Chelsea Campbell / illustrator
Reid Zuckerman is a sophomore at UR, but he plays guitar beyond his years. Zuckerman’s guitar playing is heavily rooted in “shred” sensibilities – last school year he ripped through a rendition of guitar virtuoso Paul Gilbert’s “Curse of the Castle Dragon,” a song that not only demands technical mastery of the guitar but showmanship as well. Perhaps even more impressive, though, is his embrace of jazz music on top of his hard rock sound. As a member of the UR jazz ensemble, Zuckerman brings innovation and awe-inspiring chops to the UR music scene. I had the pleasure of interviewing Zuckerman this week for CT’s “Student Artists Speak” column, where we discussed tone, playing on campus, and self-improvement.
JH: What’s been on rotation in your iPod lately?
RZ: There’s been one album that’s been prominent with me for the last year. It’s called “A Voice Within” by the band Intervals. They just released it last year and came to Rochester last school year. The lead guitarist, Aaron Marshall, is phenomenal. He’s taking progressive rock and metal to a whole new level of intricacy. It’s straightforward stuff, but the ideas he comes up with are incredible.
JH: What’s your guitar tone like currently?
RZ: My tone I still need to discover. A lot of my finances have steered toward getting more innovative guitars, while I still use digital amps. In my hometown in New Hampshire, there were only a few players I knew who actually cared about tone. I really didn’t learn a whole lot. When it comes to performances here and I actually get to use good amps, I’ll borrow pedals and in my own time I’ll figure out what sound works for me. My ideal tone is to go for something that’s not too crunchy. I like a melodic distorted sound. When it comes to clean, I love the hollow body jazz sound. That’s why I use my hollow body for Jazz Ensemble.
JH: I know you play on campus – I saw you play with No Jackets Required last year and with your band Parallax at Yellowjacket weekend this year. Do you have a favorite gig you’ve played on campus?
RZ: Two come to mind. One was Yellowjacket Weekend because it was my first time playing on a professional stage like that. There’ve been gigs where I’ve played for more people, but Yellowjacket Weekend was the first time I played a stage like that. Another one that comes to mind was the “School of Rock” show I played with NJR. Out of the three NJR shows I’ve played I felt like that one had the most energy. I liked how it had a storyline throughout the show. It really engaged people. It was a lot of fun to work on because I was playing songs that helped me get started in music – essentially what the School of Rock did, with getting kids into rock music. Going back to my roots was fun for that time.
JH: I really enjoyed your performance of Paul Gilbert’s “Curse of the Castle Dragon” at last year’s talent show. Talent shows have an interesting vibe though. How was it for you to play the talent show?
RZ: With “Curse of the Castle Dragon,” I absolutely love playing that song. It’s a very guitar-flashy kind of song, so I would never ask a band to do it. I’ve always enjoyed playing the song by myself though. When I saw the talent show advertisement I thought, “What could be an engaging song to play?” and Paul Gilbert came to mind. I didn’t feel awkward at the show at all – I said to myself, “I’m gonna move around and show people I’m into this!” I knew that was all worth it when the crowed started cheering at the end. In terms of Dean Burns being the judge, it kind of threw me. I had no idea he was supposed to be the mean one. So I was like, “Okay – that’s some criticism.” I still smiled at it – I would still smile at it today. If you can’t take criticism as a musician, don’t perform. You’re not going to please everybody!
JH: What wisdom would you offer for any up-and-coming musicians?
RZ: My advice would be to never neglect theory – it broadens your horizons. I feel like, to be a true musician, you need to have your knowledge. To be an architect, you need to know about building; to be a musician, you need to know about music. And that really comes in two forms: theory and also history. By taking theory classes and studying classical pieces, I’ve discovered that it’s essential to know the roots. What I see in music is that, a lot of people come up with ideas and don’t really know what it means or where it came from. I think that with music you need to produce a meaning. Or else, what’s your message?
Howard is a member of
the class of 2017.
