Thomas Manuel

Jazz historian, music educator and trumpet player Dr. Thomas Manuel received his formal music training from Boston University and completed his DMA in Jazz Performance at Stony Brook University. His mentors included Warren Vache and Ray Anderson. As the recipient of an endowed Artist in Residence Fellow chair within the Jazz department at Stony Brook University, Manuel also directs the Loft School of Jazz in residence at the Jazz Loft. In addition to this he serves as co-chair of the Stony Brook University Strategic Planning Committee, a member of the Long Island Arts Education Coalition which is chaired by New York State Regent Roger Tilles, and is also a member of the Huntington Arts Council Decentralization Advisory Committee. Manuel also served as a trustee to the Frank Melville Memorial Foundation from 2018-2023.

Manuel has been cited for his accomplishments by The New York Times, Downbeat Magazine, Newsday, Jazz Inside Magazine, Jazz Ed Magazine and has been featured with his Big Band ensemble on radio, television, as well as several CD albums. A strong advocate for education with a passion for global outreach, Manuel established a music program for under-privileged students in Port Au Prince Haiti. He was also honored as the guest speaker for the graduation ceremony for the Greater Vision Christian School in New Kru Town, just outside the capital city of Monrovia in Liberia, Africa. During his time there he established a music program for the school and was fortunate to direct the students in their first concert.

Manuel dedicates his professional efforts to both the preservation of Long Island’s Jazz history as well as presenting it to future generations. He has taught in the public school system for over a decade, on the collegiate level, and served for many years as a member of the Suffolk County Music Educators Association (SCMEA) Executive Board. In May 2016 Manuel officially opened The Jazz Loft in Stony Brook, NY. As its founder, curator and artistic director he takes pride in this innovative and creative space which joins Jazz performance, Jazz preservation and Jazz education in celebration of the past, present, and future. Manuel has received several honors for his dedication to the American born art form of Jazz including Stony Brook Universities 40 Under 40 Award, several Suffolk County Proclamations, the East End Arts & Humanities Council 2020 Music Masters residency, the 2019 Applied Improvisation Network International Conference artist presenter, and the 2016 Person of the Year in Brookhaven award from the Times Beacon Record.

He has been a speaker for The Oberon Foundation, Long Island Library Resources Council 27th Annual Archives Council, The New York State Council of Administrators and Music Educators, and many other organizations. Recent projects and endeavor included an educational outreach to Havana, Cuba, collaborating with several top Jazz artists, professors, producers and an independent film maker, a production of Oliver Nelson’s Kennedy Dream which also included world premier compositions by he and a collective of leading Jazz artist-composers, and most recently the production of a documentary film exploring the life and career of vocal icon Frank Sinatra.