If you’ve ever watched Glenn Korff School of Music student Zach Paris on the drums, you know the kind of passion he brings to the set. His facial expressions show the kind of energy that comes across strongly in his playing.
So it’s of no surprise that his talents caught the attention of those at DownBeat Magazine. Paris has been honored with a DownBeat Award for Blues/Pop/Rock Soloist Graduate College Outstanding Performances. This marks the 39th year of the Annual Student Music Awards at DownBeat.
“Receiving this award is a tremendous honor,” Paris said, who is in his final semester at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “As a high school student, I remember hearing about DownBeat Award winning college students, and it made a big impact on my perception of those students. I am supremely honored to be selected for this prestigious award and to be able to represent the wonderful music program here at UNL.”
Paris says he felt really good about the recordings he submitted as part of the application. The video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3rh5CZtSqw) was part of a non-degree recital he performed in the Spring of 2015. The solo is based on a solo he played in winning the Nebraska Guitar Center Drum-Off Finals in October 2014, and he played it on the recital as an opportunity to perform this material for his friends and family.
“I was extremely excited when I heard about winning the award,” Paris said. “I had completely forgot about submitting the application and recordings to DownBeat, so it was even more of a surprise.”
Dr. David Hall is Paris’ major professor at UNL. He added that Paris taught the drumline and percussion skills course at UNL as part of his Graduate Teaching Assistant role.
“Zach is not only a diverse drumset player (big band and small group jazz, world styles, and metal/progressive rock) but is also a diverse and skilled percussionist,” Hall said. “He is well versed in solo keyboard playing, hand drumming, timpani and orchestral percussion, and contemporary solo and percussion ensemble literature. He is a great model and perfect example of the multilingual musicians who populate our percussion studio.”
Director of Jazz Studies Dr. Paul Haar added that Paris is a wonderful person and a multi-lingual percussionist, who typifies what today’s music world needs and demands.
“The award is wonderful recognition of Zach’s talents and the type of student talent we have at UNL,” Haar said. “As far as our view of awards go, we support the belief that the awards are the bi product of art that is created with talent, passion and dedication. As long as those three things are the goal of what we do, the awards are a nice addition.
Glenn Korff School of Music Professor and Director Dr. John W. Richmond added how proud the entire School of Music is for Zach and also for his major professor Dr. Hall.
“Our ambition as a music school is to contribute to the national and international discussions of the disciplines of music and dance in important peer-reviewed settings,” Richmond said. “For students of jazz, the DownBeat Awards are among the most coveted and highly valued affirmations of national distinction and competitiveness. As our Jazz Studies Program is only eight years old (launched in 2008), we are thrilled to witness so many of our students and alumni succeed in securing these awards. It is a testament to the superb mentorship they are receiving here and the outstanding student recruiting our faculty members are doing.”
As for the future, Paris said, “This summer, my wonderful wife Janelle and I will be moving to Phoenix, Arizona, where I will be pursuing a doctorate in percussion at Arizona State University. We are very excited for this next chapter in our lives.”