James L. Hosay | Composers

James L. Hosay was born in 1959 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, and grew up in Norfolk, Virginia, USA. After high school, he became a trumpeter in the United States Army and completed his education at the Music School of the U.S. Armed Forces.
After the first two years of military service, he became a staff arranger and composer for the United States Army Band (Pershing's Own) in Washington, D.C. During his tenure as a staff arranger, he wrote arrangements for many well-known artists, including Patti Labelle, Amy Grant, Reba McEntire and Lee Greenwood. His works were often performed in front of local and foreign dignitaries, foreign leaders and the President of the United States. He was called on to compose original works for numerous important occasions, such as the ceremonies for the re-inauguration of the Washington Monument and the Capitol Hill, as well as for the celebrations on the occasion of the 50^th anniversary of NATO, attended by the heads of state of all its member states.
During his 20 year military career, James Hosay was awarded two Meritorious Service Medals and two Army Achievement Medals for special accomplishments, and received a personal letter of commendation from Colin Powell, the then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, after writing a special march for his Retirement Ceremony. Soon after, he retired from the Army and went back to his hometown of Norfolk, Virginia. Since the year 2012 James L. Hosay has worked as a composer and arranger for the music publisher RUNDEL.