Jane Ira Bloom (b.1955) is a U.S. jazz soprano saxophonist and composer. Born in born Boston, Massachusetts, she began as a pianist and drummer, later switching to the alto saxophone, and eventually settling on the soprano saxophone as her primary instrument. She first began playing the saxophone seriously while at Yale University, from which she received a liberal arts degree and a master's degree in music. After leaving Yale, Bloom moved to New York City. She is noted for her use of live electronics, using a foot pedal to trigger various electronic effects that alter the sound of her saxophone, at times creating the illusion of an orchestra of soprano saxophones. She was the first musician to be commissioned by the NASA Art Program; in 1989 she created three original musical compositions: "Most Distant Galaxy", for soprano saxophone and live electronics, prepared tape, bass, drums, and electroacoustic percussion; "Fire & Imagination", for soprano saxophone, improvisors, and chamber orchestra; and "Beyond the Sky", for wind ensemble. Bloom is a core faculty member at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City's Greenwich Village. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.