Photo by Joseph D'Alessio
Composer/Conductor Sasha Matson spent his formative years in Berkeley CA, where his father taught philosophy at the University of California. He received a degree in Composition from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. After moving to Los Angeles, he scored music for feature film and other media, and received the Ph.D in Composition & Theory from UCLA. Recordings of his work have been released on the AudioQuest, New Albion, Albany, and Stereophile labels. Sasha writes about music and sound as a Contributing Editor for Stereophile magazine, and has taught at LaGrange College, Long Island University, and The State University of New York.
Praise for Range of Light / The Fifth Lake
“The ability of Matson to mirror with his music ( Range Of Light ) the same emotions that Muir expressed with his words is uncanny … A must-have for those looking for a more cerebral approach to accessible and consonant classical music.
– Robert Reina, The Tracking Angle
“Range Of Light has about it a hint of Transcendentalism which appealed to Muir… It is a music in which one suspends time, feels warm and comforted, loved and loving, in which one meets old friends and ideas circling in new ways.”
– George Buckbee, The John Muir Newsletter
“A spectacular piece The Fifth Lake … Clear music for clear minds.
– Santa Fe Sun
Praise for Steel Chords, i-5
“New works, new classics arise replacing older works as reference points. Such a work is Sasha Matson’s Steel Chords, I-5, These works for pedal steel guitar, harp and strings are models of contemporary classical music.”
– Mark Sulveres, WSPN
“RECORD OF THE YEAR … the mature, intelligent, and exciting pair of works (Steel Chords, i-5) included in this stunningly recorded album … a significant new classical composer.”
– Robert Reina, The Absolute Sound
“At this stage of his career, Matson seems to be the best kind of innovator – one who works from the inside, with an excellent balance of knowledge, respect, and fresh ideas.”
– Bill Tilland, Option
“MATSON IS THE SURPRISE NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR … Stravinskian vigor as well as unabashed Coplandy folksiness … his forms are thoughtful and unpredictable.”
– Kyle Gann, The Village Voice
“For an audiophile, this recording is pure heaven. Likewise for Sasha Matson’s music. It is sensual, evocative, picturesque, challenging, lyrical, and passionate …. a homespun country twang that makes this music about as American as anything I can think of.”
– Tom Schnabel, KCRW
Albums
Fillmore Street/Little Woodstar
Catalog Number: TROY1985
Take a foundation of classical composition, add a whole lot of jazz influence, and sprinkle in some Bob Dylan and Grateful Dead and you get FILLMORE STREET/LITTLE WOODSTAR, a walloping one-two punch of works for jazz and studio orchestra by composer Sasha Matson. The titular Little Woodstar incorporates a vocal quintet in a lush, progressive journey that keeps ears perked and ready for the next thing. The texts refer to names of species included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals.
The record is rounded out with Fillmore Street, where Matson walks us through three of his most meaningful California locales with an upbeat energy that conjures feet slapping pavement and rubber hitting the road. Adding to the album’s zest are the rooms where it was recorded: the legendary Sear Sound studio in Manhattan and East/West Studios in Hollywood with seasoned producers Joe Harley and John Atkinson.