Will Leathers – Biography

Born: January 27, 2001 | Hometown: Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

Will Leathers displayed an extraordinary passion for music from an early age. At just three and a half years old, he began persistently asking his mother for piano lessons, a request that stemmed from his fascination with the animated character Oscar the Octopus, a pianist featured in one of his favourite cartoons. Unbeknownst to his mother at the time, Will is a multi-sensory synesthete, experiencing sound in a profoundly unique way. For him, every sound stimulates multiple senses—he hears, sees colours, feels tactile sensations, and even associates sounds with tastes and scents. Watching Oscar play the piano, Will was captivated by the vivid colours he perceived through sound and was determined to recreate them himself.

Despite initial reluctance from music programs to accept a student so young, Will’s persistence paid off. At age four, after demonstrating exceptional reading skills, he was given a trial period at a music academy. Within five months, he entered the Peel Music Festival, competing against 11-year-olds at a Grade 3 level, and emerged victorious—marking the beginning of his journey as a classical pianist.

At seven years old, Will received a trumpet for his birthday, which would soon become a defining instrument in his musical career. At the age of 12, he auditioned for and was accepted into three prestigious ensembles: the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, the Halton Mississauga Youth Orchestra, and the 91.1 Jazz FM Youth Orchestra—making him the youngest trumpeter ever to be accepted in all three organizations.

At 17, Will became one of only three classical trumpeters accepted into The Juilliard School that year. During his time at Juilliard, he made history as the first undergraduate classical trumpeter to receive the prestigious Kovner Fellowship.

In 2022, while still completing his studies, Will secured the highly sought-after position of Principal Trumpet for both the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and the Santa Fe Opera, an extraordinary accomplishment for a musician at his stage of career. He continued to break barriers, being recognized by CBC Music as one of Canada’s “30 Hot Classical Musicians Under 30” and earning his Bachelor of Music in 2022 and his Master of Music in 2023, solidifying his place as one of his generation's most promising classical musicians.

He has performed with world-renowned ensembles, including New York Philharmonic Brass, Cleveland Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (Guest Principal Trumpet), Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Guest Principal Trumpet), and Philadelphia Orchestra (Guest Associate Principal Trumpet). He also performs as a concerto soloist, both on piano and trumpet.

Will’s artistry has also led him to collaborations with elite chamber ensembles, including The National Brass Ensemble, where he was invited to perform and record with some of the finest brass musicians from major American orchestras, American Brass Quintet, Rodney Marsalis Philadelphia Big Brass, and Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival Orchestra.

Beyond performance, William has contributed significantly to the classical music community as a jury member for the Glenn Gould Foundation Prize, the ITG Orchestral Excerpt Competition, and as a Toronto Arts Council panelist for Music Creation and Audio Recording Assessment. In 2021, he was also honoured with the Sylva Gelber Music Foundation Award.

He has been a part of a number of recordings such as "Deified", an album by the National Brass Ensemble, and Soundtrack for the film Rustin Produced by Barack and Michelle Obama's production company Higher Ground.

Will has also established a career as a public speaker, having served as a keynote speaker for esteemed organizations such as The Pinball Clemons Foundation and Leadership by Design. Notably, he was the first alumnus to deliver the keynote address at his alma mater's commencement ceremony.

Will is a performing artist for Bach Brass and Vennture Mouthpieces, where he is consulting on the development of a line of trumpet mouthpieces in his name.