Graham Mynatt ’20, ’21 honed his skills while studying music at the University of Central Arkansas and is further elevating his craft as the Bass Trombone Fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami, Florida.
“My parents are both artists. They’re glass blowers, so I was raised in a glass shop listening to music playing while I was in a playpen. So, it started as a passion for art. It’s just my art wasn’t the visual kind. It’s the audible kind,” Mynatt said.
As he progressed through his early education, playing the trombone in middle school sparked his interest. Still, he credits junior high school as the pivotal point when he started thinking of music as a career he wanted to pursue.
Going to UCA broadened the scope of Mynatt’s goals. He credits his professors, groups within UCA’s music community and artistic experiences with furthering his musical horizons.
“I got into UCA and started the music program there and just had some really great teachers,” he said. “Having Joseph Alessi come and work with us and perform with us and encourage me to audition at Julliard made me think, ‘Maybe I can go even further.’”
After finishing his graduate certificate in music at UCA, Mynatt attended Indiana University (IU) and studied with bass trombonist Denson Paul Pollard from New York’s Metropolitan Opera.
“UCA prepared me well for IU,” he said. “I got my artist diploma and then was appointed associate instructor for trombone, so I got to do the things I enjoy most: teaching and working with trombones.”
While at IU, he auditioned for the New World Symphony, a prestigious academy offering competitive scholarships for graduates worldwide to refine their skills in music and leadership.
“I just wanted to get on the sub-list to try to perform with them, and I really didn’t think much of it,” Mynatt said. “I received an email asking me to come to New World in January 2024. It was very out of the blue. I was very anxious to accept because I was worried they would offer it to someone else.”
For Mynatt, it is a dream he has never realized until now.
“I got this crazy opportunity and then remembered at UCA, my friends and I had conversations like, ‘What if one of us ever had a chance at New World?’ And having the opportunity to go, fulfills an unspoken dream,” he said.