Christian Paarup is a San Francisco-based trombonist, educator, and mental performance consultant. He has performed with renowned ensembles such as the San Francisco Symphony, Finnish Radio Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Utah Symphony, Houston Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, Hawai’i Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, San Francisco Opera, and San Francisco Ballet. Passionate about chamber music, Christian is a founding member of Fort Worth Brass and regularly performs with Bay Area ensembles such as Nomad Session and Brass Over Bridges.

As an educator, Christian serves on the trombone and mental performance faculty at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College Academy and conducts the first-ever SFCM Continuing Education Low Brass Choir. Before moving to San Francisco, he taught at Dallas College and Baylor University, and maintained a private studio where he mentored high school students who earned positions in the Texas All-State Bands and received scholarships at leading music institutions. Christian is also the founder and former director of the Trombone Choir of North Texas, where he worked with musicians to develop their artistry and discipline. In addition to his current teaching roles, he has appeared as guest faculty at the Mountain Light Music Festival and as a featured artist at the University of Florida International Brass Festival.

In addition to performing and teaching, Christian composes, arranges, and publishes new works for brass through his company, Paarup Music Editions. His works have been performed worldwide, including at the International Trombone Festival and the American Trombone Workshop. He has collaborated with renowned artists such as Anthony Barfield, Joseph Turrin, Joseph Alessi, Enrique Crespo, Per Brevig, Dennis Bubert, and Houghton Horns by creating piano reductions, producing and editing music notation samples for published texts, and more. Recent projects include arrangements for the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra’s Artists in Residence ensemble and the San Francisco Symphony’s Adventures in Music program.

Christian earned his degrees in trombone performance from Baylor University (BM, magna cum laude) and the Manhattan School of Music (MM). His primary teachers include Dennis Bubert, Brent Phillips, and David Finlayson. He is currently pursuing a Master’s of Science in Sport & Performance Psychology from the University of Western States and provides mental performance consulting through his business, Performance Forte, helping musicians develop confidence and mental resilience.

Christian enjoys exploring the Bay Area and beyond with his wife, Tori, and their energetic Yorkie, Frodo.