MATTHEW WHITAKER - Pianist / Organist / Composer / Arranger
“The fleetness of finger, the touch and taste, the grit and grime when he needs it, the lightness and airiness when it’s called upon - Whitaker has it all.” Down Beat
“This is an artist who is here for the long haul, whose approach to each instrument is thoughtful and distinctive - melodic and improvisational on piano, complex, textured and harmonically dense on organ.” Splash Magazines
“Whitaker has justly gained a lot of recognition and applause at a young age; more, no doubt, is to come.” Jazziz
At the age of 23, Matthew Whitaker has lived a musical life richer than artists twice his age. This Hackensack, NJ musician, who started as a promising and prolific prodigy like Stevie Wonder and Billy Preston, became a protean and prestigious professional, who stunned the music world with his limitless virtuosity on piano, keyboards, organ and drums, his compressive creativity as a composer and arranger and his inspiring presence as a bandleader. Hailed as a “genius,” by fellow keyboardist Jon Batiste, Whitaker’s tremendous talents are the subject of wide media coverage, from 60 Minutes and The Today Show to Ellen. Whitaker also has worked with many prominent musicians including Roy Ayers, NEA Jazz Master Regina Carter and James Carter and D.D. Jackson.
Whitaker is an artist who knows where he’s going, because he knows where he comes from. Whitaker’s new recording On Their Shoulders: An Organ Tribute, is his soulful, 7-track shout-out to the Hammond B-3 organ pioneers who paved the way for him. They include “The Organ Grinder’s Swing” by Jimmy Smith; Charles Earland’s “Happy ‘Cause I’m Goin’Home,” Dr. Lonnie Smith’s “Pilgrimage,” Joey DeFrancesco’s “In The Key of the Universe,” and the festive “Expect Your Miracle” by gospel organist Elbernita “Twinkie” Clarke of The Clarke Sisters. The recording also contains two in-studio jam sessions: the Latin-tinged, “Yessaah,” and the Afrofuturist, hip-hop-pulsed, “Don’t Count Me Out.”
“The idea to do this project [came from] playing a lot of these songs, and listening to those artists growing up,” Whitaker says. “I was listening to Jimmy Smith a long time ago, and I just love the way that his trio interacted with each other musically. I remember my uncle playing Charles Earland for me. And I remember how it just grooved all the way through nonstop. Dr. Lonnie Smith was so down to earth, from the time I met him until his passing. And every time I’d go see him live, he would always play ‘Pilgrimage,’ and he would always invite me on stage to play it as well. I also saw Joey De Francesco growing up, and his wife suggested that I record ‘In The Key of the Universe.’ Elbernita “Twinkie” Clarke was another one that I've had a chance to see live and interact with. I saw her play “Expect Your Miracle” at a concert she did last January. And I was like, oh …I have to do this!” Read More…
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