Rebecca Coupe Franks holds a Master of Arts in Trumpet Performance from the prestigious Eastman School of Music. An accomplished recording artist, she has released nine albums of original compositions under her own label, RCF Records. For the past 15 years, she has shared her expertise as a professor at SUNY New Paltz, teaching trumpet performance, Jazz History, and Women in Music courses.
During her time as a master of both jazz and classical trumpet, she has performed in New York City, performing alongside jazz legends such as Cab Calloway, Kenny Barron, Lou Donaldson, Clark Terry, and Joe Henderson. While in New York, she studied with Laurie Frink, serving for five years as lead trumpet in the Benny Goodman Orchestra and various Broadway musicals, and also spent two years studying under Vincent Penzarella, principal trumpet of the New York Philharmonic.
Rebecca’s musical journey began locally, growing up in Palo Alto and performing with the California Youth Symphony, the Santa Cruz Symphony, and San Jose’s Civic Light Opera.