Brent Wallarab earned his M.M. from Indiana University (IU) in 1989. He is an associate professor of music in jazz studies at the IU Jacobs School of Music. In 2021, he earned the additional, honorary title of David N. Baker Professor. Since 1991, Wallarab has been the lead trombonist with the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, the jazz orchestra in residence at the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. As a lead trombonist, he specializes in recreating the entire spectrum of jazz brass styles. In 1992, Wallarab was appointed specialist in jazz for the Smithsonian Institution and serves as transcriber, researcher, editor, and advisor for the Smithsonian's extensive jazz program. Wallarab has transcribed and edited more than 300 masterworks for jazz orchestras and is considered one of the leading authorities on historical composition for jazz orchestras, such as those of Duke Ellington, Sy Oliver, Fletcher Henderson, and Gil Evans. Wallarab has been instrumental in identifying and cataloging many pieces from the Ellington archives housed at the Smithsonian Institution.