Matthew Shipp December 3, 2006

Matthew Shipp - solo piano

@ TWINS JAZZ 8:00PM $15.00 + one drink minimum (202) 234-0072

1344 U St. N.W.
100% of the door goes to the artists.

With his unique and recognizable style, pianist Matthew Shipp worked and
recorded vigorously during the 1990s, creating music in which free jazz and
modern classical intertwine. He first became known in the early '90s as the
pianist in the David S. Ware Quartet, and soon began leading his own dates —
most often including Ware bandmate and leading bassist William Parker — and
recording a number of duets with a variety of musicians, from the legendary
Roscoe Mitchell to violinist Mat Maneri, who began appearing on recordings
in the 1990s. Through his range of live and recorded performances and
unswerving individual development, Shipp came to be regarded as a prolific
and respected voice in creative music by the decade's close.

Born in the 1960s and raised in Wilmington, DE, Matthew Shipp grew up around
'50s jazz recordings. He began playing piano at the young age of five, and
decided to focus on jazz by the time he was 12. Shipp played on a Fender
Rhodes in rock bands while privately devouring recordings by a variety of
jazz players. His first mentor was a man in his hometown named Sunyata, who
had an enthusiasm for a variety of studies in addition to music. Shipp later
studied music theory and improvisation under Clifford Brown's teacher Robert
"Boisey" Lawrey, as well as classical piano and bass clarinet for the school
band. After one year at the University of Delaware, Shipp left and took
lessons with Dennis Sandole for a short time, after which he attended the
New England Conservatory of Music for two years.

Shipp moved to N.Y.C. in 1984 and soon met bassist William Parker, among
others. Both were playing with tenor saxophonist Ware by 1989. Meanwhile,
Shipp had debuted as a recording artist in a duo with alto player Rob Brown
on Sonic Explorations, recorded in November 1987 and February 1988. Shipp
married singer Delia Scaife around 1990. He then went on to lead his own
trio with Parker and drummers Whit Dickey and Susie Ibarra. Shipp has led
dates for a number of labels, including FMP, No More, Eremite, Thirsty Ear,
Silkheart, and more.

In 2000, Shipp began acting as curator for Thirsty Ear's Blue Series. This
excellent series hosted a number of Shipp's own recordings, as well as the
recordings of William Parker, Tim Berne, Roy Campbell, Craig Taborn, Spring
Heel Jack, and Mat Maneri. The following year saw the release of Nu Bop, an
exploration into traditional jazz, followed closely by its 2003 counterpart,
Equilibrium. In 2004 Shipp released Harmony and Abyss, a meditation on
repetitive melodic and harmonic structures. One arrived in January of 2006.

Official Website: http://www.transparentproductions.org