Tommy Pederson was a trombonist and composer and prolific studio musician. He performed with Gene Krupa, Tommy Dorsey and Frank Sinatra, among others, and recorded music soundtracks for movies, television, and radio shows.

Composing over 100 works for trombone, Blue Topaz is one of his most popular works for bass trombone and performed often on recitals and on trombone ensemble concerts. Subtitled Concerto for Bass Trombone, the piece alternates between a fanfare and jazz ballad styled passages. The work lends itself well to performance on the tuba.