Bio
"Tom Izzo's music always surprises me with its freshness and sense of adventure. On the one hand he takes risks with improvisation, form, mixing technology and media. On the other, his great ear and craft always make the result sound perfectly natural." Robert Carl, Composer & author of "Terry Riley's In C".
My primary instrument is guitar which I began playing at around age five. I'm left handed and self taught which led me to pick up a right handed guitar and simply turn it over, essentially playing upside down and backwards. It's an odd trait that reminds me to try to approach creative problems with an open mind.
I began my professional career at the age of eighteen working as a session musician. My formative professional career was centered around playing guitar on recording sessions for various artists and companies such as VH1, MTV and Sony records.
It was at this time that I began to seriously study the craft of songwriting, diving deep into The Beatles, Todd Rundgren, Elvis Costello, and so on. I bought a cassette 4 track and went to town writing a bunch of bad songs, but the fun of writing and recording had me hooked.
I spent a good number of years writing and playing gigs, ending with a long term case of writer's block which eventually led me to a complete standstill creatively. I couldn't see the point in writing music that didn't match up to the impossible standard I held myself to. Oddly enough, it was this impasse that led me to study classical music composition.
I'd always been interested in Classical music and had a growing need to better understand the sounds I was hearing. I was also seeking a way out of my creative rut and I thought that perhaps writing music that didn't require words would lead me to creative freedom.
At the age of 30 I was lucky enough to find a private teacher who eventually encouraged me to study at a conservatory, specifically the Hartt School. That experience changed my thinking on music on a number of different levels. It was akin to putting on glasses and realizing how much you weren't seeing, truly revelatory.
In my professional career as a composer, I've been fortunate to have had performances throughout the USA, Europe and South America. I've had my work premiered at such revered venues as Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall. Through commissions, I've been able to work with some amazing choreographers, dancers, performers and film makers.
My detour into the world of Classical music gave me the inner space to go back to songwriting with a renewed perspective and so now I exist in two musical worlds, which suits me fine.
If you like to commission me to compose music for your ensemble or project I'd be thrilled to work with you. I've written Industrial music, film scores, concert music, Podcast theme music and everything in between. It's all interesting and fun to me and I'm always grateful to collaborate with interesting people.
