Elmer “Sonny” Dunham (November 16, 1911 – July 9, 1990) American trumpet player and bandleader. Born in Brockton, Massachusetts, the son of Elmer M. Dunham and Ethel A. Dunham (née Lewis), Dunham attended local schools and took lessons on the valve trombone at the age of 7. He changed to the slide trombone at age 11, and was playing in local bands by the age of 13. Dunham began his musical career as a trombone player in the Boston area. In the late 1920s he moved to New York where he played with Ben Bernie for six months before moving onto Paul Tremaine’s Orchestra in 1929 where he remained for 2 years. It was while he was working with Tremaine’s group, where he also sang and arranged, that he switched to the trumpet. In 1931, he left Tremaine and for a few months led his own group, calling it Sonny Dunham and his New York Yankees. He then joined the Casa Loma Orchestra in 1932 where he became a popular soloist, scoring a big hit with his trumpet work on “Memories of You”. He stayed until March, 1936 when he formed another more unusual group, Sonny Lee and The New Yorkers Band, which featured 14 pieces, with ten of his musicians doubling on trumpet. After the band failed to secure adequate bookings, he moved to Europe for three months and in 1937 returned to the Casa Loma Orchestra, where he remained until 1940 when he tried again to form his own group, this time, with more success.

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