Pianist Matt Savage in “Improvisational Jazz Mode” January 29, 2010

Augustana Arts presents

MATT SAVAGE Pianist
IMPROVISATIONAL JAZZ MODE



Matt Savage was diagnosed with autism at 3 years old. By the time he was 6 years old he had taught himself to play piano. Today Time magazine calls jazz pianist, Matt Savage "brilliant". People magazine calls him "a genius with 88 keys". Dave Brubeck says he is "simply amazed" at his talent. Chick Corea uses the words "delightful and inspiring". An amazingly gifted jazz pianist, composer and improviser, 17-year-old Matt Savage has the musical instincts of a person many years older.

Augustana Arts presents Matt Savage in Improvisational Jazz Mode for one performance only at 7:30 p.m., Friday, January 29 at Augustana Lutheran Church, 5000 East Alameda Avenue, Denver. Tickets are $20 and available at 303-388-4962 or online at www.augustanaarts.org

In 2000, when Matt Savage was just 8 years old, he played piano for Dave Brubeck and jammed at a sound session with Chick Corea and his sidemen, Avishai Cohen and Jeff Ballard. The following year he was invited to a soundcheck to jam with jazz great McCoy Tyner and his sidemen, Avery Sharpe and Al Foster.

In 2003, at the age of 11, Matt debuted at the famed Blue Note in Manhattan and was signed as a Bösendorfer Piano artist. The following year he debuted at Birdland, performing with the legendary Clark Terry on trumpet, Jimmy Heath on sax, Jon Faddis on trumpet, Marcus McLaurine on bass and Kenny Washington on drums. By 2005, Matt had performed twice with Chaka Khan.

In 2007, Matt made his first appearance at the prestigious Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola at Jazz at Lincoln Center and appeared on Marian McPartland’s popular “Piano Jazz” syndicated National Public Radio (NPR) series. In 2008, when Matt was 15, he appeared on "The Late Show with David Letterman" as the musical act, released his newest CD, hit #11 on the JazzWeek radio charts, garnered the #2 position in LIVE JAZZ sales on Amazon.com (behind only Keith Jarrett) and signed an international sub-publishing deal with SONY/ATV.

Matt has performed professionally worldwide in ensembles of various size and in solo concerts since 2001. He is the leader of the Matt Savage Trio. Domestic venues have included Birdland, the Blue Note, The Kennedy Center, The Kravis Center, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola at Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Regattabar and the Jazz Bakery (among many others). Festival appearances have included the New Orleans Jazz Festival, the Ottawa International Jazz Festival, the VSA International Arts Festival, the Burlington [VT] Discover Jazz Festival and the Toronto Abilities Arts Festival. Performances have occurred in many countries, including all over the U.S. and Canada, Curacao, Aruba and Singapore (for the President of Singapore).

Matt Savage is just 17 years old and has already released eight albums. He has played with such jazz greats as Clark Terry, Jimmy Heath, Jon Faddis, Marcus McLaurine, Kenny Washington, Bobby Watson, John Pizzarelli, Tom Pizzarelli, the Ellington All Stars and the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra. He’s performed with Chaka Khan, Max Weinberg and Ben Vereen and accompanied folk singersongwriters Al Stewart and Shawn Colvin. Matt has opened for/double-billed with Wynton Marsalis, Danilo Perez, Dave Samuels, Eldar Djangirov, Alain Mallet, Alon Yavnai, D.D. Jackson, Seth Kaufman, John Payne and Charlie Adams.

Awards for Matt, both compositional and performance-based, have been many. Matt has received the ASCAP Young Jazz Composers Award every year since 2005 and topped the International Songwriting Competition each year since 2006. He garnered the award for Second Place in 2009. Matt was a recipient of the Dr. Margaret L. Bauman Award of Excellence in 2005 and the Council of Exceptional Children Award in 2008.

More information at http://www.savagerecords.com/ and http://www.youtube.com/mattsavagejazz

Augustana Arts - Pianist Matt Savage in “Improvisational Jazz Mode” - Friday, January 29, 2010 at 7:30 pm - Augustana Lutheran Church, 5000 East Alameda Ave., Denver. $20 Adult / $10 Senior & Student - 303-388-4962 - www.augustanaarts.org



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