TOMMY CRANE

Tommy Crane is a fixture in both the Montreal and New York creative music scenes. With a background in improvisational music and jazz from the New School, Crane began touring with The Mingus Big Band in 2002, and has collaborated with artists such as Melissa Aldana, David Binney, Joe Chambers, La Force, FYEAR, Aaron Parks’ Little Big, Logan Richardson, Unessential Oils, Half Waif, and Martha Wainwright.

In 2017, he composed the score for 'Preservation' at Lincoln Center, collaborating with filmmaker Tracy Maurice. He played a pivotal role in Melissa Aldana's Grammy-nominated album 'Visions' in 2020. In 2022, he released his debut solo album, "We’re All Improvisers Now," on the London-based label Whirlwind Recordings. His upcoming album, "Dance Music for All Occasions," pays tribute to his late father, Nolan Crane. From 2019 to 2020, Crane taught at the Siena Jazz Institute in Italy and returned to the International Summer Program in 2023.

In 2019-2022 Crane was a professor at the Siena Jazz Institute in Italy, teaching master classes in the Graduate Studies Program and the International Summer Program, again in 2023. He has given talks and master classes at Berklee College of Music, The Oslo Conservatory, McGill University, and The Sibelius Academy, among others.

In 2024, Crane curated the “Beyond Jazz” series at Martha Wainwright’s venue, URSA, leading to the creation of the “Anti-Jazz Police” Festival. Crane's compositions have been featured on various WNYC podcasts and platforms like NPR's 'Death, Sex, and Money' and 'Vine Pair'. His work has garnered attention in The New York Times, Modern Drummer, and The Guardian.