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Tom Schmidt
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 Left to right: Tom Schmidt, Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche, and Friedrich von Huene (internationally renowned renaissance instrument maker in Boston making gyalings)
Tom Schmidt is director and founder of Tödröl Drangchar Music. Born in Hoboken, NJ he began studying and performing music at age eight and continues today with the practice and teaching of Tibetan sacred insruments to western students. He studied the bass violin under jazz master Charlie Haden from 1970-72 and Alvin Brehm of the New York Philharmonic in the fall of 1972. In January 1973 he moved to Woodstock, New York where he joined the Gene Dinwiddie Quartet and studied another year with master bassist, Dave Holland.
 Left to right: Paul Antonell, Tom Schmidt, Sean Price, Clubhouse Studio, Rhinebeck, NY Notable musicians Tom has worked and/or recorded with are Kenny Wessel, Bob Moses, Ingrid Sertso, Sam Rivers, Jane Scarpantoni, Jathiya Abdul Samad, Kalaparusha, Munir Abdul Fatah, Jack DeJohnette, Dave Holland, Jeff Buckley, Cyro Babtista, Juma Santos, Garrett List, Buckethead, Steve Gorn, Lee Konitz, Claude Ranger, Dave Liebman, Eric Kloss, Ed Blackwell, Steve Haas, Barry Altschul, 'Killer' Ray Appleton, Philip Wilson, Dan Brubeck, Carlos Ward, Peter Apfelbaum, Jeanne Lee, Perry Robinson, Betty MacDonald, Franklin Kiermyer, Don Byron, David Sancious, John Lindberg, Frederic Rzewski, Tani Tabbal, Jerry Granelli and Tibetan musicians Dhondup Namgyal Khorko and Penpa Tsering of the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA).  Tom (left) with Larry Chernicoff at the Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield, Mass.
Karmae Thegsum Choyang Music performed the opening ceremonies of Woodstock '94 playing traditional Tibetan liturgical music for an audience of more than 300,000 people. In 1997, Schmidt acted as liaison between the Karma Triyana Dharmachakra Monastery and Martin Scorsese's film Kundun, about the life of the XIV Dalai Lama, when scenes were shot in the main shrine room of the monastery.
 Left to right: London producer, Jack DeJohnette, Naomi Schmidt, and Tom Schmidt at the Allaire Studios
In 2004, Schmidt produced a benefit concert for Karma Triyana Dharmachakra that included Philip Glass as principle guest artist, in 2005 a second benefit concert with Laurie Anderson and in 2008 a third with Jack DeJohnette & Pat Metheny. Also in 2008,
 Kesang Marstrand at Karmae Thegsum Choyang Studio, Woodstock, NY
Schmidt's Tibetan musical studies have been guided by Lama Tashi Dhondup, Lama Yeshe Namdag, and Umdze Lodro Samphel, principle chant master of the Rumtek Monastery. He serves as private secretary to Bardor Tulku Rinpoche, corporate secretary for The Karma Kagyu Institute and is a voting member of the Recording Academy (Grammys).
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