Matthew Mayer passionate solo piano Matthew Mayer – ARDOR: Matthew’s first release was in 1999, and his latest album clearly shows us how well he’s learned his lessons… as you listen to the simple, but beautiful, “Disappear It May“, you’ll find yourself totally engaged, and thirsting for more… the most distinctive thing about Matthews’ playing style is his use of crisp upper registers (the “high notes” for the uninitiated) to compliment his left-hand playing in the lower octaves; the piece is only 3:14, so you’ll find yourself using the “replay” button on this piece often… it’s definitely on my “piano” playlist for my iPhone! For long-time piano listeners, you will surely hear shades of George Winston in Matthews’ compositions, but he has a totally unique style of playing – more vibrant, and more emotional, than most of the other artists doing solo piano work today.
Doing a quick-search on YouTube, I found a graphically-enhanced video of the opening track for the album, “Stars On 123″… it is just those kinds of visions you will realize as you listen to all his other compositions on “Ardor”…
Again, what you need to “watch” for as you listen to Matthews’ beautiful playing is his wonderful pacing… he makes these passionate expressions seem “oh-so-easy”, but I can tell you from my own piano experiences – it takes real talent not to rush a piece, and still keep the movement active enough to touch the listeners’ soul.
Of the twelve songs Matthew offers up for your enlightenment, it is “Dreams VI” that is my personal favorite… be sure and listen to this track (as well as all the others) with headphones on… in fact, I strongly recommend that you carve out a full (undisturbed) 40 minutes, so that you can listen to Matthews’ work from the very first note to the closing bar without any interruptions. I give Matthew a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, with an “EQ” (energy quotient) rating of 4.99 for this sonic adventure; it is a true treasure. Rotcod Zzaj
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Thank you, Dick Metcalf, for this truly in-depth analysis of ARDOR. It’s a privilege to have your listenership and expertise review!
Matthew – thanks very much for taking the time to stop by & comment personally… of course, the pleasure is all MINE; truly great music coming my way these days!