Robert Nuñez +

Robert Nuñez has served as Principal Tuba of both the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the New Orleans Opera since 1991. In addition, he performs as tubist with the Louisiana Philharmonic Brass Quintet.

Mr. Nuñez was Adjunct Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at Tulane University, Loyola University New Orleans, the University of New Orleans, and Delgado Community College. He served as Brass Instructor for the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps from 1988–1996. In 2006, Mr. Nuñez performed with both the New York Philharmonic and the Nashville Symphony in a series of collaborative concerts with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2024 and 2025, Mr. Nuñez performed in Switzerland at the Ascona Jazz Festival. In 2024, he performed with the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra at Jazz at Lincoln Center, and in 2026 he joined the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra for performances at the Tahiti Soul Jazz Festival.

His teachers include legendary pedagogue Arnold Jacobs, Principal Tuba of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 1944–1988, Neal Tidwell, former Principal Tuba of the New Orleans Symphony, and Richard Erb, former bass trombonist of both the New Orleans Symphony and the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra.

Born in New Orleans and raised in Chalmette, Louisiana, Robert’s family has robust historical roots, as ancestors from both branches of his family were colonists who preceded the Louisiana Purchase; the Cantrell family arriving in New Orleans in 1720 and the Nuñez family residing in St. Bernard Parish in 1778. Robert Nuñez is the great-grandson of Alcide “Yellow” Nuñez, the pioneer Dixieland clarinetist who performed with the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, Louisiana Five, The Moonlight Serenaders, and Papa Jack Laine’s Reliance Brass Bands from 1912–1934.

A diverse and eclectic artist, Mr. Nuñez demonstrates exceptional proficiency as a soloist and performer within a myriad of ensembles and musical genres (orchestral, opera, chamber, choral, Dixieland, jazz, rock, et al.). Mr. Nuñez’s solo presentations include his performance of Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Tuba Concerto with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra during the 1999–2000 season, and his presentation of Richard Strauss’s Horn Concerto No. 1 in E-flat Major with the New Orleans Concert Band in May 2010.

Mr. Nuñez has performed with numerous brass ensembles, including the Fanfare Brass Quintet, a school outreach ensemble for disadvantaged children. He is a founding member of both the New Orleans Uptown Brass Quintet and the Houston Metropolis Brass Quintet. Mr. Nuñez has appeared with the Louisiana Repertory Jazz Ensemble, where he has performed throughout New Orleans, including the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, as well as at Princeton University, Dartmouth College, Oberlin Conservatory, and internationally in Baku, Azerbaijan. He remains active in many Dixieland groups throughout the New Orleans area. Robert Nuñez has twice joined forces with Ray Charles and his Orchestra, performed with the rock bands Kansas and The Moody Blues, and appeared with renowned jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck and his quartet during a joint endeavor with the Baltimore Choral Arts Society.