Tommy Smith OBE is one of the world’s leading saxophonists. 

A presence on the global jazz scene since his teenage years, when he toured internationally with vibes virtuoso Gary Burton’s Whiz Kids quintet, Smith has gone on to record with the definitive jazz label, Blue Note and work with myriad jazz greats, including Chick Corea, Jaco Pastorius, Dame Cleo Laine, John Scofield, Randy Brecker, Jack DeJohnette, Arild Andersen, Dizzy Gillespie and Trilok Gurtu to name but a few.

Since leaving Berklee College of Music, an experience that shaped his affirmative approach to jazz, he has recorded over thirty solo albums for Blue Note, Linn, ECM and his own Spartacus Record label, toured 50+ countries and performed with many influential figures in modern twentieth-century jazz. 

Tommy’s current live projects include.

Tommy Smith & Gwilym Simcock - Eternal Light
Tommy Smith and pianist Gwilym Simcock present Eternal Light - a powerful new live duo album recorded direct to 2-track at The Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh. The performance is spontaneous, intimate, and unfiltered, revealing the lyrical interplay and improvisational daring that define two of Europe’s leading jazz voices.

“Just pure melody.” — Gary Burton - “A transparent channel of music.” — Kurt Elling ★★★★★ - “Effortless, emotional, and timeless.” — Bill Evans - "Eternal Light” stands out as 'pure Tommy' to my ear & heart." — Makoto Ozone

Tommy Smith Quartet
Tommy Smith released 'Embodying the Light 'in 2017, his powerful tribute to John Coltrane, marking both his own 50th birthday and the 50th anniversary of Coltrane’s passing. Now, with Coltrane’s centenary approaching in 2026, Smith is reissuing the album and touring Europe to honour his greatest hero.

Tommy Smith Solo
Spectacular solo acoustic concerts in churches and cathedrals, where he performs a repertoire of jazz ballads, folk tunes, classical themes and Gregorian chants, combined with lively conversation with the audience.

Although he is primarily a jazz composer, noted for assertive large-scale pieces such as Torah, World of the Gods, Spirit of Light and Beauty and the Beast, Smith’s work has frequently taken him into other spheres such as classical composition and poetry. He released his symphonic work Modern Jacobite, recorded in Glasgow with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and worked extensively with Glasgow’s inaugural poet laureate, Edwin Morgan to create 55 works of poetry and music.

Tommy was founder of the SNJO and Head of Jazz and Professor at Scotland’s Royal Conservatoire. In 2019, he received an Order of the British Empire from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh and in addition to his BBC Heart of Jazz Award, he received two Parliamentary Jazz Awards, and nine Scottish Jazz Awards.