Jazz arranging · Contemporary & Hybrid Jazz
MikeTomaro
b. 1954 arranger · composer · orchestrator
Tomaro's arranging style features contemporary approaches accessible to student bands while maintaining high musical standards.
- Predominant era
- Contemporary & Hybrid Jazz
- Lifespan
- b. 1954
- Signature
- expansive register
Bio · 35 words
Mike Tomaro is a saxophonist, composer, educator, and arranger who serves as Director of Jazz Studies at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He studied at Berklee and Eastman before establishing himself as both performer and educator.
01
Musical style
Sound DNA
Five shared dimensions make the arranger’s musical priorities visible at a glance.
Iridescent
Instrumental color leads the design.
Compact
Ideas arrive in tightly packed frames.
Expansive
Wide spans define the orchestral frame.
Ornate
Dense detail rewards close listening.
Elastic
The rhythmic feel expands and contracts.
02
Orchestration
At the
arranging desk
“Small Hours,” orchestrated in the style of Mike Tomaro. Hear the parts, follow the score, and examine the decisions inside each chord.
Original miniature
Small Hours
8 bars · C major · 4/4 Swing eighths · 2:1
Moving reed harmony, independent inner lines and an octave closing gesture provide a compact large-band study. This eight-bar setting uses quarter-note walking bass beneath alto sax.
Choose Play to hear the recorded ensemble.
The passage
Read what you hear
All parts at sounding pitch · middle C = C4 · eighth notes follow the selected feel. Select a bar to inspect or replay it.
Inside the ensemble
Listen by part
Combine Solo buttons to hear a voicing or a doubling. Mute removes a part from the mix.
Downloads include every part at concert pitch. MIDI includes the selected tempo and swing feel.
Bar 01 · I · tonic
Cmaj9
Solo the reed voices first, then compare their role during moving, reply and unison bars.
Sounding pitches
High to low · muted parts are dimmed · note releases can leave a rest between attacks.
| Part | Pitch | Chord role |
|---|
From the arranging bookshelf Sebesky · Nestico
This original Mike Tomaro study applies the books’ approach of examining voicings, registers and instrumental combinations. It illustrates one facet of the artist’s work in a reduced ensemble; it is not a transcription or a reproduction of a book example. The melody and eight-bar progression remain the same throughout the artist collection.
- Don Sebesky, The Contemporary Arranger: “Combining the Woodwinds,” printed pp. 69–70 (PDF pp. 78–79), compares balance at different registers. “Voicing the Strings,” beginning on printed p. 124 (PDF p. 133), discusses distributing string voices. “Combining Strings with Winds,” printed p. 155 (PDF p. 164), demonstrates how a flute changes the color and balance of a string line.
- Sammy Nestico, The Complete Arranger: “Close [Block] Voicing” and “Semi-Open Voicing,” printed p. 24 (PDF p. 26), contrast a compact moving saxophone block with a voice dropped an octave. The part scores and pitch inspector let you examine the spacing used in this artist’s study.
Each artist’s arrangement uses separately recorded parts, so Solo and Mute reveal the same performance heard in the full ensemble. Winds, piano and supported orchestral instruments use MuseSounds; upright bass uses Karoryfer recordings. Other colors retain the credited libraries below. Tempo changes preserve concert pitch.
Performances rendered with free MuseSounds and the libraries below. Recording credits and instrument coverage.
Recordings: VSCO 2 CE (CC0), MTG Solo Saxophones (CC BY 4.0), and Karoryfer Meatbass (CC0). Additional sounds: FluidR3 GM (CC BY 3.0). Full credits and sample changes.
03
Music first
Scores & orchestras
Switch recordings to compare how this arranger’s musical priorities shape each orchestral profile.
Educational Arrangements and Publications
Educational Arrangements and Publications
Tomaro's extensive catalog of educational arrangements represents his major contribution to jazz pedagogy.
Listen forNotice how register shapes the orchestral profile.
Find listening example on YouTubeProfile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
Professional Ensemble Work
Professional Ensemble Work
Tomaro's arrangements for professional ensembles demonstrate his gifts beyond educational contexts.
Listen forNotice how register shapes the orchestral profile.
Find listening example on YouTubeProfile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
Duquesne University Jazz Programs
Duquesne University Jazz Programs
Tomaro's work directing jazz studies at Duquesne demonstrates his comprehensive approach to jazz education.
Listen forNotice how register shapes the orchestral profile.
Find listening example on YouTubeProfile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
04
Start here
Three essential albums
One line each—enough context to choose the next listen.
- 01 — Educational Arrangements and PublicationsMike Tomaro Tomaro's extensive catalog of educational arrangements represents his major contribution to jazz pedagogy.
- 02 — Professional Ensemble WorkMike Tomaro Tomaro's arrangements for professional ensembles demonstrate his gifts beyond educational contexts.
- 03 — Duquesne University Jazz ProgramsMike Tomaro Tomaro's work directing jazz studies at Duquesne demonstrates his comprehensive approach to jazz education.
Voicing & register
At the section’s first attack (beat 1), the voicing is: Alto sax E5 (3); Trumpet B4 (maj7); Trombone G4 (5); Tenor sax D4 (9); Baritone sax E3 (3). Bass path: C2–G2–E2–G♯2.
Timbral combination
The background follows the melody’s attacks, so the harmony moves as a block. Trumpet · answer rests here, leaving the lead color exposed.
Voice leading & harmony
The opening E is the third. G–A–G makes the sixth a brief neighbor before the melody lands on D, the ninth.