Dr. Zachary Bartholomew is an award-winning jazz pianist, composer, and music educator who maintains an active performance career as one of the most heavily sought-after pianists, accompanists, and sidemen in South Florida. In both 2016 and 2017, he placed as one of the top three finalists in the highly acclaimed Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition and has since been featured as a performer, composer, and bandleader at various national and international jazz festivals, including the Jacksonville Jazz Festival, Monterey Jazz Festival, Jalisco Jazz Festival, and Festival Miami, among others. Zach’s original music and unique arrangements are inspired by the jazz tradition, but also draw heavily from Afro-Cuban rhythms and modern influences. He and his band are featured on radio broadcasts, concert series, and regionally promoted events at music venues all over Florida, and he performs with professional organizations such as the Sarasota Pops Orchestra, Naples Philharmonic, the Gulf Coast Symphony Jazz Collective, and the Lake Wales Jazz Connection. In addition to his active performance career, Zach has taught at the University of Miami Frost School of Music, Broward College, Miami-Dade College, Tiffin University, and is currently a full-time faculty member at Florida Memorial University. Additionally, he has presented and performed at national and regional music conferences, such as the JEN Conference, the FSMTA Conference, and the NYSMTA 2020 Virtual Symposium.
As a bandleader, Zach has completed numerous national tours, headlining at some of the top jazz venues in the country, such as Blues Alley, Andy’s Jazz Club, The Jazz Showcase, The Jazz Kitchen, Cliff Bells, Nighttown, The BOP STOP, The Jazz Estate, Shapeshifter Lounge, Twins Jazz, Velvet Note, and many others. In addition to touring across the country with his group, Zach has performed with artists such as Sean Jones, Victor Goines, Brian Lynch, Dafnis Prieto, Dave Holland, David Liebman, Ira Sullivan, Carmen Bradford, Byron Stripling, Dan Miller, Scotty Barnhart, Jason Hainsworth, John Beasley, Charles Calello, and Kevin Mahogany. Zach is currently involved in several significant musical projects as both a leader and a sideman, such as his state-funded Florida “Jazz Access Tour,” an outreach program that aims to provide underserved communities and schools in Florida with world-class public performances and educational programs.
