As a leader in the music industry, Underwood has embarked on a mission that aligns education and community impact.
As a solo tuba artist, Antonio “Tony” Underwood is a unique figure in the music industry. His reimagining of the tuba as a lead instrument has advanced its role in cross-genre composition, building truly distinctive musical landscapes. Having released over 20 albums through his label, Tone East Music, LLC, Underwood continues to push the limits of sonic performance.
Tony Underwood | Tone East Music Radio
Early Music Success
Underwood rose to prominence during his music education at a prominent university, earning music awards soon after. Within the year of graduation, his performance in “Juan Darien”, written and directed by Julie Taymor (The Lion King), earned significant acclaim.
In the early 1990s, Underwood contributed as a tuba performer to major stage and recording productions, gaining recognition within the industry. From this point, Underwood took an interest in the tuba’s potential as a solo instrument.
Building Tone East Music, LLC
When Underwood was asked to compose, write, and produce five pieces for “Trent Song,” the debut CD of Pony Canyon Records by saxophonist John Purcell in 1994, he saw an opportunity. That year, Underwood founded Tone East Music, LLC as a production company; through it, he composed, produced, and performed on keyboards and vocals for the CD project.
Underwood worked with recognized vocalists, composers, producers, bassists, and drummers, including producer Steven Jordan; Lisa Fischer, former background vocalist for The Rolling Stones and Luther Vandross; the late composer Katreese Barnes; and the late Anthony Jackson, who is credited with developing the six-string bass. Through Tone East Music, LLC, Underwood advanced his vision of a company that could feature the tuba across many musical forms.
He also built a platform that could educate students on practice, technique, and theory.
Continued Involvement in Music and Education
After building Tone East Music, LLC, Underwood became an Arts & Music scholar at a well-regarded institution. He then earned recognition for his contributions as a “Jazz in Society” Fulbright lecturer at the University of Novi Sad Academy of Art in Serbia between 2015 and 2016.
Additionally, Underwood became a delegate to the Yale University Alumni Assembly through the Yale School of Music from 2022 to 2024 and Mid-Atlantic VP and executive board member of the Yale Science & Engineering Association Inc.
In recent years, Underwood has placed a greater emphasis on education. Through Tone East Music, LLC, he is developing the Help Kids Help Themselves program, an initiative to create a medium that integrates classical, jazz, and contemporary music with modern visual formats. By building this connection, Underwood hopes to revitalize young people’s love of musical study.
“By tapping into the human condition and helping to create art that helps youth to help themselves, or see themselves, [we’ll give them] a place to develop, gain experience, and prepare for job opportunities as they arise.”
Future Ambition
Moving forward, Underwood has reflected on his experience in the Balkans. He is interested in continuing his teaching there, when possible, including holding seminars and workshops on jazz music and United States history. At the University of Sarajevo’s Academy of Music in Bosnia and Herzegovina, he aims to work with the administration and staff to develop a jazz curriculum unavailable anywhere else in the country.
His Zoom lectures at the University of Sarajevo’s Academy of Music in 2021 opened further conversations with the administration about potential Fulbright teaching and research opportunities at the University of Prishtina in Kosovo, as well as in other countries across the Baltic and Asian regions, should grant funding for this type of training and jazz curriculum become available.
Rolling Stone MENA was not involved in the creation of this content.
