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Thomas John Ranier (born July 13, 1949) is an American instrumentalist who primarily plays piano but also saxophone and clarinet. As a jazz artist he has recorded widely under his own name and as a sideman for Warner Bros., Concord Records and several other labels. Allmusic Guide credits and discography for Tom Ranier Bio for Tom Ranier, Concord Music Group He has been prominent in the film, television, and music recording industry since the 1970s. He has played keyboards, woodwinds and writing music for a long list of assignments, including Grammy, Academy Award, Emmy, and Golden Globe winning media and soundtracks for artists such as , Shirley Bassey, Michael Feinstein, Christina Aguilera, Joe Pass, Plácido Domingo, Barry Manilow, Natalie Cole, and many others. As a pianist and jazz artist, "(his) personal approach mixes aspects of Bud Powell's complexity, Oscar Peterson's ardent swing and Bill Evans' exploratory harmonies." The Los Angeles Times, January 30, 1997, ZAN STEWART, For Noted Pianist, Jazz Is Addictive Art Form
While a student at Santiago High School, Ranier worked with his father (Lou Ranier) on gigs and studied arranging with the noted writer Jack Daugherty. After high school Ranier studied music at California State University, Fullerton where he received a B.A. in Music Composition in 1972; he also studied with Kalman Bloch on clarinet and Lloyd Rogers in composition. He studied piano with Earle Voorhies, Craig Rees, and John Crown. His further studies at were completed at USC and Cal-Arts.
Live jazz performance and the art of improvising is important to Ranier: "it's a combination of both thinking and feeling...(the) music is complex enough that there is a lot of thought going on...you're trying to project something, listening from deep within you."
Ranier's list of studio work for television, movies, and entertainment is quite extensive, including The Young and the Restless (1986), IMDB, listing for Ranier television credits, acting-musician Noises Off (1992), Matlock, , Trial and Error (1997), Letters from a Killer (1998), and Sideways (2004). Most recently, he is seen and heard on the TV show Dancing with the Stars. IMDB, listing for Ranier movie credits Ranier has done extensive work as both a musician and orchestrator for Disney, Academy Award, and CBS. Piano in the Rhythm Section credits page, Alfred Music Publishing, 1997 Ranier takes great pride in and enjoys doing studio work: "it's a craft that both keeps you fresh and makes you a better musician...and because you work on different projects with different composers, it broadens your scope."
Though Ranier is more widely known as a pianist and piano|keyboard/Synthesizer specialist in live and studio music, he is also very adept as a musician and jazz improviser on the clarinet and saxophone.Yanow, Scott. Bebop Miller Freeman Books, San Francisco. 2000. page 274 He has recorded on numerous albums and studio sessions as a multireedist.
He is also an educational author for Alfred Publishing and wrote Piano in the Rhythm Section. Piano in the Rhythm Section at Alfred Music Publishing
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