It is easy to underestimate the efforts required to become successful in the music industry. You need to have the mentality to take huge risks, find opportunities in adversity, and be true to your craft.
Antonio Underwood is a musician and composer who is the perfect example of someone that made it through to see true success. An expert jazz player, Antonio’s passion for classical music has enabled him to achieve so much in his career for thirty years.
He is the first African-American to become a George Lucas Scholar with the Scoring for motion pictures and Television program at the University of Southern California. He is also the first to be granted the Yale School of Music Alumni Award for outstanding contributions to the Yale community. Yale University also granted him African-American Cultural Center Award for his contribution to the African-American community. He is also the recipient of the Francis Louis Kirchoff Tapp Scholarship for outstanding performers or composers.
Antonio’s list of achievements is endless. He also received the Obie Award with the production of Juan Darien by Julie Taymor & Elliot Goldenthal and Grammy Award with the McCoy Tyner All-Star Big Band.
Antonio is a jazz expert with a major in Tuba. The tuba is known as the grandfather of instruments, being the largest in size and lowest pitch in the brass family. Standing as the foundation of New Orleans jazz, and original hip-hop bass. Since his days in college, Antonio was aware of his passion for classical music and knew that it was something he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Ultimately he created his own music label, Tone East Music LLC, in 1994, where he has been composing and producing professionally recorded music till today. The label has 40+ Songs with Pop Score Awards on Jango Radio (Radio Airplay), streaming worldwide with 18 CDs complete and 3 in production.
Antonio is not just a classical musician building his own legacy. He is also a seasoned educator who has made considerable efforts to promote jazz music amongst today’s youth through his collaborative initiatives in Serbia and Bosnia. Nowadays, he is raising funds for jazz workshop activities in Europe to continue expanding and promoting jazz across the world, outside of America.
The tuba expert has brought life to the instrument and versatility. His training and improvising abilities have allowed him to transcend musical paradigms and work with different artists and students from different cultures across the world.
