About MatthewCollaborating with Intention and Heart
Matthew Evan Taylor has collaborated closely with Metropolis since 2016, with projects that include Biophony, For the Birds, and our multi-year partnership with The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Life Returns / Postcards to The Met. Composer and saxophonist Matthew Evan Taylor (1980) has been hailed as “a promising new voice” (Miami Herald) and a “risk taker” (Huffington Post) whose music is “insistent and defiant ... envelopingly hypnotic” (Lucid Culture). He's currently Assistant Professor of Music at Middlebury College in Vermont.
Current Metropolis ProjectLife Returns Album
Metropolis, Parma Recordings, and MetLiveArts are preparing the 2024 release of their co-commissioned work, "Life Returns," from composer Matthew Evan Taylor with performances by vocalist Ganavya, Rajna Swaminatan’s RAJAS Ensemble, and Metropolis artists. This work premiered in 2022 concert at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the culminating performance from our Postcards to The Met video series in 2021-22.“Matthew reconciled his artistic identity as a classical composer focused on social justice, Black expressive culture, and experimentalism.”
I Care If You Listen reviewed "The Unheard Mixtapes" in 2020.
Other Career Highlights
In 2013, Matthew Evan Taylor received a commission from Miami Light Project’s Here & Now for "Elvrutu’s Fall," his new ballet and marionette production, presented at The Light Box / Goldman Warehouse.“What began as an attempt by Matthew Evan Taylor to collaborate with fellow musicians during the isolation of the pandemic ended up being a yearlong project that culminated in an evening performance at the Met.”
Middlebury Magazine interviewed Matthew about his Postcards / Life Returns project in 2022.Previous Metropolis Projects
2023Biophony SoundGarden
Metropolis commissioned Ricardo Romaneiro to create an immersive soundbath experience with 20 musicians including Matthew Evan Taylor in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's conservatory ecosystems. The installation featured an ongoing, hands-on interactive experience for 4,800+ visitors of all ages using plants as live musical instruments to create “living” compositions.
2022Life Returns Concert
World premiere of an hour-long work by Matthew Evan Taylor at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, co-commissioned by MetLiveArts and Metropolis. The concert featured a specially formed hybrid orchestra, with Matthew Evan Taylor, vocalist Ganavya, Rajna Swaminatan’s RAJAS Ensemble, and Metropolis artists from the Postcards series. The digital premiere was released in 2023 with a roundtable discussion with the creative team and MetLiveArts general manager Limor Tomer.
2022For the Birds
Metropolis and Brooklyn Botanic Garden collaborated on the opening celebration for their new exhibition, featuring larger-than-life bird stilt walkers by Mortal Beasts & Deities and lifelike bird puppets from Processional Arts Workshop dancing to processional music from Metropolis Ensemble, created by Paula Matthusen, Matthew Evan Taylor, and John Wesley Dankwa.
2021–22Postcards to The Met
Metropolis created and produced 12 short films with original artwork by Juniper Creative for The Met's Instagram channel. These intimate digital postcards featured Matthew Evan Taylor, members of RAJAS, and Metropolis Ensemble artists. The video series has received 350K+ views on Instagram to date.2020Metropolis Radio: The Unheard Playlist
Matthew Evan Taylor curated a playlist for "Metropolis Radio," a weekly series of Spotify playlists from Metropolis composers and performers, his "audio love letter" to mentors, heroes, and colleagues. Metropolis employed over 40 artists directly through this project during the pandemic.
2020The Unheard Mixtapes
Matthew Evan Taylor's five-part album was commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble and released on New Amsterdam Records . His self-described artistic manifesto during the pandemic was unveiled over five months with original artwork by Juniper Creative.
2018House Music: The Struggle Continues
During the pandemic, Metropolis hosted a weekly House Music video series for artists to develop original works, record from home, and share new music. Matthew Evan Taylor performs his piece "The Struggle Continues" in his home in Middlebury, VT.
2017IN/TER\SECT
A music festival in Bryant Park showcased world-class jazz and classical music, produced with Chamber Music America and curated by composer and saxophonist Patrick Zimmerli, featuring the Metropolis-commissioned work "Prayer Service for Earnestine" by Matthew Evan Taylor.
2017Surge
A festive cocktail event in collaboration with the gallery On Stellar Rays, featuring the world premiere Metropolis-commissioned work "Surge" by Matthew Evan Taylor, inspired by the visual artist JJ Peet.
2016Metropolis Ensemble Tenth Anniversary
Metropolis presented multi-sensory musical performances including excerpts from Matthew Evan Taylor's works, sound installations, projection mapping, and performance art alongside sixty composers and performers to celebrate ten years of music innovation.