Matt Carmichael

Heralded by BBC Music Magazine as "a distinctive new voice in a crowded scene," Scottish saxophonist and composer Matt Carmichael continues to move from strength to strength and grow his reach globally with his powerfully emotive blend of jazz and folk music. He was born just outside of Inverness before moving to Glasgow, where, at the age of 11, he enthusiastically ran home from school clutching a letter from his local music service offering saxophone lessons. Music instantly became his passion, and he soon began writing music for his own band, performing their first gig at the Butterfly and Pig in Glasgow — before half the band were legally allowed in the pub.

Since then, the band has developed a special chemistry and sound together, grounded in collective improvisation. They regularly perform internationally at venues like Bimhuis, Fasching, Celtic Connections, Ronnie Scott’s, and Love Supreme, as well as Matt working as a soloist and arranger with the Grammy Award-winning WDR Big Band and the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra.

Following his critically acclaimed debut Where Will the River Flow (which amassed over 8 million streams), Carmichael signed to the renowned label Edition Records for his second album, Marram, which won "Best Album" at the Scottish Jazz Awards. His latest album, Dancing with Embers, is a collection of emotionally driven instrumental songs where melody takes centre stage. It is Matt’s most ambitious work so far, with his distinct soundworld being expanded with guests Rachel Sermanni (voice), Brìghde Chaimbeul (small pipes), Chris Amer, and Innes White (guitars), alongside his core quintet, which includes pianist Fergus McCreadie (piano), Charlie Stewart (fiddle), Ali Watson (bass), and Tom Potter (drums).

Dancing with Embers

Dancing with Embers is the most personal and ambitious album I’ve made so far. A lot of the music comes from sitting at the piano every day, improvising as a way to process emotions, and that became the starting point for the album. I listened to more singer-songwriters than anything else in the time period I wrote Dancing with Embers and wanted to create an instrumental album where the main focus is on the directness of the song and not so much on having any typical Jazz solos… on live gigs the band have free reign and improvisation is at core but I approached the recording of this album a little differently.

It features some of my favourite musicians and friends from across the Scottish Jazz and Folk Scene...

Charlie Stewart | Fiddle
Fergus McCreadie | Piano
Ali Watson | Double Bass
Tom Potter | Drums
Innes White | Acoustic Guitar (Track 2, 3, 5, 6, 11)
Chris Amer | Electric/Tenor Guitar (Track 1, 5, 6, 10, 12)
Brìghde Chaimbeul | Small Pipes (Track 7, 8)
Rachel Sermanni | Voice (Track 10)
Matt Carmichael | Tenor Saxophone, Piano (Track 1, 12)