{"id":66209,"date":"2015-05-05T08:33:15","date_gmt":"2015-05-05T12:33:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=66209"},"modified":"2019-06-10T10:01:41","modified_gmt":"2019-06-10T14:01:41","slug":"ucf-music-student-starts-national-tour-after-graduation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/ucf-music-student-starts-national-tour-after-graduation\/","title":{"rendered":"UCF Music Student Starts National Tour After Graduation"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Greg Zabel auditioned to enter the UCF music program, the song he played on his upright bass was the 1940s standard \u201cIn the Mood\u201d made famous by bandleader Glenn Miller.<\/p>\n

After Zabel walks across the stage Thursday at one of UCF\u2019s six commencement ceremonies, he\u2019ll have a week to pack his suitcase and fly to Cincinnati to start his professional music career \u2013 touring with today\u2019s Glenn Miller Orchestra.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are probably 250 professional college programs nationwide that would like to see their students have this opportunity,\u201d said Jeff Rupert, UCF\u2019s director of jazz studies. \u201cHe\u2019s come from a novice to an accomplished and versatile musician. It is difficult, but the ingredients for this kind of success stem from focus, discipline and getting pertinent information through the UCF curriculum.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zabel said he\u2019s psyched about becoming the group\u2019s bass player. After recently hearing about the job opening, he contacted the band and discovered it was coming to Orlando for a concert. \u201cI auditioned when they were in town and they offered me the job!\u201d<\/p>\n

Zabel, an Orlando native and graduate of Dr. Phillips High School, first started playing piano at 8, took up guitar and trumpet at 11, and picked up the bass when he was a 16-year-old sophomore in the school\u2019s jazz band.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I applied to UCF, I chose bass as my main instrument after\u00a0I realized it\u00a0was the one I was best at,\u201d he said. \u201cPlus, I love the sound and the role the\u00a0bass plays in any ensemble.\u201d<\/p>\n

To read more about this week’s commencement ceremonies at UCF click here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

A big part of the audition process is what potential the instructors see in students.<\/p>\n

What they saw in Zabel was \u201ca willingness to learn and develop despite inexperience,\u201d said Richard Drexler, who teaches jazz bass.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs teachers, a large part of our task is fostering a hunger for knowledge, rather than disseminating specific knowledge,\u201d Drexler said \u201cWhen a student such as Greg exhibits that outlook, the future holds promise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zabel said his time at UCF has exposed him to different genres of music \u2013 jazz combos, big bands, classical bands and orchestras \u2013 which has required him to learn and use different skills.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe did triple duty at the recent UCF Celebrates the Arts festival,\u201d said Jeff Moore, director of the School of Performing Arts. Zabel played in a combo at an opening-night reception, in the symphony orchestra performance of music by composer Phillip Glass, and then with the Flying Horse Big Band in Shakespeare Swings!.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of our goals is that the curriculum helps the students be competitive in the field and experience success when they graduate; Greg is an excellent example of that,\u201d Moore said.<\/p>\n

Zabel said his influences span all types of musicians, from upright\u00a0bassist Ray Brown, to\u00a0electric bassists Jaco and Felix\u00a0Pastorius,\u00a0 guitarists Wes Montgomery, banjoist B\u00e9la Fleck, pianists Chick Corea and others.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough one might only be able to hear the influence of the bassists in my playing, I am nonetheless inspired by the other instrumentalists because of\u00a0their\u00a0general outlook on music\u00a0and their\u00a0blending of styles and\u00a0cultures,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The biggest lesson Zabel said he is taking away from UCF is \u201chow to become my own teacher.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cProfessors Jeff Rupert, Richard Drexler, Per Danielsson, Michael Hill and others have instilled in me processes by which to improve different aspects of my playing.\u00a0 They have also encouraged me to have a desire to discover new challenges and opportunities that will ensure I always grow as a musician.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because of that lesson, coupled with the visiting clinicians, composers and musicians \u201cwho told us why and how to work hard in order to succeed in music,\u00a0I feel confident as I enter the \u2018real world\u2019 because of the knowledge they shared.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zabel will graduate during the commencement ceremony at 9 a.m. Thursday, May 7.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Greg Zabel auditioned to enter the UCF music program, the song he played on his upright bass was the 1940s standard \u201cIn the Mood\u201d made famous by bandleader Glenn Miller. After Zabel walks across the stage Thursday at one of UCF\u2019s six commencement ceremonies, he\u2019ll have a week to pack his suitcase and fly to Cincinnati to start his…","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":66215,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-twocol.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"lazy_load_responsive_images_disabled":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[3,5,6,27],"tags":[17023,1004,202],"tu_author":[],"class_list":["post-66209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts","category-colleges","category-community","category-student-life","tag-college-of-arts-and-humanities","tag-commencement","tag-alumni"],"yoast_head":"\nUCF Music Student Starts National Tour After Graduation | University of Central Florida News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When Greg Zabel 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