Alyssa Joy Smith is a pianist, composer, and educator from Madison, Wisconsin currently based in Brooklyn, New York. She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin in Piano Performance and her Master’s degree from the University of Michigan in Contemporary Improvisation and Jazz, studying under the instruction of Professors Andy Milne and Ellen Rowe. A versatile and virtuosic pianist, Alyssa weaves her love of the classical piano repertoire with the jazz lexicon in her compositions and improvisations to create a unique style.

Alyssa’s influences range from Rachmaninoff to Chick Corea, and she seeks to capture complicated but universal emotions in her compositions and improvisations with a bit of humor and irony sprinkled in. 

Alyssa performs as a bandleader and sidewoman for multiple jazz and improvisatory groups in the New York City area, including her trio the AJS Trio. She also serves as a piano faculty member at the Brooklyn Music School, and maintains her own private piano studio.

In her spare time, Alyssa enjoys multidisciplinary arts such as gouache painting, pottery, writing, and photography. She is passionate about lifting up the voices of women and other marginalized groups in the arts, and is staunchly a cat person.