About M&W

Now, solely owned and crafted by Matthew Walker, M&W Custom Trombones began in 2014 with co-owners, Michael McLemore and Matthew Walker, who met while building the original Greenhoe instruments in Jackson Wisconsin, prior to its closing in 2012.

Not satisfied with simply re-creating a previously existing brand, M&W Custom Trombones were newly designed and developed by incorporating ideas and concepts that had not been previously utilized. Designed to produce the characteristic sound of classic American orchestral trombones, M&W Custom Trombones are engineered and crafted with the finest tolerance specifications in the industry. Every part of an M&W is fit with extreme precision, allowing the player to easily project their ideas and energy as a musician.

M&W offers a comprehensive range of instruments including alto, small bore "jazz" trombone, medium bore, large bore "orchestral" trombones, and bass trombones. Matthew has most recently unveiled the M&W German style alto trombone-a work of art paying homage to the German masters. All models embody exceptional quality, extreme precision, and an ease of response that makes an M&W a highly sought after instrument.

Matthew Walker, Owner

Matthew Walker was born and raised in the city of Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia. He began playing trombone at 9 years of age, and at the age of 16, moved to Sydney to finish school at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music High School. At age 21, while working towards his Bachelors Degree at the Conservatorium, he won the position of Principal Bass Trombone with the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, resident orchestra of the Sydney Opera House, which he occupied for 16 years. His performance resume also includes many of Australia's professional orchestras and Jazz Big Bands, as well as the Hong Kong Philharmonic and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.

During his time with the Australian Opera, Matthew experienced frustrations with the instruments he was playing at the time, had ideas about how to correct those issues, and decided to test those concepts through his own work. Matthew's dad, Graham, a highly skilled watchmaker by trade, instilled an appreciation for fineness of detail, and taught him to solder and assemble parts with the precision of a jeweler. After working on the instruments and getting the results he desired, in 1998 Matthew attended the highly regarded Red Wing Technical College in Red Wing Minnesota, in order to learn more about the musical instrument repair trade. Upon returning to Australia, in addition to his full-time playing job, Matthew started and maintained a very successful repair business working exclusively on brass, but with a special focus on trombone. Players from all around Australia and South-East Asia sought Matthew out to work on their horns.

Due to his fine reputation and skills, Matthew was sought after and invited to join the original Greenhoe company team in 2006. Initially taking a leave of absence from his job with the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, he moved from Australia to Wisconsin and eventually made it his home. During this focused time of crafting trombones, Matthew's expertise furthered to an exceptionally high level in both building and designing. After the Greenhoe shop closed in 2012, Matthew worked as a technician for the Getzen company for 12 months before starting M&W.

Exceptional attention to detail and appreciation for extraordinary quality are the two main driving factors that dictate Matthew's work ethic and approach to building and designing horns. Matthew brings a wealth of experience and expertise to M&W Custom Trombones and his highest priority is creating the utmost quality built horns to the marketplace.

Matthew lives in Jackson, Wisconsin, with his wife Sue, (who handles the business side of M&W and is also a horn player), and their little dogs, Annie, Joey, and new addition Ollie. In his spare time, Matthew enjoys cooking various cuisines, searching for a great cup of coffee, and building Scale Model Aircraft. He is a regular contributor to Finescale Modeler Magazine, a publication he has read since it's first issue in 1982.