Matt Savage

Matt Savage, age 28, has had a remarkable 19-year professional career as a jazz musician, bandleader and composer with ensembles of different size. He’s played with some of the biggest names in jazz, including Chick Corea, the Ellington All Stars, Chaka Khan, Wynton Marsalis, Bobby Watson, Clark Terry, Jimmy Heath, Jason Moran, Arturo O’Farrill, John Pizzarelli, Joshua Redman, Terri Lyne Carrington, Jon Faddis, Jerry Bergonzi and Donny McCaslin among others. He’s also opened for rock legends Neil Young and Stephen Stills, and has performed with Steve Earle, Jackson Browne, Shawn Colvin and Al Stewart. Along the way, he’s recorded twelve albums as leader and one as collaborator. He is a Bösendorfer piano artist.

As a composer, Matt has garnered respect and recognition. He composed and recorded the score for a full-length documentary film, Sound of Redemption: The Frank Morgan Story. The movie, which premiered in 2014, chronicles the life of the late jazz alto saxophonist Frank Morgan. Additionally, Savage wrote almost all the songs on his twelve albums, several of which have been used in short documentaries, on web sites, in school music curricula and in government educational materials.

Matt’s latest project is the Matt Savage Groove Experiment’s debut EP, Splash Variations. Splash Variations was released on December 7, 2018, and it was accompanied by a CD release tour in early 2019.

Savage has toured worldwide, including performances at The Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, Birdland, Blue Note (NYC), Bohemian Caverns, Smalls Jazz Club, The Town Hall, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Scullers, the Jazz Standard, the Pantages Theatre, the Iridium, the Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival, the Monterey Jazz Festival, Heineken Jazzaldia (Spain), the Costa Rica International Jazz Festival, the International VSA Arts Festival, the Jacksonville Jazz Festival, the Ottawa International Jazz Festival, the New Orleans Jazz Festival, the Earshot Jazz Festival, tours of Japan, China, India, Spain, Curacao, Aruba and Singapore.

Media appearances have included Marian McPartland’s “Piano Jazz,” NPR’s “All Things Considered,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “The Late Show with David Letterman,” the “Today” Show, ABC’s “20/20,” the Discovery Channel, BBC, Telemundo TV, and news shows and documentaries worldwide (including the U.S., Germany, France, Japan and the U.K.) The Wall Street Journal, JazzTimes, JAZZIZ, TIME, WIRED, Der Spiegel, The Jerusalem Report, People Magazine, TIME for Kids, American Way, The Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star, The Boston Globe, the New York Daily News, and others have featured Matt in print.

Having received his Bachelor’s Degree from Berklee College of Music and his Master’s Degree from Manhattan School of Music, Matt balances his professional music career with teaching. Back in the Boston area, Matt is an adjunct professor at Saint Anselm College and Bunker Hill Community College, and also teaches at Community Music Center of Boston and Note- worthy Experiences. He gives masterclasses and workshops domestically and internationally (in English and Spanish) as well as private piano lessons.

Awards

Selected as a Berklee Performing Artist/Representative to perform/teach at the Costa Rica International Jazz Festival, July 2011, ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Award (2005-2010), Finalist for ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Award (2011-2013), International Songwriting Competition (ISC) Winner (Second Place) (2008), ISC Finalist (2004-2007, 2009-2012), ASCAPLUS Award (2012, 2013), Signed as a Bösendorfer Piano Artist (2003), Signed a domestic distribution agreement with Palmetto Records (MRI/RED) (2004), Signed an international sub-publishing deal with SONY/ATV (2008), NH State Champion of the National Geographic GeoBee (2004), Chaka Khan Foundation Award (2005), McCarton Foundation Award (2009, 2011-12), Dr. Margaret L. Bauman Award of Excellence (2005), Council of Exceptional Children Award (2008)

Gear

Bösendorfer Pianos