Michael Barry has been a freelance trumpet player for nearly 33 years. He is comfortable performing in all styles of music and in a wide variety of musical situations. A graduate of Lawrence University and The Eastman School of Music, he began his freelance career in Atlanta. While there he recorded for the networks TNT, TBS, CNN, CNN International and The Golf Channel. He has also recorded for matchboxtwenty, The Gap Band, The Ohio Players as well as ad spots for Georgia Lottery and WAGA. He has performed with the Atlanta Symphony as principal trumpet on many Pops concerts, backing artists such as Seth MacFarlane, Linda Eder, Michael Feinstein, Patti Austin, The Manhattan Transfer, The Beach Boys and Blue Oyster Cult. He was also a regular member of pit orchestras at the Fox Theatre for the Theatre Of The Stars musical series for twenty years.  

Michael moved to the Nashville area in 2016 where he continues to freelance, playing on recording sessions for video games, pit orchestras at TPAC, and big bands like The Nashville Jazz Orchestra. He joined The Smoking Section in 2011, and considers it an honor to play with such an amazing collection of musicians.