Percussionist and composer John O'Brien has worked in a wide variety of settings including jazz, improvised music, orchestral, Brazilian and Afro-Cuban music. Following his early studies with James Neglia and Joe Morello, he received a B.F.A. in jazz performance from New School University where he studied percussion with Andrew Cyrille and John Riley and composition with Jane Ira Bloom and Kirk Nurock. He has performed and/or recorded with Daryl Sherman, Warren Vache Jr., Mark Dresser, Kermit Driscoll, Kirk Nurock, The Composer's Big Band,The Walter Thompson Orchestra, The New York Soundpainting Orchestra, The Klezmer Brass All-Stars, Brooklyn Youth Chorus, and Maracatu New York.