New York City-based trumpeter Dominick Farinacci served as ambassador to Jazz at Lincoln from 2013-2015 in Doha, Qatar, working to further integrate music into communities around the world in culturally collaborative ways. He is a 2022 recipient of the Cleveland Arts Prize, an honor previously awarded to author Toni Morrison, and Cleveland Orchestra conductors George Szell and Franz Welser-Möst. Dominick graduated from The Juilliard School in 2005 launching his career in Japan with a prolific run of eight albums, later releasing four more globally. He has performed around the world and has been recognized by The New York Times as “a trumpeter of abundant poise.” He was a featured guest on ABC’s Good Morning America and is a TED Speaker. Dominick has been profiled in Vanity Fair, and music icon Quincy Jones says of Dominick’s accomplishments in performance, recording, education & advocacy, “This kid is 360 degrees!” 

Dominick has been successful in his personal endeavors on bringing music into the community through Arts and Wellness & Education. He was invited by TED to be a TED Speaker at the 2014 TED MED conference at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. He is co-founder of Modern Warrior LIVE, an immersive musical and narrative experience detailing a U.S. Veteran’s story of combat in Afghanistan, highlighting the mental trauma of war and potential growth that can come through experiencing trauma. Modern Warrior LIVE has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the 26th U.S. Secretary of Defense – General James Mattis – and has been showcased at Amazon Headquarters and at the National Council for Behavioral Health Conference opening for Brené Brown.

Dominick is the director of the Tri-C JazzFest Academy, a year-round pre-college program of Cuyahoga Community College, housed at the Gill and Tommy LiPuma Center for Creative Arts in Cleveland, Ohio. His 2016 recording “Short Stories” was produced by four-time Grammy Award winning producer Tommy LiPuma, and features Jacob Collier, Christian McBride and Steve Gadd.  Dominick’s latest double EP “Reflections” features a series of duo performances with acclaimed pianists such as Aaron Diehl, Dan Tepfer, Adam Birnbaum and Jonathan Thomas, and the lead track on “Reflections” has received more than 1 million streams on Spotify in recent months.