GLENDALE — A Glendale native who picked up the trumpet in fifth grade came home this week with one of the military’s top jazz ensembles, ABC15 reported.
Musician First Class Thomas Eby, who joined the U.S. Navy Band Commodores in 2014, performed with the 19-member group at a free Veterans Day concert at The Nash jazz club on Roosevelt Street in downtown Phoenix. The Commodores also played two shows at the Scottsdale Waterfront on Nov. 10.
Eby’s musical path started in the Valley. His mother was a music teacher in the Peoria Unified School District. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Music from Elmhurst University and a Master of Music from the University of North Texas before winning a national military audition for the Commodores.
“They were very worried at first; of course, being a musician is a very tough life to go into,” Eby said of his family. “But the stability and quality of life of being a Navy musician is something extra special, and something that she can be really proud of.”
Since joining the band, Eby has performed with jazz greats including Branford Marsalis, Arturo Sandoval, Phil Woods and Wayne Bergeron, according to ABC15.
Sources: ABC15. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: U.S. Navy photo by Chief Musician Stephen W. Hassay / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
