Passion... Drive... Awareness... Musicality... Sincerity... These are but a few of the traits that can describe 21-year old and Berklee College of Music student, Tom Zmuda. When you listen to the music Tom creates, these qualities become evident in the sound he produces. You will not find Tom trying to pretend to be something or someone he is not. He’s not a legend or the next Top-40 megastar... not yet anyway! He is a genuine individual with his own sound, his own approach, and his own methodology for producing music that derives from his own lexicon of creativity.

Tom began his musical career when he had the opportunity to play the clarinet in fourth grade in the elementary school. He diligently went about squeaking out those first notes  and practicing as often as he could. His father was a huge influence on him and encouraged him to play various pieces of popular music. Practicing was never a chore for Tom and his parents would often watch him trying to learn the various techniques to produce sounds. Tom worked extremely hard learning the basics of the clarinet. He practiced his scales harder and longer than any of his friends, which allowed him to be selected to be the first chair in the school band. It can be said however that these initial musical pursuits on the clarinet were merely educational and fun. Tom never dreamed at this stage in his life of becoming a musician. He had loftier goals of becoming a financial guru or the next international soccer superstar. It wouldn’t be long however before Tom found his voice in music.

As fourth grade came to a close, Tom and his parents decided that he might benefit from private lessons over the summer. It was already in the back of Tom’s mind that he wanted to quit the clarinet and pick up the saxophone, but he was also drawn to exploring the nuances of the clarinet. He was fortunate to study with Jerry Rife who is the Music Department Chair at Rider University. Jerry was enthused by Tom’s interest in music and was instrumental in developing Tom’s abilities through casual but interactive lessons. To Tom’s delight, Jerry would pull out his clarinet and play right along with Tom. He inspired Tom to practice for hours. Suddenly, Tom found he was spending less and less time with his friends and more time exploring the clarinet.

The saxophone was an extremely popular instrument at Antheil Elementary School and could only be selected as a playing instrument upon entering the fifth grade. Tom was always drawn to the saxophone from an early blend which was inspired by an eclectic blend of music he heard around his home growing up. There was always music playing of one genre or another. But there was one artist that captured Tom’s attention most of all; he soon fell in love with the sound of saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr. Grover was Tom’s main influence and source of inspiration when it came to his interest in playing the saxophone.

When Tom returned to school after summer break, he approached his music teacher about switching to the saxophone. The request was granted and the foundation that Tom gained from playing the clarinet made the transition smooth. He forged ahead with his musical instruction at the school with Stephen Hudak. Tom took his schoolwork and sax playing seriously and soon was excelling in the band and his lessons.

It wasn’t until two years later that Tom found his musical voice and found that his real passion lay in playing his saxophone. When Tom entered Fisher Middle School, his musical studies had been placed on the back burner. Instead, he focused his energies on maintaining flawless grades and playing soccer at aa very competitive level. He was in the school band but was just one of the other musicians. Tom’s musical skills suffered durning that first year of middle school. Tom found this to be quite unsettling and discovered that he was extremely unhappy without music in his life.

Under band director, Bob Apgar, Tom rediscovered his obsession for music and decided he wanted to resume private instruction. Bob was a major influence in Tom’s music during this time period and was key in connecting Tom with John Bachalis, an acclaimed saxophonist and educator in Pennsylvania. Tom soon was immersed into a much faster pace of learning. This was much quicker than he ever imagined it to be. John challenged Tom to master a multitude of techniques that he would soon be teaching all his friends at school. Tom’s course of study was geared toward a strong classical foundation in both technique and expression. The chemistry between John and Tom grew stronger each week and the progress that Tom was making became quite evident. He was burning through material faster than many of John’s other students and Tom knew he had to be prepared for his lessons. John knew exactly how to push him so that each lesson yielded maximum results.

When Tom entered the seventh grade, he began to show marked progress in his lessons and also in the school band. He found himself competing with his best friend, music prodigy, and future bandmate, Joel Nygren. Tom and Joel shared musical knowledge all the time and began learning each other’s approaches to music. Tom joined the school jazz band and from that point forward, he felt destined to be a musician. John Bachalis started to introduce elements of jazz instruction into Tom’s classical lessons. It soon became evident that Tom had a knack for improvisational skills and his spontaneity on that infamous blues scale became unmatched among his peers.

During November of that year, Tom took notice that the local township was going to have its first ever talent show. He thought it might be fun to put a band together and enter the show. He talked to his friends Joel Nygren (keyboards) and Tommy Heutmaker (drums) about the possibility of forming a trio. The boys agreed that it would be fun and started practicing in the comfort of Tommy’s basement. They had a difficult time coming up with a name for the band but finally decided on Thursday Night Jazz - Thursday because this was the only night the boys could find time to practice together with their very busy schedules. The inception of this band started a new era in Tom’s life.

The boys found out quickly that they were very in tune with one another during those early practice days. They rehearsed  several Duke Ellington standards and Spyro Gyra’s Morning Dance. After a few weeks of practice, they branched out and learned some tunes out of the Fake Book. The music teacher at one of the local elementary schools heard about the boys and asked if they could lend their talents at a fundraiser event. It turned out that this pancake breakfast was the morning of the talent show they had spent months preparing for.They decided it would a be a good practice for show in the evening. At the breakfast, Commerce Bank Vice President Merrill Howe heard the boys play and approached their parents about the possibility of playing at his bank on a busy Friday afternoon for his customers waiting in line. This turned out to be the break the band needed and their fame soon took off from there.

Although the band did not win any prizes in the talent show, they became an immediate success in the local area, thanks to the talent show and the gigs at Commerce Bank. Jan Zmuda, Tom’s father, found himself in the position of becoming the band’s manager. Zmuda soon found that this would become somewhat of a full-time job due to all the requests Thursday Night Jazz received to perform. The band went from a few shows at the bank to playing over sixty shows per year throughout several states. Although Tom assumed the role of the front man, the band agreed that they were about the music and the band as a whole and not about a single personality. They knew that without each other, there would be no band - this team player attitude strengthened the boys, enabled them to become better musicians, and made them into a tight, cohesive unit.

Over the five and one half years that Tom played with Thursday Night Jazz, he had the honor of playing with some amazing individuals that only professionals typically enjoy. The band had some amazing opportunities like playing with Wynton Marsalis, saxophonist Richie Cole, trombonist Clifford Adams (of Kool & the Gang),  and Michael Ray (of Sun Ra Arkestra and Kool & the Gang) among others. The band played at many prestigious events, charity functions, weddings, private parties, festivals, and venues. Some of the more notable shows include the Cape May Jazz Festival (3 festival experiences),  monthly gigs at Havana Restaurant in New Hope, Pennsylvania, and the Atlantic City Convention Center. They have played at clubs such as Warmdaddys in Philadelphia and have even traveled as far as Washington, D.C. for shows.

Thursday Night Jazz was an incredible experience for Tom and it helped develop his strong foundation as a performer. With the band, he was able to experience hundreds of performance opportunities in many different venues and places. Tom found he had a love for his music and performing for an audience. He transforms when he is in front of a crowd and these audiences clearly recognize the passion he has to perform. Tom has that innate ability to know what pleases his listeners and he is ecstatic when he can give them something to enjoy and remember.

TNJ and school bands have not been Tom’s only outlet for his music. He was able to branch out and connect with musicians in the Philadelphia, Trenton, and Princeton areas. He is often hired by several vocalists including Barbara Walker, Barbara D. Mills, Sue Giles, and several others. He has performed with these amazing vocalists in venues spanning all across New Jersey and throughout Pennsylvania. From these experiences, Tom expanded his network connections and has played several club dates with touring musicians such as Will Brock, Charles Baldwin, Richard Tucker, Tim Hutson, Stacey McGee, Darren Daughtry, and a multitude of others. It was during these phenomenal  shows that Tom found a home at Warmdaddys in Penn’s Landing, Philadelphia.

Tom has played in more than six hundred shows in his short career and there does not seem to be any end in sight. Certainly this is a milestone that many kids of his age never reach and Tom recognizes his good fortune in finding some amazing individuals to help him along the way. From his bandmates, to his family, to professional musicians and teachers, and to all his incredible fans and friends... They have helped him to strive to become a better musician and performer. For Tom, a performance is not a museum exhibit that someone goes to see and goes home. He knows how to reach a crowd and connect with them on various different levels. He pulls the audience in and gives them what they want to hear - what makes them most happy. Tom plays for his listeners, not at them.

Aside from the time spent performing with various musicians and his lessons with John Bachalis, Tom had the good fortune to study with Berklee alum, Selmer clinician, and Rico artist, Tim Price. Tom traveled to New York City twice a month for lessons held at Roberto’s Winds on West 46th Street. Tim provided guidance to Tom through the limitless boundaries of Jazz. His teaching style constantly energized Tom and pushed him forward at an amazing pace. The material that Tim presented was always changing and Tom was continually challenged to keep up the pace. The workload was heavy, but Tom dealt with it as best he could. Through Tim’s tutelage, Tom gained a whole new perspective and understanding of Jazz.

Tom’s clear passion for music seems to prove very opportunistic for a long career as a performing musician. Currently Tom is studying at Berklee College of Music under the instruction of Jeff Harrington to develop a strong, modern foundation in music. Tom is looking at Berklee as an opportunity to be immersed in a community of like-minded individuals. A place where he can gain extensive knowledge about the one thing he is most passionate about. Tom will take this newfound understanding from Berklee and move his musical understanding along the path towards progress. Ultimately, Tom is looking at every opportunity as a new beginning, and realizes that every stop on the journey will make him a better musician, a better performer, and a better person.

Tom Zmuda has found himself expanding his musicianship even further with the pursuit of learning to play the flute. His diligence and persistence in this area has opened his mind further and influenced an entirely new skill-set.

Tom Zmuda plays Selmer, Yamaha, and Antigua Winds saxophones, Jody Jazz and Yanigisawa mouthpieces, Vandoren and Rico reeds, Rico ligatures, and exclusively uses Applied Microphone Technologies microphones.