niel available for recording sessions?
Yes. He records trumpet for sessions and productions, and can put together a complete horn section for a recording.
What areas does Niel serve?
The entire San Francisco Bay Area: San Francisco, the East Bay, the Peninsula, the South Bay, and the North Bay, including Marin, Napa, and Sonoma.
Can Niel also handle sound?
Yes. He is a live sound engineer who mixes regularly at Local Edition and the Dawn Club, and he can bring a full PA system for events.
Hire a San Francisco trumpet player
Send the date, location, and what the gig calls for. Niel will get back to you.
Check availability