Home » Member Page
Tom Zlabinger
About Me
TOM ZLABINGER is an instructor of music and the director of the Jazz Workshop and the
Blue Notes at York College/CUNY. He is a professional bass player and an
ethnomusicologist with a focus on jazz.
He holds a B.A. in music from Grinnell College and an M.A. in jazz performance from
Queens College/CUNY. His bass teachers have included Bob Anderson (Minnesota
Orchestra), Terry Burns, Anthony Cox, Leon Lee Dorsey, Mark Dresser, Henry Grimes, and
Rich Mollin.
Over the years he has performed at such places as Carnegie Hall, the Lincoln Center, and
Off-Broadway. He has also shared the stage with a wide range of musicians, including
Richard Augustin, Roy Ayers, Glenn Branca, Neil Clarke, Jimmy Cozier, Stanton Davis, Bill
Easley, Lukas Foss, Alex Foster, Wycliffe Gordon, Antonio Hart, Patience Higgins, Bill
Jacobs, Myrna Lake, Oliver Lake, Joel Martin, Emeline Michel, Arturo O’Farrill, Dorothy
Parks, H. Robert Reynolds, Gino Sitson, Blaise Siwula, Bobby Stanton, Steve Turre, Ray
Vega, Wally Gator Watson, Diana Wayburn, Lenny White, and Rachel Z.
He is currently completing a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology at the CUNY Graduate Center.