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Matthew Parrish

Matthew Parrish, has ‘come into his own’ as a sought after performer, arranger, composer, producer and instructor. Matthew brings skills and s wing as he puts his heart into every note he plays. He has a genuine warmth and loyalty to the music that transcends into every note, every tune, and every interaction with his fellow musicians.

Born in central California to hard-working, music-loving parents of four children, Matthew is the youngest to his next sibling by eleven years. With a variety of jazz, rock, and classical music being played around him since birth, whether live or recorded, and a father who played acoustic bass early in his military career, Matt was destined for a life dedicated to music. Although he started on trumpet in middle school, he switched from that instrument for the acoustic bass in a last minute decision of the heart right before his Rutgers Mason Gross School of the Arts music program audition. He was accepted as an acoustic bass student in jazz studies and he has never stopped learning his craft.

Matt’s young bass career is grounded in Philadelphia, PA. He had the blessing, in his late teens and early twenties, of performing with Shirley Scott, Mickey Roker, Bobby Durham, Cecil Payne, Johnny Coles, Harry ‘Sweets’ Edison, Sylvia Simms, Danny Turner, and fellow young musicians, Orrin Evans and Byron Landham. Matthew went on to have the unforgettable experience of touring with legendary trombonist, Al Grey. This era also included performing with Clark Terry, Marion McPartland, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Lou Donaldson, Joe Cohn, Savion Glover, and Bill Charlap.

After the sad passing of Al, an important mentor and friend, Matthew continued to tour with the bands of Greg Osby, Jon Jang, James Newton, Stefon Harris, and Regina Carter. Matt came to be relied upon as a gifted composer and arranger in addition to his steady performing. His own works, as played by Matt on bass, are on his debut CD, ‘Circles’ (Hipnotic Records), as well as on recordings from Regina Carter and Dave Leonhardt, Denise Montana, and Ben Schachter.

Matthew also has recorded with musicians such as Wynton Marsalis, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Paquito D’Rivera, Clark Terry, Etta Jones, James Williams, Harry ‘Sweets’ Edison, James Newton, Miri Ben-Ari, Gary Thomas, Vana Gierig, Orrin Evans, and Houston Person.

Matt continues to tour throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, and South America with bands of the legendary Freddy Cole, Houston Person, and Vana Gierig. Matt has also presented his own popular showcase concerts in the Philadelphia area, with everything from an old-school, Philly-tinted ‘tenor sax battle’ with Larry McKenna, Bootsie Barnes, Houston Person, and Tim Warfield, to a Brazilian ‘jungle jazz’ concert featuring Amazonian performers Karine Aguiar, Ygor Saunier, and Vinicius Barros, with Vana on piano, and Marcello Pellitteri on drums.

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7
Album Review

Michelle Lordi: Two Moons

Read "Two Moons" reviewed by Geno Thackara


The art of the jazz diva does not shy away from the dark and mysterious. From putting a spell on somebody to helplessly falling under that old black magic, the tradition always seems to include some small touch of witchery, and Michelle Lordi, for her part, does not let a modern-day sound obscure those roots. The mood of Two Moons sits somewhere between a late-night set in a small jazz club and a round of spooky stories around the campfire. ...

41
Album Review

Houston Person: Reminiscing at Rudy's

Read "Reminiscing at Rudy's" reviewed by Jack Bowers


The “Rudy's" in the title of tenor saxophonist Houston Person's album, Reminiscing at Rudy's, is not a nightclub or other such venue but the New Jersey studio of celebrated recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder who died in 2016. As befits reminiscing, the bulk of the album's numbers are tender ballads, every one of which lands squarely in Person's amorous wheelhouse. That is not to say the veteran tenor saxophone maestro—who has recorded almost seventy albums as leader ...

10
Live Review

Matthew Parrish's Philly Express Band: Jazz at Cherry Street Pier

Read "Matthew Parrish's Philly Express Band: Jazz at Cherry Street Pier" reviewed by Victor L. Schermer


Matthew Parrish Philly Express Band Cherry Street Pier Philadelphia, PA April 16, 2022 This “Jazz Appreciation Month" concert, sponsored by Jazz Philadelphia and the city's Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, unveiled a jazz quintet of highest caliber. The group was assembled by bassist Matthew Parrish with the idea of bringing together two distinguished Philadelphia-based veterans and, relatively speaking, three younger players. This was their first gig together, but they ...

1
Album Review

Tom Tallitsch: Message

Read "Message" reviewed by David A. Orthmann


There is hard bop DNA in tenor and soprano saxophonist Tom Tallitsch's twelfth record as a leader, the third consecutive release for his TT Productions imprint. While it is always tempting to start making comparisons to classic sides from the genre, or to simply dismiss recognizable sounds as old hat in a world bursting with new ideas and concepts, Tallitsch and his associates warrant attention on their own merits. As on two recent recordings, Wheelhouse (Posi-Tone) and Ten ...

7
Album Review

Michelle Lordi: Break Up With the Sound

Read "Break Up With the Sound" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey


Vocalist Michelle Lordi's house burned down at the end of 2017. That is a bracing life event from which one may find oneself at a brutally curious fork in the road. Lordi's Break Up With the Sound makes it seem that she blazed through Kubler Ross's five stages of loss and got to work on something so new, it smelled of white-hot creation. Lordi's modus operandi has been addressing the Great American Songbook, as evidenced by her densely competent Dream ...

174
Album Review

Ben Schachter and Sung/Unsung: Nothingman

Read "Nothingman" reviewed by AAJ Staff


Philadelphia-area saxophonist Ben Schachter plays a wide range of reed instruments extremely well, although his primary voice is the tenor saxophone. He's been influenced by Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane, yet his burly tenor sound is clearly his own, and his approach is both original and personal. If the music on his self-produced Nothingman is any indication, Schachter deserves to be much better known.

Sung/Unsung is the name of Schachter's current band, which pivots on the interplay between Schachter and ...

223
Album Review

Ben Schachter & Sung/Unsung: Nothingman

Read "Nothingman" reviewed by Mark F. Turner


With a sharp edge that cuts on the side of dynamic playing and improvisation, Nothingman is the latest release by reedist and bandleader Ben Schachter. The Philadelphia-based musician has earned a reputation as one who treads clear of tepid jazz waters in favor of progressive and free flowing ones, as attested on his recent recordings Inside, Looking Out and Missing Beloved.

Schachter's new group Sung/Unsung is appropriately titled as he joined by highly accomplished (if not widely known) musicians--bassist Matthew ...

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114

Performance / Tour

Bassist Matthew Parrish to Lead Quintet at Twins Jazz

Bassist Matthew Parrish to Lead Quintet at Twins Jazz

Source: All About Jazz

For Immediate Release

Contact: Tony Haywood, HiPNOTIC RECORDS, [email protected], (202) 547-0541

Washington, DC -- On Thursday, June 13th, bassist-composer Matthew Parrish will lead a quintet featuring drummer Alvester Garnett (Stefon Harris, Cyrus Chestnut, Regina Carter) at Twins Jazz in Washington, DC. Rounded out by pianist Jason Shattil, and saxophonists Jerome Sabbagh (tenor) and Ignaz Dinne (alto), the quintet will perform two sets at 8 and 10 p.m. Twins Jazz is located at 1344 U Street, NW. The cover will be ...

105

Recording

Bassist-Composer Matthew Parrish Debuts on HiPNOTIC

Bassist-Composer Matthew Parrish Debuts on HiPNOTIC

Source: All About Jazz

"Matthew Parrish, an extraordinarily gifted bassist-composer, joins the noble lineage [of jazz bassist-bandleaders] with Circles, an inspired quartet outing featuring fellow heavy-hitters Joel Frahm on tenor, Vincent Bourgeyx on piano and Steve Hass on drums." -- David R. Adler, music critic, AllAboutJazz.com, All Music Guide

Matthew Parrish keenly recalls being captivated by the sound of Ray Brown's bass lines on his dad's Ella Fitzgerald records. Brown's rhythmic pulse sparked a lasting passion for music -- jazz especially -- and moved ...

149

Music Industry

Bassist-Composer Matthew Parrish Makes Recording Debut on HiPNOTIC

Bassist-Composer Matthew Parrish Makes Recording Debut on HiPNOTIC

Source: All About Jazz

For Immediate Release

“Matthew Parrish, an extraordinarily gifted bassist-composer, joins th[e] noble lineage [of jazz bassist-bandleaders] with “Circles", an inspired quartet outing featuring fellow heavy-hitters Joel Frahm on tenor, Vincent Bourgeyx on piano and Steve Hass on drums." -- David R. Adler, jazz critic

December 10, 2001, Washington, DC -- HiPNOTIC Records president Tony Haywood today announced the release of Circles, an impressive debut recording by jazz bassist Matthew Parrish. The CD ...

Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Two Moons

Self Produced
2023

buy

Reminiscing at Rudy's

HighNote Records
2022

buy

Message

TT Productions
2021

buy

Break Up With the...

Cabinet of Wonder Productions
2019

buy

Nothingman

Ben-Jam Music
2004

buy

Circles

HiPNOTIC Records
2002

buy

Zipline

From: Message
By Matthew Parrish

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