Tomeka Reid: Redefining the Cello in Jazz and Improvisation

Cellist, composer, educator, and community builder Tomeka Reid is shifting expectations about what the cello can do, especially within jazz and improvised music. Born in 1977 in the Washington, D.C. area, she began classical cello in fourth grade. She followed a traditional path—undergraduate studies at the University of Maryland, followed by a master’s at DePaul University, and eventually a DMA in Jazz Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2017. But Reid’s journey transformed when she fully embraced improvisation in college. Encouraged by a mentor, she delved into jazz, improvised music, and avant-garde traditions. Over time, she emerged as a powerful force in Chicago’s music scene, collaborating with giants like Anthony Braxton, Roscoe Mitchell, Nicole Mitchell, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.

In 2013, she founded the Chicago Jazz String Summit, a celebration of string instruments in jazz through performances, workshops, and masterclasses. As a solo artist, Reid leads her own quartet, featuring guitar, bass, and drums, and co-leads the trio Hear in Now. Her 2019 album Old Newimpressively integrates post-bop, free improv, and minimalist aesthetics; critics called it “deeply satisfying” and showcased a “unique integration of post‑bop and modern free jazz”. Recognition followed: Reid became a 2017 “Chicago Jazz Hero,” Darius Milhaud Distinguished Visiting Professor at Mills College in 2019, a 2021 United States Artists Fellow, and one of the 2022 MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipients, celebrated for “expanding the expressive possibilities of the cello in improvised music.” 

What makes Reid exceptional is her fearless experimentation—using extended techniques like pencils clipped to strings or percussive use of the cello body—to conjure new textures, drawing from African diasporic modes, avant-garde minimalism, and jazz traditions. She continues to tour, teach, and collaborate internationally, recently serving as Improviser‑in‑Residence in Moers, Germany, and as a visiting scholar at Dartmouth’s Hopkins Center.