Thomas William Ellis Smith is a Scottish

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

saxophonist, composer, and educator.

Early life

Smith was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland, to Scottish parents Brenda Ann Urquhart, and father, William John Ellis, whom he never met. Smith was brought up in the

Wester Hailes Wester Hailes is an area in the south west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Wester Hailes borders on Kingsknowe and Longstone to the east. Bankhead Industrial Estate and Sighthill Park lie to the north. History Although named after a large private ho ...

area of the city, where he was encouraged by his stepfather, George Smith, an avid jazz fan and drummer in the

Gene Krupa Eugene Bertram Krupa (January 15, 1909 – October 16, 1973), known as Gene Krupa, was an American jazz drummer, bandleader and composer who performed with energy and showmanship. His drum solo on Benny Goodman's 1937 recording of " Sing, Sing, ...

style, to take up the tenor saxophone at the age of twelve. When he was thirteen he attended a weekly jazz workshop under the direction of Gordon Cruikshank. He met pathologist and pianist Vincenzo Crucioli, who became a mentor. With drummer John Rae, his first group won Edinburgh International Jazz Festival Best Group award in 1981. At fourteen Smith won 'Best Soloist'. He attributes much of his early success to the tuition of Vincenzo Crucioli. Under additional clarinettist Jim O'Malley and pianist Jean Allison at Wester Hailes Education Centre, Smith was soon performing around Edinburgh and Scotland with his quartet with John Rae. In 1983, at sixteen, he recorded his first album ''Giant Strides'', with a trio featuring Rae and Alan Taylor. During the same year, he recorded his second album, ''Taking Off'', and won a scholarship, assisted by a fund-raising program organized by his music teacher, Jean Allison, to attend

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. At Berklee he formed the band Forward Motion with Norwegian bassist

Terje Gewelt Terje Gewelt (born 8 June 1960) is a Norwegian jazz musician (upright bass). Career Gewelt was born in Oslo and raised in Larvik, a small town on the southeastern coast of Norway. He started playing guitar at the age of 10, switched to elec ...

, Canadian drummer Ian Froman, and Hungarian pianist

Laszlo Gardony Laszlo Gardony (born 1956) is a Hungarian-born American jazz pianist and composer. Gardony performs as a solo artist and leads his own trio, quartet and sextet. He is also a featured sideman with several other groups. Biography Gardony studied ...

. The band recorded two albums, ''Progressions'' and ''The Berklee Tapes'' (1985).

Later career

With a recommendation from

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

, Smith joined Berklee vice-president

Gary Burton Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American jazz vibraphonist, composer, and educator. Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused him to be he ...

's group with bassist

Steve Swallow Steve Swallow (born October 4, 1940) is an American jazz bassist and composer, known for his collaborations with Jimmy Giuffre, Gary Burton, and Carla Bley. He was one of the first jazz double bassists to switch entirely to electric bass guitar. ...

, pianist

Makoto Ozone is a Japanese jazz pianist. Career He was born in Kobe, Japan. He began playing organ at two and by seven was an improviser. He appeared on Japanese television with his father from 1968 to 1970. At twelve he switched to piano after being impre ...

, and drummer

Adam Nussbaum Adam Nussbaum (born November 29, 1955) is an American jazz drummer. Early life Nussbaum was born in New York City on November 29, 1955. He grew up in Norwalk, Connecticut, and first played the drums at the age of four. After five years of piano ...

, touring the world and recording the album '' Whiz Kids'' for ECM. In 1989, when he was twenty-two, Smith signed with

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical c ...

, which released his album ''Step by Step''. Burton produced the album with a band consisting of

John Scofield John Scofield (born December 26, 1951), sometimes referred to as "Sco", is an American guitarist and composer whose music over a long career has blended jazz, jazz fusion, funk, blues, soul and rock. He first came to mainstream attention in th ...

(guitar),

Eddie Gómez Edgar Gómez (born October 4, 1944) is a Puerto Rican jazz double bassist, known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio from 1966 to 1977. Biography Gómez moved with his family from Puerto Rico at a young age to New York, where he was raised. ...

(bass), and Jack DeJohnette (drums). Three more albums followed for Blue Note: ''Peeping Tom'' (1990), ''Standards'' (1991), and ''Paris'' (1992). During this period Smith hosted a series of BBC-TV specials called ''Jazz Types'' in which he performed with guests such as

Tommy Flanagan Thomas Lee Flanagan (March 16, 1930 – November 16, 2001) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He grew up in Detroit, initially influenced by such pianists as Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, and Nat King Cole, and then by bebop musicians. ...

, Gary Burton, Chick Corea,

Bobby Watson Robert Michael Watson Jr. (born August 23, 1953), known professionally as Bobby Watson, is an American saxophonist, composer, and educator. Music career Watson was born in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and grew up in Kansas City, Kansas. He ...

Arild Andersen Arild Andersen (born 27 October 1945) is a Norwegian jazz musician bassist, known as the most famous Norwegian bass player in the international jazz scene. Career Andersen was born at Strømmen, Norway. He started his musical career as jazz g ...

Hue and Cry In common law, a hue and cry is a process by which bystanders are summoned to assist in the apprehension of a criminal who has been witnessed in the act of committing a crime. History By the Statute of Winchester of 1285, 13 Edw. I statute 2. c ...

, and the

BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (BBC SSO) is a Scottish broadcasting symphony orchestra based in Glasgow. One of five full-time orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC), it is the oldest full-time professional r ...

. Smith recorded and toured with Hue and Cry, a duo of brothers Pat and Greg Kane with American vibist Joe Locke, percussionist Trilok Gurtu, and Arild Andersen. Smith also examined classical composition, leading to his first saxophone concerto, ''Unirsi in Matrimonio'', and a suite for saxophone and strings, ''Un Ecossais a Paris''. In 1993, Smith joined the Scottish record label,

Linn Records Linn Records is a Glasgow-based record label which specialises in classical music, jazz and Scottish music. It is part of Linn Products. History While Linn engineers were testing their flagship product, the Sondek LP12 turntable, they became fr ...

. His albums, ''Reminiscence'' (1993), ''Misty Morning and No Time'' (1994), ''Azure'' (1995, with Jon Christensen,

Lars Danielsson Lars Danielsson (born 5 September 1958) is a Swedish jazz bassist, composer, and record producer. Biography Danielsson was born in Smålandsstenar, and was educated at the music conservatory in Gothenburg. He plays double bass, electric bass ...

and

Kenny Wheeler Kenneth Vincent John Wheeler, OC (14 January 1930 – 18 September 2014) was a Canadian composer and trumpet and flugelhorn player, based in the U.K. from the 1950s onwards. Most of his performances were rooted in jazz, but he was also active ...

), and ''Beasts of Scotland'' (1996) were released. Writing in ''Playboy'' magazine, Neil Tesser noted of ''Beasts of Scotland'' that "Smith's artful writing makes the ensemble sound like a petite Philharmonic." ''The Sound of Love'' followed. Recorded in New York City in September 1997 with Kenny Barron (piano), Peter Washington (bass), and Billy Drummond (drums), it focused on the Duke Ellington-Billy Strayhorn songbook. ''Gymnopedie: The Classical Side of Tommy Smith'' (1998) was recorded with his regular duo partner, classical pianist Murray McLachlan. The disc included music by Satie, Bartok, Grieg, and Chick Corea, and Smith's Sonatas No. 1 "Hall of Mirrors" and No. 2 "Dreaming With Open Eyes" based on Michael Tucker's book of the same title. Returning to jazz and to New York the following year, Smith then recorded his final album for Linn, ''Blue Smith'', with John Scofield and his regular rhythm section of bassist

James Genus James Genus (January 20, 1966) is an American jazz bassist. He plays both electric bass guitar and upright bass and currently plays in the Saturday Night Live Band. Genus has performed as a session musician and sideman throughout his career, hav ...

and drummer

Clarence Penn Clarence Lacquese Penn (born March 2, 1968) is an American jazz drummer and composer. Early life Penn was born in Detroit on March 2, 1968.Kennedy, Gary W"Clarence Penn" ''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'' (2nd edition). Grove Music Online. Oxf ...

Scottish National Jazz Orchestra

In 1995 Smith founded the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, which has presented programs of repertory classics and more contemporary works, often specially commissioned. The repertory programs have included Duke Ellington's extended suites, celebrations of

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

and

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

(with special guest Ken Peplowski) and the collaborations between

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

and

Gil Evans Ian Ernest Gilmore Evans (né Green; May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988) was a Canadian–American jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest orchestrators in jazz, playing an important role ...

– ''Porgy & Bess'', ''Sketches of Spain'' (both with Gerard Presencer as trumpet soloist) and ''Miles Ahead'' (with Ingrid Jensen). SNJO has presented the music of

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

Oliver Nelson Oliver Edward Nelson (June 4, 1932 – October 28, 1975) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. His 1961 Impulse! album ''The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' (1961) is regarded as one of the most signifi ...

Benny Carter Bennett Lester Carter (August 8, 1907 – July 12, 2003) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. With Johnny Hodges, he was a pioneer on the alto saxophone. From the beginning of his career ...

Stan Kenton Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though K ...

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk (, October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including " 'Round Midnight", "B ...

, Steely Dan,

Astor Piazzolla Astor Pantaleón Piazzolla (, ; March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer, bandoneon player, and arranger. His works revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed '' nuevo tango'', incorporating elements fro ...

, and

Pat Metheny Patrick Bruce Metheny ( ; born August 12, 1954) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. He is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works, and other side projects. His style incorporates elements of progre ...

(with guitarists Jim Mullen, Phil Robson, Mike Walker and Kevin MacKenzie) and premiered special commissions by Keith Tippett,

Florian Ross Florian Ross (born 1972) is a German jazz pianist, composer and arranger. Life and career Ross was born in Pforzheim in 1972. His debut recording as leader was made for Naxos Records in 1998 – ''Seasons & Places''. In 2011, he was commission ...

, and Geoffrey Keezer, as well as specially commissioned arrangements of

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...

, Chick Corea (with drummer Gary Novak),

Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles Dav ...

featuring Gary Burton, Electric Miles featuring John Scofield, Weather Report featuring

Peter Erskine Peter Erskine (born June 5, 1954) is an American jazz drummer who was a member of the jazz fusion groups Weather Report and Steps Ahead. Early life and education Erskine was born in Somers Point, New Jersey, U.S. He began playing the dru ...

, and

Kurt Elling Kurt Elling (born November 2, 1967) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Rockford, Illinois, Rockford, Elling became interested in music through his father, who was Kapellmeister at a Lutheran chur ...

. In addition, SNJO has performed music by contemporary jazz musicians. These include Kenny Wheeler's ''Sweet Sister Suite''; Joe Lovano's '' Celebrating Sinatra'' with arrangements by Manny Albam; the music of

Maria Schneider Maria Schneider may refer to: * Maria Schneider (politician) (born 1923), East German politician * Maria Schneider (actress) (1952–2011), French actress * Maria Schneider (musician) Maria Lynn Schneider (born November 27, 1960) is an Americ ...

conducted by the composer; and Smith's ''Planet Wave'', a large-scale composition made possible by the Arts Foundation/Barclays Bank jazz composition fellowship prize which marries Smith's music to text by poet Edwin Morgan. The concerts with Lovano also featured the premiere of Smith's ''Torah'', a work based on the first five books of the Bible in which a titanic struggle occurs between good and evil. Written over seventy days, the fifty-minute composition was created for Lovano and SNJO. During the same evening that ''Torah'' was being premiered in Scotland, Cleo Laine and

John Dankworth Sir John Phillip William Dankworth, CBE (20 September 1927 – 6 February 2010), also known as Johnny Dankworth, was an English jazz composer, saxophonist, clarinettist and writer of film scores. With his wife, jazz singer Dame Cleo Laine, he ...

premiered ''The Morning of the Imminent'' by Smith and Morgan at The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

Classical music

In 1989 Smith performed ''An Rathad ùr'', a concerto for saxophone by William Sweeney, with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra for the television series ''Jazz Types'', which Smith also presented. Prompted by Roger Pollen of the Scottish Ensemble, he spent six months studying orchestration for strings with a commission for saxophone and strings very much in mind. As a Blue Note musician at the time, Smith had access to the parent company EMI's classical catalogue. He researched orchestration texts by Samuel Adler, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Cecil Forsyth, and spent two productive years in Paris where he studied classical music. He wrote his first classical composition, ''Unirsi in Matrimonio'', for saxophone and strings in 1990. This was followed by another work for strings and saxophone, ''Un Ecossais A Paris'' in 1991, and he collaborated with classical pianist ( Murray McLachlan) for ''Sonata No.1 - Hall of Mirrors'' and ''Sonata No.2 Dreaming with Open Eyes'', both for saxophone and piano. The next seven years were spent preparing for a much bigger orchestral work, the saxophone concerto ''Hiroshima'' (1998). This was premiered with the Orchestra of St. John Smith's Square at Chelmsford Cathedral and included strings, brass, woodwinds, percussion, piano, and saxophone. Smith appeared as solo saxophonist for Sally Beamish's ''The Knotgrass Elegy'', commissioned for the 2001 BBC Proms, and performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall in London. In 2002, Smith performed his earlier and much lengthier re-invention of ''Children's Songs'' for saxophone and orchestra with the Scottish Ensemble at St John's Kirk, Perth. Other classical music endeavours have included a massive undertaking for the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra's 40th anniversary in 2003. A suite, entitled ''Edinburgh'', was written for the occasion with saxophone, bass, drums, and a one hundred person symphony orchestra. The work toured Scotland, Estonia, Russia, and Finland

Discography

As leader

* 1983 ''Giant Strides'' (GFM) * 1983 ''Taking Off'' (Head) * 1984 ''The Berklee Tapes'' Forward Motion (Hep) * 1985 ''Progressions'' Forward Motion (Hep) * 1988 ''Step by Step'' with (

), ( Jack DeJohnette), (

Eddie Gomez Eddie or Eddy may refer to: Science and technology *Eddy (fluid dynamics), the swirling of a fluid and the reverse current created when the fluid flows past an obstacle * Eddie (text editor), a text editor originally for BeOS and now ported to Lin ...

) (

) * 1990 ''Peeping Tom'' (

) * 1991 ''Standards'' (

) * 1992 ''Paris'' (

) * 1993 ''Reminiscence'' with Forward Motion (

Linn Linn may refer to: People * Linn (surname) * Linn (given name) * Linn da Quebrada, stage name of Brazilian singer, actress, screenwriter and television personality Lina Pereira dos Santos (born 1990) Places Germany * Linn (Gangkofen), a part ...

) * 1994 ''Misty Morning and No Time'' (Linn) * 1995 ''Azure'' with (

), (

), ( Jon Christensen)(Linn) * 1996 ''Beasts of Scotland'' (Linn) * 1997 ''The Sound of Love'' with (

Kenny Barron Kenny Barron (born June 9, 1943) is an American jazz pianist, who has appeared on hundreds of recordings as leader and sideman and is considered one of the most influential mainstream jazz pianists since the bebop era. Biography Born in Philadel ...

) (Linn) * 1999 ''Blue Smith'' with (

)(Linn) * 1999 ''Gymnopedié'' with ( Murray McLachlan) (Linn) * 2000 ''Spartacus'' with (

) (Spartacus) * 2001 ''Into Silence'' (Spartacus) * 2001 ''The Christmas Concert'' (Spartacus) * 2002 ''Alone At Last'' (Spartacus) * 2002 ''Bezique'' with Brian Kellock (Spartacus) * 2003 ''Evolution'' with (

), (

Joe Lovano Joseph Salvatore Lovano (born December 29, 1952)"Joe Lovano." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 13. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 1994. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, May 5, 2017. is an American jazz saxophonist, alto clarin ...

), ( John Taylor), (

John Patitucci John Patitucci (born December 22, 1959) is an American jazz bassist and composer. Biography John James Patitucci was born in Brooklyn, New York. When he was 12, he bought his first bass and decided on his career. He listened to bass parts in R ...

), ( Bill Stewart) (Spartacus) * 2004 ''Symbiosis'' with Brian Kellock (Spartacus) * 2005 ''Forbidden Fruit'' (Spartacus) * 2011 ''Karma'' (Spartacus) * 2014 ''Whispering of the Stars'' with Brian Kellock (Spartacus) * 2016 ''Modern Jacobite'' with BBCSSO (Spartacus) * 2017 ''Embodying the Light'' (Spartacus) With the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra * 2002 ''Miles Ahead'' (Spartacus) * 2009 ''Rhapsody in Blue Live'' (Spartacus) * 2010 ''Torah'' (Spartacus) * 2012 ''Celebration'' with (

)(ECM) * 2013 ''In the Spirit of Duke'' (Spartacus) * 2014 ''American Adventure'' with (

Mike Stern Mike Stern (born January 10, 1953) is an American jazz guitarist. After playing with Blood, Sweat & Tears, he worked with drummer Billy Cobham, then with trumpeter Miles Davis from 1981 to 1983 and again in 1985. He then began a solo career, ...

)(Spartacus) * 2015 ''Jeunehomme'' with Makoto Ozone (Spartacus) * 2018 ''Sweet Sister Suite'' with Laura Jurd (Spartacus) * 2018 ''Peter & the Wolf'' (Spartacus) With the Tommy Smith Youth Jazz Orchestra * 2008 ''Exploration'' (Spartacus) * 2011 ''Emergence'' (Spartacus) * 2017 ''Effervescence'' (Spartacus) With

and

Paolo Vinaccia Paolo Vinaccia (Camerino, 27 March 1954 – Oslo, 5 July 2019) was an Italian jazz drummer who lived in Norway. He died on July 5, 2019 after almost ten years of living with pancreatic cancer. Career Vinaccia worked with Terje Rypdal, Bendik ...

* 2008 ''Live at Belleville'' (ECM) * 2014 ''

Mira Mira (), designation Omicron Ceti (ο Ceti, abbreviated Omicron Cet, ο Cet), is a red-giant star estimated to be 200–400 light-years from the Sun in the constellation Cetus. ο Ceti is a binary stellar system, consisting of a vari ...

'' (ECM) * 2018 ''In-House Science'' (ECM)

As guest

* 1981 European Community Jazz Orchestra, ''Eurojazz'' * 1986

, '' Whiz Kids'' (ECM) * 1996

, ''Jazz Not Jazz'' (Linn) * 1997

Karen Matheson Karen Matheson OBE (born 11 February 1963) is a Scottish folk singer who frequently sings in Gaelic. She is the lead singer of the group Capercaillie and was a member of Dan Ar Braz's group L'Héritage des Celtes, with whom she often sang lea ...

, ''The Dreaming Sea'' (Survival) * 1999 Hue and Cry, ''Next Move'' (Linn) * 2001 Clark Tracey, ''Stability'' (Linn) * 2004 Joe Locke, ''Dear Life'' (Sirocco) * 2005 Reynolds Jazz Orchestra, ''Cube'' (Shanti) * 2006 Pino Iodice, ''High Tension'' * 2007 Loic Dequidt, ''Nomade'' (Kopasetic) * 2010

Michael McGoldrick Michael McGoldrick (born 26 November 1971, in Manchester, England) is a folk musician who plays Irish flute, uilleann pipes, low whistle and bodhran. He also plays other instruments such as acoustic guitar, cittern, and mandolin. Bands McGo ...

, ''Aurora'' (Secret Music) * 2013 Capercaillie, ''At the Heart of It'' (Secret Music) * 2015

, ''Passion World'' * 2017 Giuliana Soscia & Pino Jodice Quartet Meets Tommy Smith, ''North Wind'' (Alman Music)

Awards and honors

References

External links

Official siteSNJOTommy Smith Youth Jazz Orchestra "TSYJO"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Tommy 1967 births Living people Musicians from Edinburgh Jazz tenor saxophonists Scottish jazz composers Scottish jazz saxophonists British male saxophonists People educated at Broughton High School, Edinburgh 21st-century saxophonists Officers of the Order of the British Empire Male jazz composers 21st-century British male musicians