Stephen Leisring (Steve) is Professor of Music (Trumpet) and Associate Dean for Global Engagement in the School of Music, the University of Kansas. Prior to arriving at KU, he was a member of the Tenerife Symphony, Canary Islands, Spain from 1989- 2003. Since moving to Lawrence in the Fall of 2003, he has been invited as a guest professor and performer in more than 20 countries around the world, in Europe, Asia, Australia, and Americas.
He has been a guest Principal Trumpet with the Kansas City Symphony, RTVE Orchestra (Spain) ShenZhen, Tianjin and Harbin Symphony orchestras in China as well as the Tokyo Symphony in Japan. Additionally, he has performed with the Dallas, Milwaukee, San Diego Symphonies in the US, Spanish National Orchestra, Tenerife, Galicia, Gran Canaria and Madrid Symphony Orchestras of Spain, Gothenburg (Sweden) Symphony with Neemi Jarvi, and been a soloist with the Kalisz Philharmonic (Poland) Maryland Symphony, as well as the Sichuan and Harbin Symphonies in China.
I am honored to be part of the IRC, Kansas City. Over the course of my career, I have seen how global engagement positively affects both those taking part, and those receiving knowledge from it. Organizations like the IRC make a difference.