Meet Dr. Zachary Bartholomew | Pianist, Educator, & Composer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dr. Zachary Bartholomew and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Zachary, how does your business help the community?
I believe music has the power to make a huge positive impact on people’s lives, the community, and the world. It has definitely changed my life for the better and I am incredibly blessed to make a living performing and teaching music. One project of mine I am very proud of my the Jazz Access Tour Outreach Project that is supported by the Florida Division of Arts & Culture. For the last two years I have been traveling quite a bit around the state performing concerts and providing educational offerings for Florida communities and schools.

By bringing high-quality, live, creative music to venues and schools in Florida’s underserved communities, the Jazz Access Tour positively impact students and the community as a whole. Students and community members have the opportunity to listen to, interact with, and learn from world-class musicians who perform music significantly influenced by Afro-Cuban, Caribbean, and Black American culture. It is my hope that this experience will help inspire creative thinking, promote inclusivity, and expose students/audiences to diverse musical cultures. It is also my hope that this project will encourage more support of the arts within these communities so that future engagements are possible.

The Jazz Access Tour offers educational opportunities for schools and community organizations such as music workshops, masterclasses, lectures, and performances. The hands-on music workshops and clinics are designed to encourage deeper critical thinking by students, help students gain an understanding of jazz, provide students with the opportunity to observe professional jazz musicians perform live, and allow students to receive personal instruction/feedback from professional musicians.

The Jazz Access Tour is partially funded through the Florida State Division of Arts & Culture “Artists on Tour” grant. The grant covers 50% of the normal education/performance fees, which allows schools and organizations to book the artist at a substantially reduced price. This allows the project to provide world-class musical performances and education programs to organizations and communities who may not normally have access to them.

Learn more at http://www.zbtrio.com/jazz-access-tour and bring the Jazz Access Tour to your community and/or school.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As I mentioned before, one thing I am most proud of is my Jazz Access Tour Outreach Project. I wouldn’t have the opportunity to make a living performing music if it weren’t for teachers introducing me to music and exposing me to the arts. That is why I am as passionate about teaching as I am performing and creating music.

Making a living performing music has been an incredibly difficult journey that has taken lots of hard work to get to where I am now. In fact, it still requires lots of hard work! I spend hours practicing at the piano each day and sometimes just as much time booking shows, writing concert descriptions, promoting shows, creating posters, applying for grants, scheduling rehearsals, composing/arranging music for concerts, etc…. All of that behind-the-scenes preparation goes into the concerts I present. Funny enough, I’ve had two different teachers throughout the years call me “the hardest working man in show business.”

I credit my dad for my work ethic. He was the hardest worker I knew and would have me help him around the small farm I grew up on. I apply that same work ethic that he demonstrated every day to my music career. It’s hard work, but so it being outside in the Florida heat for 10 hours a day!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well, since I enjoy music and jazz I’d gravitate to going to hear some shows during that time. Some local spots I’d visit would be: The Gibson Room (Coral Gables) – some of the best food I’ve ever had and amazing cocktails. They have live music Tuesday – Saturday. In fact, I play there solo piano every other Tuesday night!

Lagniappe House (Wynwood) – wine, cheese, and jazz! A great spot that offers live music inside and lots of space outside to hang and chat.

The Moss Center – for a proper show I’d go here. I have two concerts coming up here that I’ve very excited about. I’ll be presenting “The High Priests of Bebop: The Music of Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk” and “Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas” Concert. This venue has a special place in my heart because it is the first concert I ever attended when I moved to Miami and it’s a very cool feeling to get to perform there with my own shows now.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I am fortunate to have the support of friends and family. The people who have especially supported me and helped me throughout the years are:

My mom
My Aunt Lulu & Uncle Ercel
My wife Nicole

I also wouldn’t know anything about music if it weren’t for my teachers throughout the years:

Amy Reber
Bill Peterson
Martin Bejerano

Website: http://www.zbtrio.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zachbartholomewmusic/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zbjazz/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/zachbartholomew

Other: Email: zachbartholomewmusic@gmail.com

Image Credits
Norm Black Stephen Splane