About Doug Beavers

"For the efforts of Mr. Beavers, the new millennium finds me truly grateful"
- Eddie Palmieri

By the time hearing John Coltrane’s Crescent had him turning his car around, trading in a scholarship to study electrical engineering for a life as a trombonist, Doug Beavers knew his destiny was tied to honoring the charismatic musicality that runs through his blood. And for Doug Beavers that bloodline extends through a lineage of prolific innovators within Afro-Cuban music. With one song, and one huge spin of the wheel, Doug Beavers began a journey that established him as a GRAMMY® Award winning artist, frontman musician, and valued authority within the mosaic of communities he cultivates and collaborates with.

Migrating to New York City, Beavers earned a Master’s Degree in Composition from the Manhattan School of Music before being hand picked by NEA Jazz Master Eddie Palmieri to meticulously transcribe and arrange Palmieri’s complete repertoire from his legendary Conjunto La Perfecta band. In-demand as a generational, thrilling Latin trombone talent and prized for his elite composing and arranging skills, Beavers eventually found his way recording and performing with Marc Anthony, Willie Colón, Típica ’73, Ruben Blades, Mingus Big Band, Christian McBride, Joe Locke, Dave Liebman, and Paul Simon, all while becoming a prominent member of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra.

Perpetually curious, forever eager to lean into the remarkable diversity of musical influences that inspire him, Beavers' recorded work leverages signature stylistics that explore everything from Latin and contemporary jazz, to R&B, soul, pop and salsa. Curating a stunning array of talent, Beavers consistently delivers dynamic, insightful music that appeals to a variety of audiences – especially those who love to dance. An ardent student of musical history with deep connections to legendary musicians across several genres, Beavers has gained international recognition while receiving GRAMMY® nominations for his contributions to Eddie Palmieri’s 2006 album Listen Here, Spanish Harlem Orchestra’s Imagenes Latinas, and their GRAMMY® winning Anniversary album, for which Beavers earned a GRAMMY® as producer. Beavers' own passionate tribute to legendary salsa and Latin Jazz arrangers, Art of the Arrangement, also garnered a GRAMMY® nomination in 2018.

Always seeking to innovate, Beavers thrives as a “five-tool” professional, balancing roles as idiosyncratic orchestrator, spirited band leader, producer and mix engineer, thoughtful educator and sought-after creative consultant. Currently serving on faculty as Director of the Jazz Ensemble and Audio Recording & Production at The College of New Jersey, Beavers also sits on the advisory board of New Jersey’s Riverview Jazz organization that annually produces more than 100 concerts throughout the state. As an honored participant in the 2023 Trombonanza festival in Santa Fe, Argentina, Beavers will also be a featured trombone artist for the International Trombone Festival in 2025 to be held in Windsor, Canada.

In 2020, Beavers launched his own hybrid record label and production house, Circle 9 that empowers musicians with industry-forward, artist-centric solutions to design and distribute their projects in today’s challenging marketplace. Circle 9 currently represents twelve artists and has released several critically acclaimed albums, including world renowned vibraphonist Joe Locke’s Makram, whose album peaked at #2 on the Jazzweek radio airplay chart in April 2023, and Cuban cuatrista Kiki Valera’s Vacilón Santiaguero, which earned a GRAMMY® nomination for “Best Tropical Latin Album” in 2025.

In 2021, Beavers was awarded a Chamber Music America “New Jazz Works” Grant, funded by the Doris Duke Foundation, which laid the foundation for Luna, his most recent work advancing a daring formula of fusing salsa and Latin Jazz with the colorful nuance of rock, classical, R&B and soul. Just one example of the many enterprising ways Beavers continues to honor how creativity, culture and community continues to define his craft, vision and commitment to the world of music.

Doug Beavers is a Buffet Crampon USA artist performing on Antoine Courtois Trombones.