Gilbert E. Pryor, Jr.
Assistant Professor and Music Technology Coordinator

Gilbert E. Pryor Jr., a native of Washington, D.C., holds a master’s degree from Bowie State University in organizational communication and a bachelor’s degree in music education with a minor in trumpet from Howard University. A featured trumpet soloist and arranger for the McLean Symphony Orchestra in McLean, Va., he has performed within the orchestras and ensembles of many legends such as Lena Horne, Cab Calloway, Billy Eckstine, Steve Lawrence and Eddy Gorme, Lou Rawls, Peter Allen, Ray Charles, Barry White, The Temptations, The Four Tops, The Dells, Gladys Knights and The Pips, Aretha Franklin, The O'Jays, Barry White, Lou Rawls, Eddie Holman, The Spinners, and Little Anthony and The Imperials. He has performed in the pit orchestras of the Broadway musicals “The Wiz,” “Sophisticated Ladies,” “Lena Horne - The Lady and Her Music,” “Harlem Suites,” and “Uptown- It's Hot.” He was a chief arranger and soloist for the National Football League's Washington Redskins Jazz Band from 1983-1991 and in 1977 he completed an overseas tour with the USO Shows in Germany, Turkey, and Greece.

Pryor’s most recent accomplishments include the Multi-Platinum award from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for his work with actor/artist Will Smith’s "Millennium" CD on the Columbia Records label; and a performance in China, summer 2007, where he performed with the Landon school of Bethesda for the American Ambassador in China for the July 4th celebration, on the Great Wall of China, in the Forbidden City, and at the Central Conservatory of Music.

At Bowie State, he teaches Applied Trumpet, Applied Instruments (Upper Brass), Music Technology, and Music Theatre. He is coordinator of the Music Technology Concentration, and director of the "BrassWorks" Brass Ensemble, an organization he started at the University. Also, he has served as the musical director, conductor, arranger, and keyboardist for the music department’s production of “The Wiz,” “Little Shop of Horrors,” “Grease,” “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “Dream Girls,” and “Platinum.”

In the near future, Pryor’s students and colleagues will be able to call him Dr. Pryor when he completes the Doctorate of Educational Leadership which he is pursuing at Argosy University.