{"id":6907,"date":"2023-09-22T22:18:43","date_gmt":"2023-09-23T03:18:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=6907"},"modified":"2025-06-14T22:32:30","modified_gmt":"2025-06-15T03:32:30","slug":"vibration-aiming-at-silence-matthew-shipp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/vibration-aiming-at-silence-matthew-shipp\/","title":{"rendered":"Vibration Aiming at Silence: A Conversation with Matthew Shipp"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Often the greatest artists have an identifiable voice. This is not to say their works are identical. Instead, no matter their changed surroundings, a shared identifiable quality continues to reflect their artistic essence. Consider Miles Davis. Birth of the Cool<\/em> (Columbia, 1957) and On the Corner <\/em>(Columbia, 1973) could not be more different in both compositional approach and aesthetic quality. Yet, the trumpeter\u2019s tone is easily identifiable in both works. Jumping to the present day, one finds this quality of a unique and identifiable voice in the works of Matthew Shipp. The distinctiveness of the pianist\u2019s idiosyncratic perspective is particularly evident when one compares the recent re-release of Circular Temple <\/em>(ESP-DISK, 2023) to his latest recording, The Intrinsic Nature of Shipp<\/em> (Mahakala, 2023).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Circular Temple, <\/em>a trio date with William Parker and Whit Dickey, was recorded in October 1990; an age when jazz purists were still on a crusade against avant-garde experimentalism. With institutional winds against him, Shipp released the work on a tiny label, Quinton Records, in 1992. While not Shipp\u2019s debut, the album is arguably the first to auspiciously hint towards his future. While drawing inspiration from Andrew Hill, Cecil Taylor, and Paul Bley, one can sense the pianist beginning to divert into a language all his own. While construction had only begun, the blueprint of Shipp\u2019s castle had been drafted for all to see, particularly in his phrasing on \u201cCircular Temple #4.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shipp has spent the last three decades further honing his voice across a wide range of records from acoustic small ensembles to experiments in electronica. His solo works – of which he has produced several – are a particular highlight as they expose him fully to the listener. One can sense his artistic maturation from release to release as little hints left in improvised works on one album are explored more deeply in the next. The Intrinsic Nature of Shipp <\/em>presents his latest iteration of these works. Some of the hallmarks of prior releases – particularly his use of the sustain pedal and his emphasis on the contrast between repetition and seemingly wild abandon – are unmistakable. But Intrinsic <\/em>also finds Shipp exploring quieter and more spacious terrain than that for which he is typically known. He takes his developed language and diverts it to a different direction, one more intimate and private. The listener is allowed to experience Shipp alone with the music, following where the vibrations tell him to go without sacrificing his unique perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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PostGenre: The Intrinsic Nature of Shipp <\/em> and the reissue of Circular Temple<\/em> were released on the same day. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Matthew Shipp: Yeah, but they happened separately. Two different labels. I don’t think there was any grand plan. But when Mahakala [Records] found out I was doing the reissue on ESP, it just felt right to release [the albums] together. By releasing them together, you\u2019re celebrating a new release and, in a sense, celebrating my very first release. It felt natural to release both on the same day, so we can celebrate both old and new. Celebrating both gives you a continuum of perspective.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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