Piano/Reeds duo concert from these two leading American improvisers.

"Shipp's piano playing is clearly articulated and patient whether his is laying down a foundation for Mateen to improvise over, or engaging him in a head-to-head duet. Shipp lays down beautifully stark and dark toned chords and notes, and Mateen swirls and probes them in a natural and organic way." Jazzandblues.blogspot.com

SABIR MATEEN / saxophones, flute, clarinet

Originally from Philadelphia (b. April 16th 1951), he moved to Los Angeles and played with Horace Tapscott and his Pan-Afrikan Peoples Arkestra and other bands. He moved back to Philadelphia in the '80's and played with two musicians he still collaborates with today, Sunny Murray and Raymond A. King, and also with Monette Sudler, Bill Lewis and many others. He also pursued studies with Byard Lancaster.

Having moved to New York in 1989, Sabir became a world renowned artist and has performed with the greats such as Cecil Taylor, William Parker Ensembles (Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra & The Inside Songs Of Curtis Mayfield), Alan Silva, Wilber Morris, Jemeel Moondoc, Charles Downs (Rashid Bakr), Marc Edwards, Mark Whitecage, Raphe Malik, Dave Burrell, Butch Morris, Henry Grimes, Kali Z. Tom Bruno, Roy Campbell, Daniel Carter, Steve Swell The Sun Ra Arkestra, Frode Gjerstad, William Hooker and many others.

Mateen has performed in Europe, Japan, and Africa. He is also involved in Collective bands such as TEST (w/ D. Carter, Matthew Heyner and T. Bruno), The Downtown Horns (w/ R. Campbell & D. Carter), The East 3rd St. Ensemble (w/ Matt Lavelle, Clif Jackson and David Gould).

Sabir leads his own bands as well: The Sabir Mateen Ensemble, Omni-Sound, Trio Sabir, and Juxtapositions.

Sabir also performs in solo and duo configurations with Matthew Shipp and Hilliard (Hill) Greene.

Sabir Mateen website

MATTHEW SHIPP / piano

Matthew Shipp is one of the most distinctive and inventive jazz pianists working today, a player whose compositional and improvisational brilliance have established him as perhaps the most original pianist since Cecil Taylor.

He has been a leading figure in the New York jazz scene since he moved there in 1984, playing with such figures as David S. Ware, Roscoe Mitchell, William Parker, Joe and Mat Maneri, Susie Ibarra, Joe Morris, Whit Dickey and Other Dimensions in Music. He also has long standing connections with the British free improvisation scene, having collaborated numerous times with Spring Heel Jack, and forming a richly productive association with saxophonist Evan Parker. Shipp's eclectic approach and restless musical curiosity have led to a number of notable collaborations with musicians from beyond the realm of jazz, such as the Anti Pop Consortium, El P and J Spaceman.

"Watching and listening to Matthew Shipp is one event that encapsulates a lifetime." - Lyn Horton, JAZZ REVIEW

“Shipp's playing is like some kind of inverted, dark-matter version of whatever you think a jazz pianist is going to sound like. . . . The shape of the lines, the concept of melody, follows a strange, original logic that is a tonic for so much else that deadens the ear.” - Mark D Fefer, Seattle Weekly

“ . . . one of the most daring and original pianists in jazz . . . . From avant-garde atonal textures to classical music textures and realms of cosmic consciousness and free expressionism, Shipp has been positioned in a lineage between Thelonious Monk and Cecil Taylor.” - Paula Edelstein, All Music Guide

Matthew Shipp website



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