Profile

“Zac’s music is just his and inimitable style. Virtuosity is so natural for him that it reaches the harmonic goal: playing chords with a melodic instrument.”

-Hélène Seiyu Codjo; shakuhachi player, scholar, teacher

Shaku 1.jpg

About

Zac Zinger is an award-winning composer, arranger, orchestrator, and multi-instrumentalist with years of experience in a wide variety of mediums. In addition to his work for internationally renowned films, commercials, and video games, he maintains an active career as a musician, bandleader, composer, arranger, orchestrator, and music supervisor in New York City. His innovative technique and style on the shakuhachi (Japanese bamboo flute), as well as the unique multicultural blend of his compositions have garnered critical acclaim at home and abroad.

A multi-talented performer, Zac plays saxophones, shakuhachi, flute, clarinet, EWI (Electronic Wind Instrument), and a host of world flutes. In 2019 he released his debut album, Fulfillment, featuring twelve original compositions for jazz quartet exploring Japanese, Chinese, and American music. He has performed in twelve countries, in esteemed venues such as Carnegie Hall and Jazz at Lincoln Center, and has been credited for musical contributions to 42 commercial music releases and counting.

In 2017 with a fellowship from the Asian Cultural Council, Zac conducted a five-month residency in Tokyo, Japan where he studied the shakuhachi and its traditional music under renowned players Kinya Sogawa, Keisuke Zenyoji, and Akihito Obama. He was invited to perform and speak at the 2018 World Shakuhachi Festival in London, UK on chromaticism and the usage of the shakuhachi in the jazz medium, and has been invited to Berklee College of Music and California Institute of the Arts to teach master classes on the shakuhachi and multicultural art. In 2020 he received Career Grant from Salon De Virtuosi “for his exceptional talent and dedication to cross-cultural musical presentations.”

Currently, Zac lives in New York City, writing for and performing with his progressive jazz quartet, the Zac Zinger Group, and his Japanese traditional/jazz fusion duet, KAI, while continuing his lifelong study of Japanese classic traditional shakuhachi music under the tutelage of Ralph Samuelson.

Awards & Grants

  • 2021 Tribeca New Music Young Composer Competition, 1st Place

  • 2020 USA Songwriting Competition, 1st place (Jazz)

  • 2020 Salon De Virtuosi Career Grant

  • 2016 Asian Cultural Council Artist Fellowship

  • 2015 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award

  • 2014 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award

  • 2013 ASCAP Johnny Mandel Prize

  • 2013 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award

  • 2012 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award

  • 2010 Herb Pomeroy Composition/Arranging Award

  • 2009 Herb Pomeroy Composition/Arranging Award

  • 2007 Pittsburgh Jazz Society Leadership Award

  • 2007 Irene S. and Harry Louik Theatre Arts Award

Selected Performances/Venues

  • Carnegie Hall, New York, NY - with Tituss Burgess

  • Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York, NY - with Mario Frangoulis

  • United Nations (Residence of the Japanese Ambassador), New York, NY - with Michiru Oshima

  • Consulate General of Japan, New York, NY

  • Merkin Hall, New York, NY

  • Japan Society, New York, NY

  • Asia Society, New York, NY

  • Sony Hall, New York, NY - with The 8-Bit Big Band

  • Heinz Hall, Pittsburgh, PA

  • Peabody Opera House, St. Louis, MO - with Mario Frangoulis

  • Jazz at the Kitano, New York, NY

Selected Credits

  • Fulfillment - Zac Zinger (Producer, Bandleader, Composer, Arranger, Mixing Engineer
    Alto Saxophone, Shakuhachi, EWI, Dizi)

  • Street Fighter V Original Soundtrack (Composer, Arranger, Saxophones, Flute, Clarinet)

  • Jump Force (Composer, Arranger, Orchestrator, Flute, Clarinet)

  • Final Fantasy XV Original Soundtrack (Bansuri, Shinobue)

  • Monster Hunter Swing (Arranger, Mixing Engineer, Saxes, Flute, Clarinet, EWI)

  • RWBY Original Soundtrack, Volumes 2, 3, 5, 7 - Jeff Williams (Horn/Big Band Arranger, Saxophones)

  • Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (Composer, Arranger, Mixing Engineer, Dizi)

  • Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Quena)

  • Just Cause 4 (Arranger, Shakuhachi, Flute, Alto Flute, Quena, Bansuri, Pan Flute)

  • Mobile Suit Gundam (Composer, Arranger, Orchestrator, Flute, Clarinet)

  • Backwards Compatible - 8-Bit Big Band (Tenor Sax, EWI, Clarinet)

  • Sungazer, Vol. 2 - Sungazer (EWI)

Public Speaking & Guest Lectures

  • World Shakuhachi Festival [London, UK] (Jazz and Chromaticism on Shakuhachi)

  • California Institute of the Arts (Creating Multicultural Art)

  • Berklee College of Music (Introduction to the Shakuhachi; Making a Career in Video Game Music)

  • Texas A&M (Introduction to the Shakuhachi)

  • St. John’s University (Making a Career in the Arts)

  • Five Towns College (Composing for Video Games)

  • Playcrafting at Microsoft (Composing for Video Games)

  • Game Sound Con (The Relevance of Melody in Video Game Music; Jazz in Video Game Music)

  • Play NYC (The Relevance of Melody in Video Game Music)

  • Game-a-con (Composing for Video Games)

  • Captivate Conference (Composing for Video Games)