Boundless and visionary, Matt Von Roderick’s newest album ‘The Good Storm’ bridges the religious and the experimental, remodeling jazz into an immersive act of creativeness and therapeutic. In dialog with Atwood Journal, the award-winning trumpeter, vocalist, and composer displays on his inventive philosophy, the deeper function behind his music, and the way innovation, connection, and intention information his artwork.
‘The Good Storm’ – Matt Von Roderick
“The sky’s the restrict when it’s in your creativeness… after which it’s a matter of bringing it to life.”
For Matt Von Roderick, that sentiment isn’t simply an artist’s philosophy – it’s a lived follow. The award-winning trumpeter, vocalist, and composer has spent his profession increasing the language of jazz, merging traditional lyricism with daring sonic innovation. His newest file, The Good Storm, stands as a fruits of that journey: a sweeping assertion that bridges the religious and the experimental, the timeless and the brand new.
Hailed by The New York Instances as “a post-millennial Chet Baker” and praised by JazzTimes as “a top-drawer trumpeter who additionally sings like an angel obscured by a storm cloud,” Von Roderick inhabits what he describes as “the rarified air of modern jazz trumpeter and heart-centered crooner.” His performances – equal elements meditation and exploration – have graced Carnegie Corridor, Lincoln Middle, and The Kennedy Middle for the Performing Arts, every one providing a window into his deeply intentional world of sound.
Over time, Von Roderick has collaborated with a exceptional roster of artists together with Brad Mehldau, Kenny Werner, Neil Diamond, Dionne Warwick, and The Saturday Night time Dwell Band, and his trumpet has appeared on Saturday Night time Dwell, The Ellen Present, and occasions with Marianne Williamson. He’s been acknowledged because the first-place winner of the Impartial Music Awards Jazz Class (as judged by Lou Reed), a finalist within the Thelonious Monk Worldwide Jazz Competitors, and a Vilar International Fellow – an honor dubbed “the Rhodes Scholarship of the performing arts” by The New York Instances. What units Von Roderick aside just isn’t solely his virtuosity however his devotion to function. His music integrates trumpet and vocal multiphonics – strategies that enable him to play and sing concurrently – alongside lush harmonies, ambient textures, and spoken phrase. The result’s a sound each ethereal and instant, inviting listeners right into a world that’s as emotive as it’s expansive.
“It’s among the best emotions while you’re on an journey in a brand new place, and the music and the reference to audiences by music turns into your new residence in a means… I reside for that.”
As he takes The Good Storm throughout North America, Europe, and Australia for his Celestial Coronary heart World Tour, Von Roderick continues to blur boundaries between performer and healer, virtuoso and visionary – every be aware a reminder that artwork’s biggest energy lies in its potential to awaken one thing luminous inside us all.
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:: stream/buy The Good Storm right here ::
:: join with Matt Von Roderick right here ::
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A CONVERSATION WITH MATT VON RODERICK
Atwood Journal: Your mix of trumpet, vocals, and tech has created such an fascinating, distinctive sound. Was there a track on the file that served because the catalyst for this sonic world to be created?
Matt Von Roderick: Finally, the sonic world I’ve created is the results of considering large, an “something goes” angle, and dreaming up a world of prospects that actually excites me. The sky’s the restrict when it’s in your creativeness…after which it’s a matter of bringing it to life. It’s one thing that’s developed over time, but when there’s one track on THE PERFECT STORM album that has served as a catalyst, I’d say it’s ‘Coexistence’. That track has such an exploratory spirit to it, and it incorporates a number of my influences without delay.
As a composer, it seems like you will have many influences. Might you discuss a bit about who’re a few of your biggest influences and who you have been listening to while making this file?
Matt Von Roderick: My father is a classical violinist and my mom was a classical pianist – I grew up listening to and taking part in their devices first, so classical music is a giant affect. Bach specifically – the satisfying structure of his music, mixed with a deep sense of looking/longing and catharsis. Then, I bought into Jazz…I believe most inventive music artists who worth actual freedom of expression will finally be drawn to Jazz. There, I discovered Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Chet Baker, Freddie Hubbard, Blue Mitchell, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Keith Jarrett… and at last I began to include all of it with inspiration from a few of the bands and artists I resonate with, that extra folks on this century have woven into the material of their lives – the likes of Radiohead, The Flaming Lips, Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, Bjork, Keane, Coldplay, Elliot Smith, Nick Drake…
Though it could sound lofty to some, I make music to remind folks of the reality of their nature as religious beings. I search to encourage, to heal, to activate.
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You incessantly communicate concerning the religious facet of music. How does that component form your method to efficiency and creating?
Matt Von Roderick: It’s necessary to me, as a result of I really feel that it provides my music a bigger function. Though it could sound lofty to some, I make music to remind folks of the reality of their nature as religious beings. I search to encourage, to heal, to activate. I really feel I’ve a job to do – that’s what I’m right here for. That’s what my albums are supposed to do, and that’s definitely what my reside performances are about. Traditionally, the trumpet has been an instrument of selection for this sort of message.
What are you most enthusiastic about for this upcoming tour?
Matt Von Roderick: It’s among the best emotions while you’re on an journey in a brand new place, and the music and the reference to audiences by music turns into your new residence in a means… I reside for that. It’s like: “Hey, I’ve one thing actually cool to share with you…life could be lovely! Do you are feeling it? Do You Understand??” I’m actually excited to be taking THE PERFECT STORM world wide in 2026 – we have now reveals deliberate throughout Europe, North America, and Asia.
Your collaborations span jazz and past, from Brad Mehldau to Neil Diamond. How do you adapt to such various musical environments whereas staying true to your voice?
Matt Von Roderick: One in all my mentors, Herbie Hancock, likes to say: “It’s one large music.” Maestro Herbie actually operates from the perspective of openness – he’s free from the restrictions of style… I like that. The primary time I met Brad Mehldau he mentioned to me: “There’s room for the whole lot.” That additionally made an impression. And once we performed collectively, the world felt huge. After I performed with Neil Diamond, I actually bought that it’s about connecting with and being beneficiant together with your viewers. I believe in the event you function from these philosophies, you may keep true to your voice in any atmosphere.
I like exploring new prospects, and at a sure level I felt drawn to transcend the one be aware melody line of the standard trumpet sound, and to method taking part in extra like a guitarist or pianist.
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The Good Storm blends custom with innovation. What was your imaginative and prescient for the album, and the way did you deliver it to life together with your collaborators?
Matt Von Roderick: It has all the time made sense to me that a part of the custom of jazz is to innovate, so in that means I believe the music simply feels pure to me. My imaginative and prescient for THE PERFECT STORM was to include and combine my life experiences right into a cohesive assertion in a means that conjures up others…and bringing it to life with the musicians and producers I work with flowed simply. I are usually drawn to open-minded individuals who get pleasure from seeing life from the perspective of the larger image.
Your use of trumpet and vocal multiphonics is groundbreaking. What drew you to discover these strategies, and the way do they improve your storytelling?
Matt Von Roderick: I like exploring new prospects, and at a sure level I felt drawn to transcend the one be aware melody line of the standard trumpet sound, and to method taking part in extra like a guitarist or pianist. After I play multiphonics, I sing and play concurrently, producing two and typically three notes without delay, which permits me to delineate concord and chords…in some ways this frees me up and helps deliver me into a brand new world. It’s additionally a putting sound that has an emotional immediacy to it that may actually seize an viewers’s consideration, in order that has it’s personal energy as effectively. I’ve a relationship to the sound, and it usually signifies a heightened second in my storytelling, definitely one thing extra layered…
You’ve talked about music’s transformative energy. How do you see your work as a software for therapeutic or private development to your viewers?
Matt Von Roderick: There are completely different ranges. There’s the purely sonic, vibrational facet. Which, on a scientific degree, in a means we’re all sound…then there’s the emotional facet that’s conveyed by the way in which, the nuance, through which the music is performed. And, there’s the lyrical content material which may have embedded into it all types of messages, a few of them clever. When all three are lined up in a complementary means, that may produce a strong impact. I’ve seen the “tone” of an individual change dramatically, from the start versus the ending of a live performance!
My imaginative and prescient for ‘The Good Storm’ was to include and combine my life experiences right into a cohesive assertion in a means that conjures up others.
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Your recognition, like successful the Impartial Music Award, speaks to your artistry. What do these achievements imply within the context of your bigger profession?
Matt Von Roderick: It’s definitely good to obtain acknowledgment, whether or not it’s from the Impartial Music Awards or the GRAMMY Awards. Achievements and awards like these aren’t a requirement for a profitable profession, however I see them as an indication that one thing goes proper, and a constructive impact is being created on the earth. And, usually, it means the music is reaching extra folks, in order that’s a great factor…
Might you share the way you put together for reside efficiency – any rituals or practices that floor you – and what issues most to you within the second of sharing your music with the viewers?
Matt Von Roderick: Earlier than I play a live performance, I all the time do my warm-up. This helps put together me and put me in an optimum state, the place I can obtain inventive info and permit it to channel by me and translate by my voice and trumpet. With the viewers connection, what issues most is the sensation.
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:: stream/buy The Good Storm right here ::
:: join with Matt Von Roderick right here ::
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an album by Matt Von Roderick
