John Newton "Johnny" Helms (February 10, 1935 – March 27, 2015) was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, and music educator from Columbia, South Carolina.
[1][2][3] He performed with Chris Potter, Tommy Newsom, Bill Watrous, Red Rodney, Woody Herman, Sam Most, and the Clark Terry Big Band among others.
[2][4] Helms displayed a talent for music at a young age and was invited to perform with the University of South Carolina Band while in the ninth grade at Columbia High School.
[6][7] Johnny Helms was a featured soloist at the 1977 (summer) Spoleto Festival USA, Charleston, South Carolina with the One O'Clock Lab Band, Phil Woods, Louie Bellson, and Urbie Green.
Since its US spinoff debut in 1977 — Spoleto USA — jazz has held an integral role in what has become the largest performing arts festival in the Americas, dwarfing its Old World parent.