Micah Thomas, piano
Micah Thomas is an internationally touring pianist, composer and bandleader known for his dynamic work in contemporary jazz. A Juilliard graduate and Jerome L. Greene Fellow, Thomas leads his own trio and is a steady member of the Immanuel Wilkins Quartet. He also performs regularly as a sideman for Joshua Redman, Ambrose Akinmusire, Joel Ross and Nicole Glover, among others. His debut album, Tide (2020), received widespread critical acclaim. Subsequent releases, including Piano Solo and Mountains(2024), further established his voice, with Piano Solo earning the Grand Prix du Disque Award. In 2024, he was named “Up-and-Comer of the Year” by NYC Jazz Record, “Best International Artist” by Jazz News, and was included in DownBeat’s “25 for the Future.”
Program to be announced from the stage.
This concert is made possible, in part, by a generous gift from Sylvia and Walter Simon.
Micah Thomas was born in 1997 in Columbus, Ohio. He started playing songs on the piano by ear at the age of 2, and shortly afterwards he started private piano training. He gained much of his first performing experience when he was in high school, working with Byron Stripling, Christian Howes, and the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra, among others.
In 2015, Micah Thomas received the Jerome L. Greene Fellowship from the Juilliard School, and received his Master of Music (M.M.) degree in 2020. He is now touring and performing locally and internationally, both as a leader of his own trio, a steady member of the Immanuel Wilkins Quartet, and as a sideman for Joshua Redman, Ambrose Akinmusire, Lage Lund, Billy Drummond, Zoh Amba, Giveton Gelin, Stacy Dillard, Joel Ross, Nicole Glover, Melissa Aldana, Etienne Charles, Harish Raghavan and others.
In June 2020, Micah Thomas released his first album, Tide, which received positive reviews from the New York Journal, The New York Times, JazzTimes, and Financial Times, among others. He has since recorded four other albums as a bandleader; his most recent record, Lucid, was self-released in July 2026. He has also appeared on several albums as a sideman for Immanuel Wilkins, Billy Drummond, Zoh Amba, Giveton Gelin, and Walter Smith III. In the beginning of 2024 Micah Thomas was voted ‘Up-and-Comer of the Year’ by The New York City Jazz Records, ‘Best International Artist of the Year’ by Jazz News x Jazz Magazine, and ’25 for the Future’ by DownBeatMagazine.
Micah was a 2022-23 The Jazz Gallery Commission Resident, and a 2023-24 Roulette Commissioned Artist, as well as the curator for the 2022 SWR NewJazz Meeting. Micah also regularly teaches both privately and at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and was a faculty member at the 2024 Siena Jazz Workshop.