RHS Band Boosters are thrilled to host Reggie Thomas as our first Artist in Residence

“One of the most in demand pianists and educators in the country, Reggie Thomas’ soulful, hard-swinging brand of piano immediately grabs an audience and assures them that a swinging time is set to be had by all.” jazzstl.org

Pianist Reggie Thomas is based in the midwest between Chicago and St. Louis but, since his recent retirement as Coordinator/Director of the internationally recognized Northern Illinois University School of Music's Jazz Studies program, he has even more liberty to spend time performing all over this country and in other parts of the world. NIU’s Jazz Orchestra has been featured at venues such as the Chicago Jazz Festival and recently was selected to perform at Jazz at Lincoln Center for the Jack Rudin Jazz Championship. Reggie came to NIU from the Michigan State University College of Music, where he served as Professor of Jazz Piano. Prior to his position at MSU, he was Professor of Music at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and was SIUE's Director of Black Studies.


Reggie has performed at festivals around the world – St. Louis Jazz Festival in Senegal, West Africa; The Montreal International Jazz Festival; and The Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta, Indonesia. He now spends a great deal of time as pianist for the Legendary Count Basie Orchestra with whom he performed at a festival before the King of Thailand and in many other parts of the world. Thomas has performed abroad in  Brisbane, Calgary, London, Milan, Montreal, Poznan, Senegal, Sydney, Toronto, Trinidad and Warsaw. He has also performed across the US in cities including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle.



As a recording artist Thomas has appeared as a leader or co-leader on several recordings. The most recent, Matters of the Heart (with wife Mardra), followed previous recordings Fade to Blue (Mack Avenue Records), Standard Time (Victoria) and 4 (Jazz Compass). Recordings as a sideman include Clay Jenkins’ Yellow Flowers After (Chase Music Group) and Azure Eyes (Chase Music Group), Kim Richmond’s Ballads (Chase Music Group) and Inner Spirit (Jazz Compass), Clark Terry/Mike Vax’ Creepin’ With Clark (Summit) and the MSU Professors of Jazz Better Than Alright.



Reggie remains active with some of the top institutions in jazz and music education including 2023 Juror for The American Pianist Association and recent travel to South Africa to serve as a juror for the 14th Unisa International Piano Competition 2020. Since 2018 he has served as the ensemble coach for NYO Jazz Orchestra, a national youth jazz orchestra created by The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall and teaches for their Summer Music Educators Workshops. From 2004-16, he served as a clinician and education consultant for Jazz at Lincoln Center, working with the Essentially Ellington Program and Band Director Academy. Since 2011 he has worked with the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz (formerly the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz) serving as accompanist for the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competitions.

Thomas has directed All State Jazz Bands, Combos and Jazz Choirs in Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, South Dakota and Tennessee and directed the first ever Missouri All-College Jazz Band. He has served on summer jazz faculties across the country and abroad including the IAJE Teacher Training Institute, the Birch Creek Music Center, the Eastman School of Music Summer Jazz Camp, the Summer Jazz Academy in Chodziez, Poland, the Barbican Center in London, and the University of Trinidad and Tobago. Reggie was an early recipient of the Excellence in the Arts award from the Greater St. Louis Arts and Education Council and has been named in Riverfront Times "Best of St. Louis" as Best Jazz Artist.