Members
Justine Auger - Trumpet
Justine Auger is a local freelancing trumpet player based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She is regularly an extra musician with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and has played with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. She is deeply involved in Manitoba’s music scene, regularly collaborating with various ensembles.
Justine holds a Master of Music in Trumpet Performance from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. She also earned a Bachelor of Music in Performance from the University of Manitoba.
Beyond her work as a performer, Justine is passionate about music education and outreach. She is committed to both teaching and inspiring the next generation of brass players. In addition to her career in music, Justine is also a hairstylist, balancing her artistic passions in both the musical and creative industries.
Daniel Lehman - Trumpet
Daniel Lehmann is a Canadian trumpet player currently based in his hometown of Winnipeg and is excited to play with trumpet with the Peg-City Brass 5tet.
Daniel performs regularly as a substitute and extra musician with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. From 2022 to 2024, he served as Acting Principal Trumpet of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. He was an academist in the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava in the Czech Republic in 2020, where he also toured with the orchestra to Italy and Switzerland. In 2022, Daniel performed with the National Arts Centre Orchestra as part of its inaugural mentorship program.
In addition to performing, Daniel is a doctoral candidate at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where his research explores the symbolic associations of the trumpet. During his time at IU, he served as an Associate Instructor of Trumpet and studied with John Rommel and Kris Kwapis. He also holds a Master of Music from Indiana University and a Bachelor of Music in from the University of Manitoba, where he studied with Paul Jeffrey and Richard Gillis.
Daniel enjoys teaching an has a studio of private students in Winnipeg and Morden. He has taught trumpet and chamber music at University of Victoria as a sabbatical replacement and at Brandon University for the winter 2026 semester.
Daniel also plays baroque trumpet and has performed with period-instrument ensembles Bourbon Baroque and the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra. He looks forward to attending the Oregon Bach Festival Berwick Academy in summer 2026.
He has also participated in summer programs including the Korean National Symphony Orchestra International Academy, Domaine Forget, PRISMA, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestral Institute at Whistler. Additionally, he was a member of the National Academy Orchestra of Canada in 2019 and 2021.
Outside of music, Daniel enjoys cycling and reading.
Rachel Côté - Horn
Rachel Côté is a sought after Canadian horn player. She has appeared with l’Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, the Edmonton Opera Ensemble, among others. She has been a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Festival, the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, the National Arts Centre Orchestra Mentorship Program, and the New York String Orchestra Seminar.
Rachel takes the horn beyond the concert hall and loves to collaborate with artists of all genres. Her horn playing can be heard on Taylor Janzen’s recent single, “Everybody Goes to Heaven”, which reached #9 on the CBC Top 20 in 2026; Patrick Wang’s 2025 film “Rimbaud”; and on the upcoming Radio Canada television series “Les accords d’Antoine”, which premieres in 2027. Rachel is looking forward to her debut at the Winnipeg Jazz Festival this summer, with a new initiative called “Cool Jazz Returns”. Rachel is a staunch advocate for music education - she maintains a full private horn studio and is an in-demand horn clinician across Manitoba.
Rachel has a Bachelor’s of Music from The Glenn Gould School, and a Masters of Music from Northwestern University. Her principal teachers include Gail Williams, Jon Boen, Gabe Radford, and Nadia Côté.
Eric Prodger - Trombone
Eric Prodger is a Canadian bass, tenor, and contrabass trombonist from Gatineau, Quebec. He currently serves as Principal Bass Trombone of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, having previously held the same position with the Kingston Symphony Orchestra. Alongside his orchestral work, he maintains an active freelance career, performing regularly throughout Manitoba, Quebec, and Ontario.
Eric has studied at McGill University, the New England Conservatory, the Glenn Gould School, and the University of Ottawa. His principal teachers have included James Markey, James Box, Pierre Beaudry, Jeffrey Hall, and Douglas Burden.
As an orchestral musician, Eric has performed with many of Canada's leading ensembles, including l'Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, the National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, and l'Orchestre Classique de Montréal. During his studies, he was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada for four summer seasons (2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021).
An accomplished soloist and chamber musician, Eric has appeared in recital and chamber music performances throughout Canada. He has been a finalist in the National Arts Centre Orchestra Bursary Competition on three occasions (2017, 2019, and 2022), and in 2022 was named First Alternate in the Donald Yaxley Bass Trombone Solo Competition of the International Trombone Association.
An award-winning performer, Eric has received numerous distinctions, including the Friends of the National Arts Centre Orchestra Award, the Crabtree Foundation Award, the Sturdevant Prize for Orchestral Excerpts, the Rich Little Endowment Fund, and the Friends of the NAC Orchestra Scholarship. He can also be heard on the Juno Award-winning album "Maxime Goulet: Symphonie de la tempête de verglas", recorded in 2022 with l'Orchestre Classique de Montréal.
Takumi Hayashi - Tuba
Takumi Hayashi serves as the Principal Tuba of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, a position he began in the 2025-2026 season. Prior to moving to Manitoba, he held the role of Principal Tuba with the Victoria Symphony during the 2024-2025 season. He is also excited to perform as a member of the Peg-City Brass 5tet.
As an active orchestral musician, Takumi's performance experience extends across North America and Japan. He has performed as a substitute with the Cleveland Orchestra and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra , as well as the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra.
His musical training includes studies under the instruction of Peder MacLellan at the University of British Columbia and Yasuhito Sugiyama at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
