Jun Iida is a composer, trumpeter, flugelhorn player, and bandleader from St. Louis, Missouri, now based in New York City. Trained in classical music at the Cleveland Institute of Music and jazz at Case Western Reserve University, where he also studied aerospace engineering, Iida brings a distinctive analytical sensibility to his writing. His compositional voice emerged fully on his debut album as a leader, Evergreen, released on OA2 Records in January 2024, which features six original compositions alongside four arrangements. Several of these originals appear on AllSolos, including "Gooey Butter Cake," which opens the album in a buoyant, New Orleans-inflected groove; "My Anguish in Solidarity," a structurally ambitious response to police violence against Black Americans that employs odd meters and sonata-like development; "Song for Luke," a ballad written for a friend who died of brain cancer; "Forgotten Memories"; "Holding On to Autumn"; and the album's title track, "Evergreen." Iida's writing balances emotional directness with formal inventiveness, moving between genres and time signatures while maintaining melodic clarity. His primary collaborators include pianist and arranger Josh Nelson, who co-produced Evergreen, along with guitarist Masami Kuroki, bassist Jonathan Richards, drummer Xavier LeCouturier, and vocalist Aubrey Johnson. Iida continues to develop his compositional catalog as an active performer and bandleader on the New York jazz scene.
