Tom Armstrong (b. 1968) studied composition with George Nicholson and, at York University, Roger Marsh. Performers of his music include the Fidelio Trio, Jane Chapman, Notes Inégales, Gemini, the New Music Players, Psappha, the Delta Saxophone Quartet, the BBC Philharmonic and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, playing in venues such as Kings Place, the Wigmore Hall, the Southbank Centre and the Lowry as well as Europe and China.

Tom’s current interests involve: establishing a more collaborative relationship between composer and performer, the creative possibilities of revision, and musical borrowing. Albumleaves (2013), commissioned by trumpeter Simon Desbruslais and the Ligeti Quartet, and JPR (2015), for period instruments, both employ varying degrees of indeterminacy. His latest CD, Dance Maze (Resonus Classics 2018), contains pieces recorded in different versions involving radically different approaches to the same materials. JPR, Distant Beauties (commissioned by Images Ballet Company for their 2017 UK tour) and Tänze each originate from pre-existing music, subjecting it to processes of erasure to bring forth new material.

Tom’s teaching and research at the University of Surrey (where he is a Senior Lecturer) coalesce around his compositional activity. In 2016 he directed the AHRC-funded research network, Music Composition as Interdisciplinary Practice.