Donna Parkes


Australian trombonist Donna Parkes has been principal trombone of the Louisville Orchestra since 2008 and has been principal trombone of the Colorado Music Festival since 2009. She is on faculty at the University of Louisville and Bellarmine University. Donna has played previous seasons with the San Francisco Symphony and the Utah Symphony, and was a member of the Virginia Symphony from 2001-2007 and of the New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas. She has performed with many orchestras including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the London Symphony, National Symphony, Sydney Symphony, and the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Donna has appeared at the Arizona Musicfest, the Marlboro Festival, and the Grand Tetons Festival, and in 2016 toured with the Australian World Orchestra. Solo competition successes include winning the Australian National Trombone Competition and the Brisbane International Brass Competition; she was a finalist in the Jeju Brass Competition in Korea. She has appeared as a soloist or clinician at the International Women’s Brass Conference, International Trombone Festival and the Melbourne International Festival of Brass and was a 2019 recipient of the Ford Musician Award for Excellence in community service.