Idaho-born trombonist and composer Mal Layne was born and raised in Boise. She attended Idaho State University as a scholarship music student, where she played principal trombone in the jazz ensemble, wind ensemble, and Idaho State-Civic Symphony and won a number of regional and state-level concerto competitions, as well as performing as a featured soloist in several ensembles. Additionally, during her senior season as an ISU Bengal, Layne wrote, recorded, and premiered her debut jazz album, entitled Integration by Parts, with the ISU Jazz Combo as part of their Commercial Music Program led by Jonathan Armstrong. Since transitioning to classical music, she has competed as a finalist in international solo competitions (including the 2023 Michel Becquet International Trombone Competition), played principal trombone in the Colorado College Summer Music Festival in Colorado Springs as well as the AIMS (American Institute of Musical Studies) Summer Music Festival in Austria, and played principal trombone at the Juilliard School in New York City since beginning there in August of 2022. She completed her master’s degree on scholarship at Juilliard in May 2024, during which she specialized in principal trombone, alto trombone, and solo repertoire. She is currently in her first season as principal trombone of the Hagen Philharmonic, located in Northwestern Germany. She can often be found practicing trombone, running outside, composing music, rock climbing, reading, or at the gym.
