Michael Hood-Dowd

Three buttons. How hard could it be to play the trumpet?

That’s what Michael Hood-Dowd thought when he chose the instrument in the fifth grade.

“It ended up being very deceptive,” the Salem, New Hampshire, native says with a grin. “You can play eight or nine different notes with just one button, and it’s all controlled with your air and your lips.”

As a music studies major at UMass Lowell (UML), Hood-Dowd is using his experience as a trumpet player to prepare for a career in music education.

That journey hit a high note during the spring of Hood-Dowd’s senior year, when he was selected as the student soloist for the university’s Wind Ensemble Concerto Competition Concert — a goal he had set for himself years earlier.

“It was something I wanted to do before I graduated, so I'm really glad that I was able to do it,” says Hood-Dowd, who performed Alexander Arutiunian’s Trumpet Concerto at the Moloney Performing Arts Center.

Hood-Dowd began taking music seriously in middle school, when he played in a jazz band led by UML alum Patrick Moeschen ’95. When the UML Marching Band performed at Hood-Dowd’s high school, he set his sights on studying music in the College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

“I saw the trumpet soloist and thought, ‘I want to sound like that,’” he says.

At UML, Hood-Dowd has studied under Director of University Bands Daniel Lutz, whose mentorship has helped him refine his playing.

“Dan was a trumpet player, so he’s been super-helpful, especially dialing in consistency,” says Hood-Dowd, who has performed in a variety of ensembles, including the Marching Band, Wind Ensemble, Jazz Rock Big Band and Latin Ensemble.

He has also developed his skills as an educator, teaching the marching band and wind ensemble at Lowell High School (where the director is UML alum Jared Logan ’18, ’22), working with the Quincy and North Quincy high school marching bands and giving private lessons in trumpet, trombone, piano and drums at a music school in Littleton.

As part of the music studies program at UML, Hood-Dowd has also gained classroom experience at local schools, working with students from elementary through middle school.

“I’ve really enjoyed working with all the different age groups,” he says.

After his sophomore year, Hood-Dowd toured nationally with the Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corps, performing in Houston, San Antonio, Atlanta, Indianapolis and other cities as part of Drum Corps International.

“That’s probably my biggest dream that I had since my freshman year of high school,” he says. “I got to tour around the country for three months, which was super-cool.”

After graduation, Hood-Dowd plans to pursue a Master of Music in Music Education at UML to earn his teaching license and become a band director in Massachusetts public schools.

“The great thing about the program here is that it sets you up for licensure to teach music,” he says.

He also hopes to continue performing, taking on opportunities in local ensembles and pit orchestras whenever possible.

Hood-Dowd says working with Lutz has helped him grow more confident as a performer, particularly when it comes to managing nerves.

“I’ve been able to keep a more calm, relaxed mindset when I’m performing,” he says. “That's the biggest thing that I've learned here.”