Matt Sharrock, Marimbist/Percussionist

Transient Canvas

Boston-based contemporary duo Transient Canvas is on a mission to revolutionize the modern concert experience. Since 2011, their innovative performances have been praised as “superb” by the Boston Globe and “disarming” by Cleveland Classical, with the San Francisco Chronicle lauding “the versatile imagination they both display and inspire in others.” Bass clarinetist Amy Advocat and marimbist Matt Sharrock relish the creative potential of working with living composers, having amassed a varied repertoire of over 90 commissioned works in addition to working with hundreds of student composers from all over the world. Since 2017, they have hosted their annual paid Composer Fellowship Program which is free and open to composers of all ages. They maintain an active touring schedule with recent performances at the Alba Music Festival, Festival of New American Music, Music on the Edge, New Music Miami, and Red Note New Music Festival, among others. Recent educational residencies include the University of Southern California, the University of Miami, New York University, and Longy’s Divergent Studio. They have three albums, Right now, in a second; Sift; and Wired; released on New Focus Recordings. Transient Canvas proudly endorses Henri Selmer Paris and Marimba One.

Hinge

Hinge is a contemporary music ensemble based in Boston comprised of saxophonist Philipp Stäudlin, percussionist Matt Sharrock, pianist Keith Kirchoff, and electric guitarist Dan VanHassel. Lying somewhere between a chamber ensemble and a band, Hinge presents cutting-edge programs combining uncompromising contemporary music, seamless multimedia integration, and innovative arrangements of rock and pop songs. Their current programs feature music by Julius Eastman, Sam Pluta, Alvin Singleton, Hannah Lash, Meshuggah, Caroline Louise Miller, Chaya Czernowin, Klaus Lang, and more in addition to world premieres by Marti Epstein, Yoon-Ji Lee, Nicole Murphy, and Ravi Kittappa.

Boston Percussion Group 

Part contemporary music group and part rock band, Boston Percussion Group (BPeG) challenges the definition of “classical” music with repertoire ranging from Steve Reich to Frank Zappa and Tan Dun to Sufjan Stevens. BPeG presents high-energy performances whether in a concert hall or a public park. Comprised of a core group of musicians, BPeG has been featured at Boston Arts Festival, Outside The Box, and Make Music Boston and has given masterclasses at colleges and universities throughout New England.

Narratives

Narratives is how I have reconciled my childhood love of books, movies, and theatre with my current career as a classical musician. All musicians are storytellers, and, in a sense, all “classical” music, whether it’s Mozart or Xenakis, is a story. Music follows a dramatic arch, complete with character development, conflict, and eventually resolution. By combining theatrical works utilizing spoken narrative with more traditional marimba solos, it is my hope that audience members will start to make connections between stories with words and those without. Just like an episode of NPR’s This American Life, each performance of Narratives is different. That’s the beauty of telling stories - there are just so many to tell.