Ethan Chilton is an improvising trumpeter and composer based in Los Angeles. He grew up in Merced, California, under the tutelage of an accomplished high school marching band program, and was drawn to study jazz music deeply as a teenager. After playing in the Jazz Band of America in Indianapolis his senior year of high school, he was determined to pursue his passion at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, where he obtained both Bachelor's and Master's degrees in jazz trumpet, including a minor in business. He studied there with Vince Mendoza, Michael Stever, and Bob Mintzer among others, now receiving frequent mentorship from Dan Rosenboom, acclaimed LA studio player and avante-garde improvisor.

Ethan has also participated in many selective national and international jazz programs, including Betty Carter's Jazz Ahead at the Kennedy Center in 2023. He was also a finalist in the National Trumpet Competition in 2020. He continues to perform with well-known jazz musicians such as Remy LeBoeuf, John Beasley, Louis Cole, Terri Lyne Carrington, and many more.

Ethan is also a dedicated solo artist, having released his first full-length jazz/classical album, The Planets, in 2021, and a self-produced EP titled Storytime in 2022. He is the co-founder of Novel Utopia, an indie folk-jazz ensemble devoted to promoting human goodness and eco positivity, with a debut EP due out in 2024. Ethan is also lead of tonebase Trumpet, an online educational platform featuring courses from the world's greatest trumpeters.