A startling display of virtuosity...This was something very different, played by a performer of rare gifts indeed.

-- 4barsRest.com, in a review of Rex Richardson's performance at the 2013 World Music Championship in Kerkrade, Netherlands

 Hailed in jazz circles as “a standout soloist with the power, range and flexibility to rival Freddie Hubbard and Woody Shaw,” (DownBeat Magazine, 2014) and in classical as “among the very best trumpet soloists in the world today,” (Journal of the International Trumpet Guild, 2011) and “One of the finest virtuosos of our time,” (Brass Herald, 2018) Yamaha Performing Artist Rex Richardson was named the 2008 Brass Herald International Personality of the Year.  

A veteran of the acclaimed chamber ensemble Rhythm & Brass, jazz legend Joe Henderson’s Quintet and Sextet, William Russo’s Chicago Jazz Ensemble, and the Brass Band of Battle Creek, known as the world’s “Rolls Royce of Brass Bands” (Brass Band World), Richardson is the newly appointed trumpet professor at the University of South Carolina and stays busy as a headline artist at international brass and jazz festivals. His hundreds of solo engagements in 46 countries include appearances with the Phoenix Symphony and Thailand Philharmonic Orchestras, the U.S. Army Field Band and Tokyo Symphonic Winds, England's Fodens Brass Band, Spanish Brass, Boston Brass, and the U.S. Air Force's Airmen of Note Jazz Ensemble. 

Richardson has collaborated with countless legendary artists and ensembles, including Joseph Alessi, Eric Aubier, Wayne Bergeron, Brian Blade, Benny Carter, Boston Brass, Ray Charles, Jeff Coffin, Dave Douglas, Kurt Elling, Carl Fontana, Pacho Flores, Aretha Franklin, Wycliffe Gordon, Stefon Harris, Conrad Herwig, Dave Holland, Sean Jones, Dave Liebman, Keith Lockhart, Eric Miyashiro. James Morrison, Jim Pugh, Chris Potter, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Arturo Sandoval, Bobby Shew, Ruben Simeo, Spanish Brass, Allen Vizzutti, Bill Watrous, and Steve Wilson. Jazz trumpet star Dave Douglas has called him “A national treasure.” (Style Weekly magazine)

Having developed a reputation unique in the trumpet world for his combination of singular virtuosity, deep lyricism, and an emphasis on improvisation in classical as well as jazz idioms, Richardson is a committed champion of new music. He has presented the premiere performances of genre-busting concertos written for him by Peter Graham, Peter Meechan, Anthony Plog, Doug Richards, David Sampson, Andy Scott, James Stephenson, Allen Vizzutti, and Dana Wilson in dozens of countries on five continents. 

Richardson’s work as a soloist, bandleader and sideman can be heard on multiple recordings on a variety of labels. His rendition of Peter Graham's trumpet concerto, recorded in England, was named the 2024 CD of the Year by both Brass Band World Magazine and 4BarsRest.com. His previous release, Freedom of Movement: 21st Century Trumpet Concertos, to rave reviews. It was named a top-ten finalist for 4BarsRest.com’s 2018 Solo CD of the Year, and The Journal of the International Trumpet Guild called it “A triumph of virtuosity and musicianship” (March 2019).

Richardson has degrees in anthropology and music from Northwestern and Louisiana State Universities and is the newly appointed professor of trumpet at the University of South Carolina. He taught at Virginia Commonwealth University from 2002-2024 and served as International Tutor in Trumpet at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, U.K. from 2012-2015. In 2018 he was appointed International Tutor in Trumpet at JAM Music Lab University in Vienna, Austria. He has served as an adjudicator/guest soloist at international trumpet and brass competitions in Italy, Belgium, South Korea, Australia, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.

In 2009 he was presented with the VCU School of the Arts highest honor, the Award of Excellence, and was awarded the 2011 Theresa Pollack Prize for Excellence in the Arts. The Pollack Prize selectors wrote: “Richardson stands at the vanguard of jazz, classical and contemporary American music. As his star has risen internationally, he’s maintained a clear commitment to education. He is an extraordinary musician.”