Tom joins the morning rush on the New York City subway

With only two hours of primetime rush, the crowd of commuters flow in waves while Tom chooses an assortment of jigs and melodies to catch their ears.

Every now and then he breaks his trance to greet others with a smile.

Tom’s life is music. When he has the opportunity he performs free jazz, an unconventional style of improvised jazz, absent of set chord or time patterns.. Here he performs at happylucky no.1 in Brookyln, New York.

You’ll also find Tom at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music …

Here Tom provides violin lessons to students of all ages.

While Tom has played the violin for over forty years, his real passion is composing music.

He shares his Brooklyn home with his wife Molly.

Tom and Molly met when he was busking (performing on the street for money). Hearing him play the Ashokan Farewell, she was immediately smitten.

In honor of his late professor Olly Wilson, Tom composed a song to be performed at his memorial in Berkley, California.

Tom comes from a family of musicians. Pictured here are his parents.