When Sam Robinson was in middle school, he found his love for the trumpet. Playing on the side throughout college and the beginning of his life, he never thought that he would end up where he is today, both a French Teacher and a jazz professional. 

“After teaching all day, I will often go to these jam sessions where a house band plays and then invites other people to play in a kind of open mic setting,” Robinson said. “Now, I actually lead a Jam Session where we’re the house band and invite others up. We became the house band last year and started playing our own songs and standards that are written by famous [musicians] that everybody knows.” 

Beginning at LT in 2003, Robinson never lost his passion for music, producing a total of four albums with various quartets, all in the jazz realm. One musician featured on the albums is tenor saxophonist Scott Angst. 

“I met Sam playing at the Gallery Cabaret when we were both playing in the band of the great Richard Monastra about ten years ago,” Angst said. “I’ve always been super impressed with [him]. He has a strong work ethic, [is] super talented, [a] great musician, and a great friend. Sam is a great band leader and has a great presence and command,” Angst said. “I learned a lot about how to lead and communicate your vision [from him].” 

Playing at clubs all over the suburbs of Chicago and various cities in Wisconsin, Robinson never lost his passion for teaching and values the importance of pursuing both. He understands that while they both act as his full-time careers, one is the release valve for the other. When a gig doesn’t go as planned, he can fall back on teaching and vice versa. 

“I can tell he is passionate about both his music and teaching,” French student Audra Strayer ‘26 said. “It’s interesting to hear him speak about a hobby that I can tell he really enjoys, and I like to see my teachers express other interests they have outside of school.”

In 2019, Robinson officially founded the Sam Robinson Quintet and has put out singles with them; however, on his own, he is releasing a fourth album with a record label that is set to come out in late February titled ‘Chasin’ the Dream’.

“I definitely think that Mr. Robinson has a sense of pride about his music career,” Strayer said. “He always tells our class about the jazz concerts that he plays every weekend, and I can tell that he truly has a passion for music. There is never a weekend when he does not play a concert, and he is always willing to share with our class about what he played that weekend. He also shows us videos sometimes of him playing the trumpet, and I can tell he enjoys sharing his music with us.”

On his new album, Robinson attempted to incorporate the major components of his life, titling songs after his family and his French classes. Of his album, the few tracks Robinson revealed the names of are titled ‘Gatekeeper’, dedicated to all the venues that rejected him as a thank you to make him better, ‘Leah’, for his daughter, and ‘Voissi’, for his French students.

“‘Quand on veut, on peut’”, Robinson said. “When one wants to, one can. You just have to make time for it, and I really try to do that. I wake up extra early so I can practice, and I never leave my trumpet. I play everywhere I can – even if that means practicing in a rental car on vacation. Most trumpet players overblow and play too loudly, so it’s really good practice to play as softly as you can sometimes.”