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Marine Band Members
Trumpet & Cornet
Master Gunnery Sgt. Susan Rider

Trumpet and Cornet Player Master Gunnery Sgt. Susan Rider of Cedar Falls, Iowa, joined “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band in July 1997.

Master Gunnery Sgt. Rider began her musical instruction at age 10. Upon graduating in 1985 from Northern University High School in Cedar Falls, she earned a bachelor’s degree in music in 1989 from the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) in Cedar Falls. She continued her studies at Indiana University (IU) in Bloomington, where in 1991 she earned a master’s degree in music and in 2000 earned a doctorate of music in brass pedagogy. Her trumpet instructors were Keith Johnson and Randy Grabowski of the UNI, and Charles Gorham and Edmund Cord of IU.

Prior to joining “The President’s Own,” Master Gunnery Sgt. Rider performed with the Midland/Odessa Symphony in Texas, the Owensboro Symphony in Kentucky, and the Evansville Philharmonic and Columbus Indiana Philharmonic in Indiana. She also played in the Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra in Charleston, S.C., and was a substitute with the New World Symphony in Miami. In addition to performing, she also taught studio trumpet in Odessa and at Purdue University in Indiana, and was an associate instructor at IU for the brass and music education departments.

Master Gunnery Sgt. Rider has appeared as a Marine Band guest soloist with various groups including the Louisville Male High School Symphonic Band from Kentucky in 2001, and the Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony in 2005, both at the Midwest Clinic in Chicago. She has performed with Monarch Brass seven times, including appearances at the Midwest Clinic and International Trombone Festival in 2016, the 2015 International Trumpet Guild Conference, and four times at the International Women’s Brass Conference since 2010. In addition to her musical duties, Master Gunnery Sgt. Rider has served as a Tour Coordinator since 2003, advancing and serving as on-site manager during the band’s annual concert tour.