HSO Cornet and Assistant Principal Trumpet since 2017, and Acting Principal Trumpet for the 2023-24 season, John has performed as soloist with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Carolyn Kuan, Gerard Schwarz and Wayne du Maine. He has appeared in Europe, Asia, Canada, Latin America and the U.S. as soloist and chamber musician, and under the batons of Riccardo Muti, Lorin Maazel, Sir Colin Davis, Charles Dutoit, Zubin Mehta, Krzysztof Penderecki, Alan Gilbert and Mstislav Rostropovich. In addition to his position with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, John is principal trumpet with the Waterbury Symphony. Prior to joining the HSO, he was the principal trumpet of the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra for twenty-two years, and the Queens Symphony (NYC) for twenty-eight years. 

John has performed frequently with the New York Philharmonic, various Broadway shows and Hartford Stage. He has appeared with the Vienna Symphony, L’Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Atlanta, American, San Francisco and San Jose Symphonies, the Bermuda Philharmonic and the New Hampshire Music Festival. 

For over 20 years John was a member of the Grammy Award winning Chestnut Brass Company, and performed on several state department sponsored tours to Central America.  As a soloist, his performances have included Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto No. 2”, Copland’s “Quiet City”, Hailstork’s “Four Hymns for Trumpet and Orchestra” and concertos by Haydn, Hummel, Shostakovich, Tomasi, Bennett and Arutunian.

While living and studying in Vienna, John performed several trumpet and organ recitals at Vienna’s historic Karlskirche. Subsequently he joined the New York Harlem Opera Orchestra, and toured throughout Germany, Italy, France and Spain in Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess”.

He has performed on many classical, chamber, contemporary and pop music recordings. John has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, on their recordings of Mahler’s Second and Sixth Symphonies under Lorin Maazel, and several works of Handel, Bach and Buxtehude (on the historical “baroque” trumpet) including “Messiah”, “Magnificat” and “B-Minor Mass”. John was the trumpet soloist on Bill Moyers & Joseph Campbell’s series for PBS The Power of Myth, and can been heard on several film soundtracks including S.W.A.T., Sphere, Final Fantasy, Highway, and Titus. Additionally he has performed with La Monte Young’s Second Dream Ensemble, and recorded with the New York Tibetan Singing Bowl Ensemble on shofar and didjeridu. 

Dr. Thomas teaches trumpet and jazz studies at the Hartt School. Previously he was the Artist/Teacher of Classical Trumpet at the University of Rhode Island, Trumpet and Brass Instructor at Bard College, visiting Assistant Professor of Music at Ithaca College, and has been a juror at the prestigious Cheju International Brass Competition in South Korea.