For 15 years Thomas Helton has laid down basslines for jazz ensembles in Houston and around the US. He has deep-seated love and respect for jazz traditions, ingrained by instructors like Shelly Berg and Larry Slezak. In a tribute to Houston musicians, he compiled and published the first Houston Musician's Realbook. He has appeared at the Montreux Jazz Festival, and has recorded with Joe LoCascio, Carol Morgan, Chris Connolly, Smitty, Kevin Patton, & Cindy Scott.
Thomas brings all of his passion and experience for jazz to the table when it comes to his other half, avant-garde music. Early in his jazz career, Thomas was inspired by the sounds of John Zorn and Peter Kowald to venture outside mainstream musical bounds. This journey began with the Rosta Jazz Avengers, a Houston-based quartet all about free improvisation and sonic exploration. Thomas quickly jumped into composition, beginning to develop a style that combines thematic composition with free improvisation, a sort of loosely controlled writing style showcasing his hand-selected performers. His accomplishments in the genre include:
- Recipient of Houston Arts Alliance composer grant, 2007
- Curator of the Sunday Sonorities series at DiverseWorks, Houston
- Featured performer at the High Zero Festival 2007, Baltimore
- Five commissions from the Michele Brangwen Dance Ensemble
- NYC tour, 2007, including premiering new works at The Stone
- DiverseWorks artist residency for "Pride," a music & video collaboration with Maria del Carmen Montoya
- Performer at the Norcal Noise Fest, 2003
- Member of the Society of Improvised Music
- Composed/Collaborated with the Michele Brangwen Dance Ensemble
Thomas has released three albums to date. "Good Robot" (2007) and "Experimentations in Minimalism" (2006) feature compositions for small ensemble. "Doublebass" (2003) is a collection of live, freely-improvised solo performances. Thomas also appears on the 2003 Norcal Noise Fest compilation CD, as well as the KUHF "The Front Row" 2006 compilation CD.
