Vanessa Tomlinson

Vanessa Tomlinson (born 1971) is an Australian percussionist, composer, artistic director and educator. She is Director of Creative Arts Research Institute and Head of Percussion at Griffith University and has produced 150 publications. She is the co-founder and co-artistic director of Clocked Out, along with Erik Griswold.

Career In 1993 Tomlinson was awarded a recording contract with Etcetera Records, and won two awards for her percussion.

Upon completing her degree in Adelaide, Tomlinson studied with Bernhard Wulff and Robert van Sice at Musikhochschule Freiburg, Germany. She then moved to San Diego to complete a Masters under Steven Schick,

Since 2000 she has collaborated with her partner Erik Griswold and released several albums together as Clocked Out Duo. They won two Green Room Awards for their collaboration Dada Cabare in 2000, and later won the Award for Excellence by an Organisation or Individual and Queensland State Award at 2011's APRA and AMC Art Music Awards for their work as Clocked Out.

In 2017 Tomlinson began a collaboration titled TOMLIN | FERGUS with Dr John Ferguson, an academic at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music where Tomlinson also taught.

In 2018 Tomlinson released her debut solo album The Space Inside on Room40 on cassette tape. In 2020 Tomlinson initiated the 84 Pianos: Pandemic Edition project with Erik Griswold.

In October 2025, Tomlinson was announced as the new Director of the Queensland Conservatorium.

Discography 2019 - Pateras Collected Works Vol. II (2005-2018) Immediata

2018 - The Space Inside Room40

2017 - Ephemoral Rivers Hat Hut Records

2017 - Water Pushes Sand Jazzhead Records

2015 - Time Crystals Innova Records

2015 - Daughters Fever Hellosquare Recordings

2010 - From Small Things Grow Clocked Out

2010 - fish boast of fishing Listen Hear Collective

2010 - Foreign Objects Clocked Out

2007 - Wide Alley Clocked Out

2006 - Xenakis Complete Percussion Works Mode

2004 - Mutant Theatre Tzadik

2002 - Water Pushes Sand Clocked Out

2000 - Every Night the Same Dream Clocked Out

1997 - Ferneyhough Solo Works Etcetera

Awards