15-year-old guitar virtuoso Brandon ‘Taz’ Niederauer shreds at Jazz Cafe in Plains on Dec. 7
While Brandon “Taz” Niederauer describes himself as “just a kid who loves playing music,” anyone who has seen what he can do with a guitar knows that there’s much more to his talent than that.
By the age of 15, he has shared stages and received accolades from everyone from Slash to Dweezil Zappa to the Allman Brothers Band to John Mayer, who said, “Brandon is playing from pure, real ‘what’ and ‘how’ and intent, and he’s going for it, and you can hear it like music and get off to it and dance to it. So, yeah… I dig it. I dig it. The fact that he’s young is secondary.”
After performing at the Peach Music Festival in Scranton earlier this year, the guitar prodigy will be back in Northeastern Pennsylvania for a headlining show at the River Street Jazz Cafe in Plains on Friday, Dec. 7.
Wilkes-Barre soul funk band Jordan Ramirez & the Tribe, who premiered a series of music videos on NEPA Scene in August, will open the concert.
Doors at the Jazz Cafe (667 N. River St., Plains) open at 7 p.m., and the 21+ show starts at 9 p.m. Tickets, which are $12 in advance or $18 at the door, can be purchased online via HoldMyTicket.
15-year-old Brandon Niederauer, nicknamed “Taz” for his ferocious guitar playing, is living proof that dreams really do come true. Having performed in some of the most legendary venues in America with many of the most prominent musicians of our time, the young guitarist, singer, and songwriter has already earned himself quite the reputation.
It all started at 8 years old when he watched the Jack Black movie “School of Rock.” Already inspired by his father’s record collection, Niederauer instantly realized he was destined to play guitar. From that moment on, his guitar rarely left his hands. Just four years later, he was cast in the principal role of guitarist “Zack Mooneyham” in the Tony Award-nominated Broadway production “School of Rock: The Musical” with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Based in New York City, Niederauer has had the opportunity to play with many of his musical idols. In recent years, he’s shared the stage with multiple members of the Allman Brothers Band, including Gregg Allman, Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, Butch Trucks, and Oteil Burbridge, as well as a variety of other notable musicians, including Buddy Guy, Stevie Nicks, Lady Gaga, Slash, Jon Batiste, Dweezil Zappa, Eric Gales, George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, Dr. John, Gary Clark Jr., Col. Bruce Hampton, Eric Krasno, George Porter Jr., Robert Randolph, Karl Denson, Doug Wimbish, and John Popper. He has also performed with the Tedeschi Trucks Band, the String Cheese Incident, Umphrey’s McGee, The Revivalists, Dumpstaphunk, Blackberry Smoke, Galactic, and countless other bands.
Since making his national television debut on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” at just 10 years old, he has appeared on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” “Good Morning America,” and “The View.”
In 2018, Niederauer reunited with Andrew Lloyd Webber, performing in January with Sarah Brightman at “The Phantom of the Opera’s” 30th anniversary celebration and in April alongside Sara Bareilles, Alice Cooper, and John Legend in NBC’s live broadcast production of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” He is currently featured in Spike Lee’s Netflix series “She’s Gotta Have It” and performs concerts for audiences across the country and around the world.
See NEPA Scene’s photos of Jordan Ramirez & the Tribe playing at the River Street Jazz Cafe back in August here.
