Faculty profile

Tom McGrath has been Instructor of Applied Percussion and Director of the Percussion Ensemble at SUNY Oswego since fall, 2011. His percussion performance background includes jazz trios/duos; small and large big band; contemporary folk; modern dance; rhythm & blues; and classical and modern percussion repertoire.  From 1987-2005, he owned and operated Tom-Tom Recording Studio, N.Y.C. where he performed with and/or produced a diversity of musicians and singer songwriters in the tri-state area, including, Jeremy Wall (Spyra Gyra); Art Garfunkel (Simon and Garfunkel); drum set artists Max Roach, Ginger Baker and Bernard “Pretty” Purdie; composer, John Cage; Louis St. Louis (music director - Smokey Joe’s Café); choreographers, Mimi Garrard and David Parker; contemporary folk duo, Minus Ted, and cellist, Dawn Avery.  Other associated live performances include Aretha Franklin; Count Basie trumpeter, Joe Wilder; influential rappers Melle Mel and Afrika Bambaataa; while also sharing stage performances with Joe Cocker, B.B. King, the Stray Cats and the rhythm and blues group, Mtume.