Zach's Music Notebook

Zachary Udin is a 18-year-old musician who has been playing the piano since he was just three years old. He started his musical journey by studying classical music at Special Music School, an audition-based elementary music school for musically gifted children, which he attended from Kindergarten through 8th grade. Music has been a constant beat in Zachary’s life, but it wasn’t until the start of high school that he fully embraced his love for jazz. Zachary has been part of several jazz bands over the years and also composes and performs his own music in the genres of classical, jazz, contemporary, and electronic. But jazz is truly where his heart is. When he listens to jazz and hears a special phrase or solo, it genuinely brings a smile to his face. His inspirations include jazz greats such as Chick Corea, Robert Glasper and Cedar Walton.

Outside of school Zachary is part of The Fat Cats, an audition-based Afro Latin jazz band consisting of 25 pre-professional teen musicians and four professional musicians. On a personal note, Zachary has an autoimmune condition called Alopecia Areata, which causes significant and unpredictable hair loss. While the journey navigating this condition has been challenging, he attributes the ability to cope with the condition to his music. He has not allowed his condition to stop him from playing and performing. Piano is his biggest accolade and he feels lucky to have found something that has had such a profound impact on his life. His passion for composing and playing piano is a testament to the transformative power of music. He now attends New York University Majoring in Jazz Studies, with a minor in Music Business with the goal of becoming a professional musician.

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