Fred Mills (musician)

William Frederick Mills (March 15, 1935 – September 7, 2009) was a Canadian trumpeter and educator best known for his work with the Canadian Brass quintet from 1972 to 1996. He also served as a professor for the University of Georgia from 1996 until 2009.

He also played solo, first-chair trumpet with the American Symphony Orchestra and the Houston Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski, the New York City Opera Orchestra, the New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, the National Arts Center Orchestra of Canada, the Casals Festival Orchestra in Puerto Rico and others, according to a biography from the University of Georgia.^[specify]

He attended the Juilliard School of Music and held honorary doctorates from the New England Conservatory in Boston and Hartwick College. Mills earned a bachelor of science degree in music from Hartwick in 1957.

The Canadian Brass ensemble performed hundreds of his arrangements including Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, which appeared on the album The Pachelbel Canon and Other Great Baroque Hits, released in 1980.^[1]

On September 7, 2009, Mills was killed in a car crash in Walton County, about 45 miles east of Atlanta. Mills was driving to his Athens home from Atlanta's airport after a trip to Quincinetto, Italy where he was a soloist at the Pentabrass Festival.^[2]

A CD in Mills' honor was released by AppleJazz Records. Produced by Louise Baranger and Charlie Bertini, To Fred With Love, The World's Finest Brass Players Pay Tribute to Fred Mills, includes performances by Canadian Brass, Phil Smith, Joe Alessi, Arturo Sandoval, Charles Schlueter, Allen Vizzutti, Marvin Stamm, Warren Vaché, Chris Martin, the Pentabrass, the German Brass and many others. 100% of the profits from the CD benefit the W. Fred Mills Scholarship fund at the University of Georgia, Athens.