CD Baby Bio - Matt began playing the piano at age four. Within a couple of years it was apparent that he had a gift for picking out melodies he'd heard in the ballet studio (Matt's mother is Lynn Marchant, a Grandmaster of Russian Classical Ballet with an established academy and ballet company in McMinnville, Oreon) or on the radio. He also showed a skill and interest in making up his own music, patiently exploring harmonies for hours on end. His piano teacher quickly recognized this early aptitude and began to tailor her method of instruction to strengthen this aspect of Matt's training. Having been raised around classical ballet from birth, Matt was around recorded music every day. From Tchaikovski to Mozart to Bach, to The Beatles, Donovan, Cat Stevens, Frank Miller, and the late, great Lynn Stanford, a prodigious improvisational ballet classroom pianist whose entire catalog could be found in Matt's Mother's studio. Lynn Stanford's skillful classical improv and strict adherence to form impacted Matt's musical development considerably. By age nine, after five years of study, his ability to improvise in a variety of styles was gaining momentum. The formal instruction of classical theory and practice continued with subsequent piano teachers and his love of the craft of playing the piano was firmly rooted. That year Matt began accompanying beginning ballet classes in his Mother's studio. Over the next several years, Matt was given the privilege of accompanying gradually more advanced classes until he was given the privilege of being invited to accompany Master classes hosted by his Mother, Lynn. He has played for Masters from the Bolshoi, the Kierov, the New York City Ballet, the Royal Winnipeg from Canada, Dance Theater of Harlem, and many others from across the globe. In his late teens, Matt was considered by many to be in the top one percent of ballet classroom accompanists in the world. This was a hefty responsibility, but a true honor for a young man. When Matt was twenty-two years old the Bolshoi Ballet in Russia offered him a Doctorate scholarship to the Moscow Conservatory and a job for life in the Bolshoi School of Ballet. He was the only American to ever be granted this great opportunity, but as life is full of choices, he respectfully declined the generous offer to be with his then wife and new born daughter, Alicia, as there was only a ticket for one. Through the next decade and into his mid thirties, Matt continued to accompany ballet classes and plans to begin recording classroom albums in the near future. Naturally, over the years, Matt expanded his musical tastes and began listening to all sorts of music and, throughout junior high and high school, was involved in jazz choir, concert choir, and theater. His current favorite bands and artists are Rush, The Beatles, of course, The Superficials, Elton John, Billy Joel, and Sting. During his early twenties he started writing songs, emulating his newfound creative influences, and continues to pen vocal pieces in preparation for the forthcoming album, "Real". Another pianist of historical note in Matt's life is George Winston. The album "December", on the Windham Hill label, remains a cherished part of his CD collection and has clearly influenced his most recent Walnut Tree Music release, "Wildflower", a contemporary, somewhat Celtic solo piano collection of originals and a fluid interpretation of the old English hymn, Jerusalem, by William Blake and H. H. Parry. Please visit his website www.walnuttreemusic.com for a calendar of upcoming performances in the Portland area. Walnut Tree Music is named in honor of Matt's Grandfather, Guy Burnett, an amazing golfer, a songwriter from the fifties (Walnut Tree was one of his popular melodies), and an incredible man. Matt's Grandfather was never able to see Matt perform, but it was his life's dream that one of the grandchildren become a successful pianist. He is there in spirit and he will be missed. Matt has played in many bands over time including a Christian rock group from his home town called Noisy Joy, a brief stint in the Portland band Tales Untold, with Keith Sommers and Nathan Khyber, and, until recently, he performed and recorded with rising pop icon, Geoff Byrd. Matt was one of the core members of the Geoff Byrd band and worked with Geoff Byrd, Stephen Bennett Killen, Colby Hendicks, Eric Storm, and producer and friend, Steve "Sunny" Sundholm, through the national release of "Shrinking Violets", released by Granite Records in the summer of 2005. Matt did some national touring with Geoff and the band and has performed with British pop star John Waite at the House of Blues in Las Vegas, has opened for popular pop and rock bands such as The Calling, Gem, and American HiFi. To find out more about "Shrinking Violets" and Geoff Byrd visit www.geoffbyrd.com or just search CD Baby. Matt left the Geoff Byrd band in fall of 2005 to pursue a solo career, but he and Geoff remain good friends. As a side note, a couple of the songs off of "Shrinking Violets" have recently been nominated for four Grammies in the pop and instrumental arrangement categories. Some additional musical endeavors have included performing at countless weddings and banquets, private teaching, numerable private and commercial recording sessions, leading a very successful contemporary Christian praise team. He also spent time directing youth choirs, conducting group dynamics sessions with bands to help them gel more effectively, performing at wine festivals, donating his skills to special events and fund raisers, writing and arranging Gospel songs, and scoring a few independent films. Currently Matt resides in Newberg, Oregon and works closely with long time friend, business partner, mentor, manager, producer, and fellow musician Jim Warren. Jim Warren produced Matt's mid nineties Christmas release, "He Is King!" also available through CD Baby and Matt's website. For about four years now Matt and Jim have been performing together in the Corbett based, southern rock band SouthBound. SouthBound performs every couple of months at Jim Warren's bar and restaurant, The Historical Springdale Pub and Eatery, on the historic Columbia River Highway on the Sandy River in Springdale, Oregon. Jim and his amazing wife, Diane, have been invaluable to Matt's career development and life. Matt is always quick to tell you that he could not have done it without them. Matt also has two daughters, Alicia and Kyrsten, who are a constant inspiration and, in what spare time he has, writes fiction and poetry.