Tom Ryan, a musician on the autism spectrum, has been active on the Long Island music scene for over 30 years. He is a singer-songwriter and plays guitar, keyboards and bass. His original song “Hurricane Sandy” was recognized by Arts in the Plaza at Long Beach as one of the best songs related to the storm. He has studied classical guitar with the head of the music department at Molloy College, and is currently working on fingerstyle techniques with Toby Walker, international blues artist. He started out performing while still in high school when he joined the Coalition for Disabled Musicians' rock band, Range of Motion. At the same time he played with Copper Rose - a Cajun and Blues band and traveled to Louisiana with them for a cultural immersion to fine tune and fire up their performances. Presently, he is an active member of OOMPA, Organization for Open Mic Performing Artists on Long Island, and also recently teamed up with Mike Zielinski, an awesome percussionist who has cerebral palsy, as a duo called “Sympatico.” Currently Tom, as a solo act and in Sympatico, is doing gigs at local coffeehouses and restaurants as well as private parties, festivals and organizations for the disabled.