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Tommy Poole

Tommy Poole is Director of Jazz Studies and assistant professor of music at Oklahoma State University. An active saxophonist and woodwind doubler in a variety of genres, he has recorded as saxophonist on numerous CD's ranging in style from classical, to jazz, to pop. He has performed professionally with Ramsey Lewis, Diane Schuur, The Woody Herman Orchestra, Andy Montanez, Joe Williams, and Mercer Ellington among many others.

Poole’s arrangements/compositions have been featured on at least eight CDs. His first three CD's as producer featured compositions, arrangements, and performances by Poole and received critical acclaim from AllAboutJazz.com, JazzEd Magazine, Outside in Music, Currentland, and Oklahoma Magazine. Poole’s latest CD, Solid Gold feat. Michael Dease (2017) received four stars from All About Jazz. “The OSU ensemble is exemplary… add multi-talented Michael Dease to the mix, stir emphatically and the upshot is a tasty banquet that’s sure to quicken the appetite of almost any champion of straight-ahead big band jazz.” Jack Bowers, All About Jazz

Poole has presented workshops, or served as guest artist, or guest conductor at California State University Long Beach, California State University Los Angeles, Los Angeles City College, Pittsburg State University, University of Texas at San Antonio, University of Arkansas (Fayetteville), and University of Illinois. He has served in similar fashion for countless regional and national conferences and festivals. His research on metric modulations has been published in Jazz Inside Magazine.

He received his BM and DMA from The University of Texas at Austin and his MM from The University of Miami.

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32
Album Review

OSU Jazz Orchestra: Room 118

Read "Room 118" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Room 118 honors the space in the Seretean Center for the Performing Arts wherein the splendid Oklahoma State University Jazz Orchestra and other on-campus jazz groups held their rehearsals for many years. There must be something special there, as the OSU ensemble is one of the most well-rehearsed university-level jazz ensembles you're likely to encounter this side of the University of North Texas—and even that comparison marks a very close call. Director Tommy Poole had the band burnished and ready ...

9
Album Review

OSU Jazz Orchestra: Solid Gold

Read "Solid Gold" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Having overseen one impressive Jazz Studies program, at Northeast (OK) State University in Tahlequah, Tommy Poole has moved on to Oklahoma State University in Stillwater where he seems well on the way to repeating that success. The subtitle of Solid Gold, the first recording under Poole's direction by the OSU Jazz Orchestra, reads “featuring Michael Dease." And “featuring" is no understatement here. Not only does the Grammy award-winning and DownBeat magazine Rising Star trombonist solo (superbly) on every number, Dease ...

3
Album Review

NSU Jazz'Tet: Out Front

Read "Out Front" reviewed by Jack Bowers


The NSU Jazz'Tet is comprised of seven students (and one faculty member, director / saxophonist Tommy Poole) from the Jazz Studies program at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK. Together they present an assortment of small-group jazz that is scrupulously modern yet firmly grounded in the music's time-honored traditions. Bop is a salient part of their vocabulary, as are blues, ballads, Latin rhythms, funk and even a waltz. Besides putting their best foot forward musically, most members ...

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"Having overseen one impressive Jazz Studies program, at Northeast (OK) State University in Tahlequah, Tommy Poole has moved on to Oklahoma State University in Stillwater where he seems well on the way to repeating that success." Jack Bowers, All About Jazz

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Angular Tuesday

Self Produced
2024

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Room 118

Self Produced
2021

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Last Horizon

Self Produced
2021

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Solid Gold

Self Produced
2018

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Out Front

NSU Jazz Lab
2015

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