National Trombone Players Day

National Trombone Players Day is usually celebrated on April 1st every year since 2010.

It is impossible to let International Trombone Week finish without welcoming our new lead trombonist, Technical Sgt. Matthew Hettwer, to the Airmen of Note!

Hettwer was born in Dallas, Oregon, grew up in Salem, Oregon. Hettwer started learning music at the age of 5 when he studied piano with his mother. In 5th grade, when it was time to choose any instrument to play in the school band, Hettwer chose the trombone.

Degree Sgt. Hettwer gets a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from Portland State University and a Master of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of Oregon. He is a junior to Bob McChesney, John Moak, Stan Bock, Steve Owen, and George Colligan.

In addition to being a skilled trombonist, Sgt. Hettwer was a talented inventor. He created an instrument called the Electric Slide Instrument (ESI), which he built a working prototype of right before moving on to basic training. Regarding the effort, Sgt. Hettwer said, “I've always wanted a way to control the synthesizer in a language I understand as a trombonist, but nobody seems to be making something like this. I thought that if I wanted to play a game, I would have to do it myself. I'm not sure about the traction in the world of wind synthesis but it was a good experience to me, learning how to program and I came up with an original product that I'm happy with heart. "

Hettwer gives us a lot of experience, education, talent and ingenuity. We're working on a couple of recording projects and we're looking forward to seeing the band return to the community to showcase this amazing artist and most importantly for all of you to watch and play! Who knows? You'll probably enjoy a performance featuring Sgt. Matt Hettwer on ESI with Airmen of Note!