About

Tom Shad is a New York City-based bassist and music teacher. He has been tirelessly active as a performer, recording artist and teacher for over 30 years, and has lent his talents to a diverse array of projects, from critically acclaimed rock bands (such as Dumptruck) to world-renowned performance spectacles (Blue Man Group) and much more.

Tom's deep respect for music extends far beyond his orientation towards bass guitar. He remains voracious in his consumption of music books, records, documentaries, and live performances. He has never ceased the process of active learning. As such, his nearly encyclopedic knowledge of music both past and present is a great asset to his teaching. In fact, he dislikes the idea of genres—"It's all music," as he once succinctly put it, and it is this worldview that affords him a great amount of flexibility as a teacher. Whatever your musical interests are, Tom is likely to know how to help push you in the direction you want to go.

Teaching/Performance Experience

Private Bass, Guitar and Ear Training/Harmony Instruction (1980-present)

Blue Man Group
Chapman stick, bass guitar and talking drum
(1991-2015)

Come Join the Band
Music teacher (2012-present)

Kids Creative Summer Camp
Music teacher 2014, 2015 and 2017

School of Rock NYC
Guitar and bass instructor (2008-2009)

Fretless Guitar Festival
Tom Shad Trio (2006)

Volunteer Bass Instructor
Gerald Veasley's Bass Boot Camp (2012)

Solo Bass CD
Quixotic (2008)

Specializations

Improvisation
Music theory
Music technology (MIDI and digital recording)
Live performance
Music history

Education

Sarah Lawrence College
Studies in early music, chamber Improvisation and composition (1983- 1987)

Berklee School of Music
Studies in bass performance, ear training and arranging (1983-1984)

Albums

Cowboy and Spin Girl, eponymous
1987 Subway Records

Dumptruck "For the Country"
1987 Big Time Records

Otis Ball and the Chains
"I'm Gonna Love You 'Till I Don't Love You Anymore"
1989 Bar None Records

Brilliant Coroners "Brilliant Coroners" 
1998 Yeah Man Record

Dark Ages " Dark Ages"

https://darkagesnyc.bandcamp.com/album/dark-ages

Damfino " Disembodied Smile"

http://damfino.bandcamp.com/album/disembodied-smile

Shale "Current"

http://music.jsegel.com/album/current

Tours

Riff Doctors
Cowboy and Spin Girl
Dumptruck

Videos

Dumptruck "Going Nowhere" and "Island"

References available upon request