Matt Penman is originally from New Zealand. He moved to the U.S. in 1994 to study at Berklee College of Music and then to New York in 1995. There, he continues to perform, record, and teach internationally as one of the most sought-after bassists in jazz music. He is a member of the SFJazz Collective. This 8-piece collective of composers is dedicated to presenting original works as well as arrangements from jazz legends. The Collective includes some of the most talented composers/improvisers in the world, such as Stefon Harris, Miguel Zenon, and Mark Turner. Matt formed a quartet called James Farm in 2009 with Aaron Parks, Joshua Redman and Eric Harland. Their debut album was released by Nonesuch Records in 2011. Matt is a regular performer with John Scofield, both in trio and quartet with Joe Lovano. He is also a member Nils Wogram’s Root 70 and Breve, a drummerless trio with Hayden Chisholm, John Taylor, and Hayden Chisholm. Others include Kurt Rosenwinkel and Kenny Werner as well as Dave Douglas, Seamus Blake, Chris Cheek and Wolfgang Muthspiel. Matt is a teacher and has taught workshops in Europe. He was also Artist-in-Residence at the Brubeck Institute, Stockton, California, in 2007. Matt was also a member of the faculty at the 2009 Banff Workshop for Creative and Improvised Music. Matt’s band-leader projects include the co-led album Flipside (Naxos 1998), ‘The Unquiet (2001) as well as ‘Catch of the Day (2008), all on the Barcelona label Fresh Sound. More than 100 recordings have been made by Matt Penman on different labels. Visit www.mattpenman.com
