Matana Roberts | |
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![]() Roberts at All Tomorrow's Parties April 2007 | |
Background information | |
Born | 1975 (age 49–50) |
Origin | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Genres | Jazz, experimental |
Instrument | Saxophone |
Website | matanaroberts |
Matana Roberts (born 1975 [1] ) is an American sound experimentalist, visual artist, jazz saxophonist and clarinetist, composer and improviser based in New York City. [2] They have previously been a member of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), and a member of the B.R.C. Black Rock Coalition. [3] [4]
The works in their multichapter Coin Coin project have received wide acclaim: Coin Coin Chapter One: Gens de Couleur Libres was named in multiple JazzTimes 2011 Critics’ Lists; [5] Coin Coin Chapter Two: Mississippi Moonchile was called "stunning" by both the Chicago Reader [6] and SPIN ; [7] and Coin Coin Chapter Three: River Run Thee was named among Rolling Stone's Best Avant Albums of 2015. [8] Coin Coin Chapter Four: Memphis has garnered their greatest accolades, and was included in Pitchfork's Best Experimental Albums, [9] Bandcamp's Best Jazz Albums, [10] and the top ten of the NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll in 2019. [11] Anthony Fantano of The Needle Drop called the album "one of the decade's most compelling jazz projects". [12]
The annual DownBeat Critics Poll has named Roberts Rising Star in both the alto saxophone [13] and clarinet categories. [14] Roberts received a Doris Duke Impact Award in 2014 and a Doris Duke Artist Award in 2016. [15] [16]
Born in 1975 in Chicago, Illinois, Roberts was raised partly on the city's South Side and studied classical clarinet during their youth. [3] They formed a trio, Sticks and Stones, with bassist Josh Abrams and drummer Chad Taylor, with whom they regularly performed at the Velvet Lounge. [17] In 2002, Roberts moved to New York, initially busking in subways and publishing a zine, Fat Ragged, about their experiences. [17]
Roberts is the composer of Coin Coin, a multichapter musical work-in-progress exploring themes of history, memory and ancestry. [18] Roberts performed at the London Jazz Festival in 2007. [19] In 2008, Central Control released Roberts' The Chicago Project . [20] The album, produced by Vijay Iyer, includes performances by members of Prefuse 73 and Tortoise along with AACM saxophonist Fred Anderson. [21]
They have previously been a member of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). [3]
In January 2010, Roberts was the guest curator at The Stone. [22] Roberts was chosen by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he curated in March 2012 in Minehead, England. [23] Roberts held a residency at the Whitney Museum of American Art in the summer of 2015, during which they produced a series of research-based sound works entitled i call america. [24] The following summer, they had a solo show at the Fridman Gallery entitled I Call America II that was presented as an expanded version of the Whitney exhibition. [25]