Share the Chair: Tobi Stone

In our first Share the Chair episode of 2025, we welcome talented jazz musician and educator, Tobi Stone. Tobi has played an important part of CH's own journey into jazz musicianship, and after almost a year's worth of planning (yes, really!), finally got the chance to sit down to talk all-things musical life journey - from Tobi discovering her passion for music at a young age; to knowing early on that she wanted to teach in addition to perform; to the key influences and experiences that have helped shape her career - including recovering from an early injury during her time studying jazz performance at the University of Washington. Tobi's uplifting approach to music education, and her ongoing efforts to support aspiring young musicians - especially female musicians - is all part of her goal to create an inclusive, empowering environment that blends the art of playing with the joy of teaching. Whether you're a jazz enthusiast, an aspiring musician, or simply curious about the life of a professional musical artist, this episode has a little bit of everything.

 

Show Notes

• For those looking for more information on Tobi, you can visit her official Web site, Tobi Stone Music (tobistone.com). Some key highlights:
  • Her full list of credits and in-depth biography can be found under the About Tobi section of her site.
  • She has several key performances scheduled for the first part of 2025 that can be found under the Performances section of her site.
    • A key callout performance will be May 9, 2025 at the Black Box Theatre in Olympia, Washington. It will be a tribute performance for one of her saxophone teachers, Bert Wilson. It is part of the Washington Center for Performance Arts Women In Jazz Series.
  • The influential substitute teacher that inspired and influenced Tobi's early appreciation for the saxophone is professional saxophonist, Darren Motamedy.
  • The non-profit Tobi has started that aims to elevate musicianship of under served communities is called Kindred Blue Notes. Additional information can be found on KindredBlueNotes.org.
  • Tobi also is a long-standing faculty member of Seattle's Jazz Night School, where she teaches various combos and also offers private lessons.
  • The technique Tobi referenced that is used as an alternative treatment to improve both voice and posture for people in the performing arts is called the Alexander Technique.
• James Lipton's Inside the Actor's Studio questionnaire, and the original Bernard Pivot/Marcel Proust versions that inspired it, can be found here. Our C17 version is our own take on these two famous questionnaires.
• Previous episode mentions
  • Episode 20: Episode 20: Share the Chair - Nathan Waldvogel (Journey to Yoga Therapy)
  • Episode 25: Little Drummer Girl
  • Episode 29: I'll Take a Lesson
  • Episode 33: Ok Not Being Ok