Short Professional Bio
Thomas Patteson is a musicologist and musician based in Philadelphia whose work explores sound technology, the history and theory of improvisation, and the interface of music and consciousness studies. He is the author of Instruments for New Music, a history of experimental instruments and early electronic music in the 1920s. His current main project is a translation of the book Die Improvisation in der Musik by Ernst Ferand, the earliest history of improvisational practices in European music. Thomas' research has been supported and recognized by the Fulbright Program, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the American Musicological Society. He has taught at the Curtis Institute of Music and at the University of Pennsylvania, where he is currently a Lecturer in Music.

Long Human Bio
Hello, I am Thomas Patteson, a teacher, writer, curator, and musician who lives in Philadelphia, USA. My work and play revolves around the belief that we humans need music in order to remember our true nature, which is both embodied and infinite.

As a teacher, I help students develop the critical thinking and imagination needed to understand and change the world. I am currently a Lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania, where I teach a first-year seminar called "Music and the Exploration of Consciousness." From 2013 to 2023, I taught in the Musical Studies department at the Curtis Institute of Music, where I developed a new music history curriculum and created elective courses on popular music, electronic music, and improvisation that were the first of their kind at the school. 

As a writer and researcher, I seek to expand our ideas of what music is and what it could be. The focus of my current work is a translation of Ernst Ferand's  1938 book Die Improvisation in der Musik, a groundbreaking history of improvisation in European music. Other writings include The Museum of Imaginary Musical Instruments (based on a website of the same name), Instruments for New Music (a study of experimental sound technologies in Germany during the 1920s and '30s), and the blogs Possible Music (2023-) and Acousmata (2009-2013). 

As a curator, I collaborate with musicians, artists, and institutions to create transformative musical experiences. My main outlet is People's Music Supply, an artist-led platform for improvised music and community-building which I co-founded in 2023. Over the years, I've also worked closely with Philadelphia presenting organizations such as <fidget> and Bowerbird, where I helped launch the Arcana New Music Ensemble in 2016. 

As a musician, I play alto saxophone, keyboard, and electronics in a variety of different groups, including Argyle Torah and the 52nd Street Planetary Ensemble. Some major influences on my musical aesthetics include the creative music tradition, experimental and electronic music of the late 20th century, medieval European polyphony, and Indian classical music. 

Photo by David Dzubinski

Photo by Jessica Brown