Advanced Arranging Techniques (Tom Anderson)
Got a few arrangements under your belt? Ready to really get your hands dirty? One of the top names in contemporary a cappella arranging takes you under the hood and shows you how to make your charts purr like the pros’.
Tom Anderson knows contemporary a cappella arranging, inside and out. He’s got the experience and the awards. But some say he’s a man of strong opinion. Come with a thick skin and you’ll be in a perfect position learn from a master!
Tom Anderson is the founder, owner, and creative director of Random Notes. As a professional arranger specializing in a cappella music, his clients include some of the top names at all levels of a cappella. Grammy winners The Swingle Singers, “The Sing-Off” winners Committed, international high school champs Vocal Rush and Limited Edition, the “Asian Pentatonix” MICappella, youth choirs from Idaho to South Africa, and countless others have used Tom’s arranging to help shape their sound.
Originally from northern Minnesota, Tom was a member of professional Minneapolis aca group Four Shadow at age 19. While studying music composition at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, he was the original music director of UWEC a cappella group Fifth Element and played piano in the jazz band that DownBeat Magazine named the best in the country. After college, he returned to the road as a member of Boston pro group Ball in the House, leaving just prior to the arrival of a brilliant young tenor named Peter Hollens.
When Peter left BitH to return to the University of Oregon and his college group, On the Rocks, he asked Tom to arrange a song for him. That song, a cover of Mr. Mister’s “Kyrie”, was nominated for a Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award for Song of the Year, putting both Peter’s golden pipes and Tom’s arranging on the map. Tom’s collaborations with Peter and On the Rocks have continued ever since, including OTR’s successful run on Season 2 of NBC’s “The Sing-Off” and nearly every song that Peter has released in a solo a cappella career (now on Sony Masterworks) that has garnered over 160 million YouTube views (and counting).
These days, Tom’s arrangements can be heard just about anywhere there’s contemporary a cappella music – from concert halls and compilation albums (a combined 24 appearances on Sing!, BOCA, and Voices Only) to Disney theme parks and Royal Caribbean cruises. He also works in instrumental idioms, including recent work as the lead orchestrator for an Off-Broadway musical. Tom is a frequent instructor and masterclinician at a cappella festivals and workshops (including his own intensive week-long workshop, Next Level Arrangements, presented in conjunction with The Vocal Company) and currently serves as the Vice President of the Contemporary A Cappella Society (CASA). He is a diehard Twins fan and is certain that 2016 is their year.
Contact Tom at tom@random-notes.com!