Jay Saunders (né John Henry Saunders III; born 29 June 1944 Sacramento, California) is an American trumpeter and music educator at the collegiate level. In the 1970s, Saunders was a lead trumpeter with big bands — notably the Stan Kenton Orchestra (early seventies) — and a session musician in the Dallas area. Saunders recently retired from the faculty at the University of North Texas College of Music where he taught jazz trumpet, jazz recordings, and directed the One O'Clock Lab Band.