ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
The Dmitri Matheny Group is back with Penumbra, featuring a host of music inspired by the shimmering disk we call the Moon. Broad, airy and a little mysterious, the Matheny sound is complemented well by this celestial theme. Matheny's is a sound that won't be overshadowed.
—Benny Villalobos

ALBUM REVIEW: RED REFLECTIONS
After training under the eminent flugelhornist Art Farmer, renown has come for Matheny with the release of his debut CD, a collection of "sound paintings in jazz" that not only showcases Matheny's sculptural performance but also many of his own compositions. Red Reflections has quickly become one of the best selling releases on the Monarch label and has been praised by some as "the best jazz title of the year."
—Benny Villalobos

CONCERT REVIEW: GRANT & MATHENY
Grant & Matheny are equal partners. They accompany one another while improvising energetic solos over jazz standards, chamber music and African-American spirituals. They play spirited, swinging shout choruses just like a Big Band, but they never lose the warm intimacy of a classically trained duo. An exciting and satisfying performance.

FEATURE: DMITRI MATHENY
Matheny's Hard Work Produces Silky Jazz

First, put aside your guilt. You've probably never heard of Dmitri Matheny. And that makes sense, really. Last year Matheny was voted as a talent deserving wider recognition by Down Beat magazine's critics poll.

You may have never heard of his instrument, either. Before Matheny, Chuck Mangione was the "only guy who played flugelhorn exclusively and made a lot of money."

But listen to "Starlight Cafe," Matheny's latest album, and it will sound seductively familiar, like you've been listening to his ebony tones and molasses rhythms all your life.

These are loose and easy tunes, liquid silky, and yet Matheny' s improvisations—with Darrell Grant on piano and Bill Douglas on bass—still press the limits of standards like "Stardust" and "When You Wish Upon a Star."

His third album is an intimate confection imbued with a warm delicacy, mellow lyricism and lacy elegance of the midnight strains of jam sessions playing in another room.

"It's hard to make instrumentals—music without vocals—that are both popular and substantial," Matheny says. "People automatically think you're selling out."

At 33, Matheny is not selling out. No one working this hard could ever be accused of selling out. Touring April through October, Matheny also teaches in the Bay Area, composes, records and presents what he calls a "Home Season" in March.

Then there's the newsletter. The slick publication offers "Flugel Gourmet" gift baskets, album cover posters, Matheny CDs and the special benefits of membership in the Friends of Matheny Music. Your non-tax-deductible $100 includes a membership card, subscription to the newsletter, a free Matheny compact disc and T-shirt and an exclusive invitation for two to the annual holiday party. Membership supports Matheny's ongoing work in jazz education and composition.

It’s hard work being Dmitri Matheny, “But it's better than stringing together a series of possibly lucrative, but essentially empty one-nighters" he says. He's hoping that stops like the ones in New Mexico—he's played the Outpost Performance Space four times—will evolve into a kind of mini-residency.

Matheny will be playing in both Santa Fe and Albuquerque this weekend.

His third album is an intimate confection imbued with the warm delicacy, mellow lyricism and lazy elegance of a midnight jam session playing in another room. "Played to perfection," the back of the CD suggests, “Starlight Café’ is best savored when the lights are low."

"It's more fulfilling to get inside a community, to meet the musicians," Matheny says. "For me, it's more artistically fulfilling than just showing up and playing."

Inspired by Miles Davis, Matheny, who grew up in Arizona, started playing trumpet at 9, later graduating from the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy. While attending the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Matheny put aside jazz to make the rent, playing with pit orchestras, roving big bands, and groups like the Temptations and Martha Reeves that came through town.

Over the years he struggled to get the dark, mellifluous sound Davis had coaxed from the trumpet. "I was doing just dreadful things to that instrument," he says. "Stuffing athletic soeks into the bell of the hom. Someone told me if you take the lacquer off the instrument you get a darker sound. So there I am scrubbing at it with steel wool."

Then he found his voice. "I got a flugelhorn and immediately fell in love with it."

Over the years, he played the flugelhorrn as well as the trumpet. Like most trumpet players, he treated the flugelhorn as a backup. "I never did get the kind of sound out of the flugelhorn that I wanted to get. I wanted a fat tone."

By the time he was 18, he had begun studying with Art Farmer. Farmer told him: "If you want to play the flugelhom, play it. Get rid of the trumpet and practice."

"So I sold it and focused on the flugelhorn," Matheny says.

Playing such an unusual instrument forced Matheny to focus on his own work. There isn't much use for a flugelhorn in the middle of a section of trumpets, he says. And for a while, it was hard. "There were times I thought about going out and buying a trumpet," he says.

That didn't happen, and today Matheny looks forward more than he looks back.

"I've recently had sort of an epiphany about music," Matheny says. "I think in school I was pretty much a 'jazz Nazi'."

He laughs.

"I realized that when Miles Davis played 'Bye Bye Blackbird' that was pop music," Matheny says.  His next album, he says, will take him into new territory, blending some of the influences of pop music with a jazz sensibility. No smooth jazz, though.

"I have to say that a lot of my favorite music is not jazz," Matheny says. "More and more I move toward melody and lyricism."

And that's not hard to hear on "Starlight Café." That fat sound which draws a line directly to mentor Farmer, moans wiith the expressiveness of a doomed chantuese.

"I feel like a frustrated singer," Matheny says. "I try to transcend my instrument, which stands between you and me, between me and my audience."

Matheny searches for the sound of sincerity. He gravitates back to that word again and again.

People don't talk about sincerity. The critics and musicians rarely address it, but audiences get it," he says. "For instance, John Tesh. I don't like his music. I don't think he's a great musician and I don't want to hear it, but he absolutely believes in his music arid people love that."

In the last year or so, Dmitri Matheny has been named a talent deserving wider recognition and one of the best new artists on the jazz scene.

—T.D. Mobley-Martinez

CONCERT REVIEW: GRANT & MATHENY, MONTEREY JAZZ FESTIVAL
Grant & Matheny have played together for years, and it shows. They share the lead and sometimes finish each other's phrases. Both players have refined their instrumental techniques to the essentials, giving their music a relaxed, uncomplicated sensibility that makes it fun to listen to. Not surprisingly, the Monterey Jazz Festival audience loved them.
—Craig Jolley

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Starlight Cafe is a quiet, hauntingly beautiful album of ballads and standards -- late-night jazz that proves you don't need to make a lot of noise to make a strong impression.
—Joel Robert

The Dmitri Matheny Group is a cohesive and seamless unit, serving up equal parts soulful expression, caressing phrases, imaginative asides, and dedicated lyricism.
—Alex Henderson

Dmitri Matheny is a sensitive and expressive new voice on today's jazz scene.
—Jim Santella

Dmitri Matheny is an excellent flugelhornist whose style and sound are mellow and whose bop-based improvising is melodic.
—Scott Yanow

ALBUM REVIEW: RED REFLECTIONS
Dmitri Matheny's recording career got off to an impressive start with his highly introspective debut album, Red Reflections. One could hear the influence of Chet Baker, Art Farmer and Miles Davis in Matheny's playing, but while the flugelhornist clearly admires their lyricism, it's also obvious that he's very much his own man. Except for Michael Brecker's "Take a Walk" and Horace Silver's "The Outlaw," Red Reflections emphasizes Matheny's own compositions, which include the complex "Myth of the Rainy Night," the contemplative "Like a River," and the evocative title song. Another high point of this pianoless date is "Sketch," an impressionistic, cerebral number that recalls Davis' mid-1960s output. This is an excellent album that is as cerebral as it is rewarding.
—Alex Henderson

ALBUM REVIEW: SANTA'S GOT A BRAND NEW BAG
Flügelhornist Dmitri Matheny's Christmas jazz album mostly features his regular group (with Kenny Brooks on tenor and soprano, guitarist Brad Buethe, pianist Darrell Grant, bassist Ruth Davies, and drummer Jason Lewis), although various numbers also feature the French horn of Mark Taylor; Rob Burger on accordion; and vocals by Paula West, Clairdee, and Brenda Boykins (who is a bit annoying on "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch"). Other than the latter piece, the performances all work quite well. Highlights include happy versions of such songs as "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town," "Winter Wonderland," and "Let It Snow." The closing "The Christmas Song" is taken as a brief, unaccompanied flügelhorn solo. A recommended acquisition for one's Christmas jazz collection.
—Scott Yanow

Flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny is a jazz treasure. The lyrical Matheny, whose influences include Chet Baker, Art Farmer, and Miles Davis, has impressive chops, but it's his warmth and soulfulness that win you over.
—Alex Henderson

TESTIMONIAL: DMITRI MATHENY GROUP
I have followed Dmitri's music career closely. With the release of each new CD, as his notoreity has grown, so has his heart. As the parent of a young jazz trumpeter, I'm impressed by the commitment the Dmitri Matheny Group has shown to music education. And as the son of one who defined the genre, I'm encouraged that the future of jazz is in such good hands.
—Clifford Brown, Jr.

Dmitri Matheny is a damn good flugelhorn player.
—Stewart Oksenhorn

Downtown cool, like a midwinter walk down empty Soho streets.
—Alex Lash

CRITICS' PICK: HOME SEASON
Taking a cue from classical groups and turning his imaginative programming and beautiful music into a cottage industry, Bay Area flugelhorn virtuoso Dmitri Matheny returns from successful tours of the United States and Europe for an ambitious four-day Home Season...an engaging instrumentalist who brings gorgeous melodies to life with a smooth, elegant tone.
—Derk Richardson

The flugelhorn is the primary instrument of only a few jazz giants, most notably Dmitri Matheny's mentor Art Farmer. But Matheny, trained on trumpet, displays a precocious command of the bigger horn, blowing smooth and lustrous timbres and shaping unique phrases, often spare and always lyrical, in which you can hear traces of his earliest inspiration, Miles Davis. Whether exploring tender emotional nuances or cutting loose with quicker-paced romps, Matheny achieves a noble balance of cool attitude and warm sound, unforced in execution and rich in compositional and improvisational ideas.
—Derk Richardson

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
If the lushness and purity of the leader's flugelhorn tone were the only outstanding qualities of Dmitri Matheny's sophomore CD, that would be enough to recommend Penumbra as one of the most gorgeous mainstream jazz recordings of the year. The smooth, luminous sound and gentle tempos executed by Matheny and friends might give a deceptive "dinner jazz" gloss to the session, but a delicate harmonic complexity shapes Matheny's fine original music. Although he eloquently covers Neil Young's "Harvest Moon" and quotes Van Morrison's "Moondance" in the swinging tribute to legendary producer Orrin Keepnews, Matheny makes no facile pop or "new jazz" moves that would eclipse the fundamental beauty and understated lunacy of his vision.
—Derk Richardson

ALBUM REVIEW: RED REFLECTIONS
The first notes of this jazz debut, Red Reflections, drift up and curl in the air like smoke from a cigarette on the edge of an ashtray in some swank watering hole. They hang momentarily and then dissipate, leaving only memory traces in a void soon filled by another magical wisp. The evocative tones emanate from the flugelhorn of Dmitri Matheny, a San Francisco transplant stepping forward as one of the most eloquent musical voices in the gradually evolving mainstream of jazz. A young player with impressive academic degrees, awards, and commissions, Matheny makes feeling—from noir moods to unfettered delight—the primary source of his reflections.
—Derk Richardson

CONCERT REVIEW: GRANT & MATHENY
Grant & Matheny achieve a level of heartfelt communication rarely experienced in larger ensembles. They take listeners on an inspired musical journey, capturing the playful, spontaneous spirit of American jazz, reinventing European art songs and interpreting sacred and secular works from around the world.

CRITICS' PICK: HOME SEASON
Every March, flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny organizes a series of Bay Area concerts before he sets out on a long road trip. This year's Home Season schedule features an especially impressive, disparate array of performances.
—Andrew Gilbert

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Dmitri Matheny's third album, Starlight Cafe, is a ravishingly beautiful session with bass master Bill Douglass and the superb young pianist Darrell Grant.
—Andrew Gilbert

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
Dmitri Matheny's second release, Penumbra, is an exquisitely rendered, moody and reflective suite of music based around musical moon themes.
—Wayne Saroyan

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
A noted composer who has received many commissions. Matheny is one of the most lyrical and creative musicians on the Bay Area jazz scene. His latest recording, Penumbra, is a ravishingly beautiful album of standards, pop tunes and his own finely crafted pieces, all linked by the lunar theme.
—Andrew Gilbert

Flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny's music seems to have found the best of both worlds—it's as warm and appealing as Chuck Mangione's most commercial ventures, yet bares all the mastery of his mentor, Art Farmer.

CRITICS' PICK: HOME SEASON
Hornman Comes Home: Flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny spends much of the year on the road, so he makes sure he has something special up his sleeve when he's working in the Bay Area. The noted composer has lined up a series of seven concerts in March, billed as his Home Season. Looking to the heavens for inspiration, Matheny will perform a repertoire of linked lunar themed compositions in a series of starkly beautiful sonic vistas.

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
It's unusual that such a wondrous jazz moment gets caught on tape. But that's the story behind the captivating Starlight Cafe, CD number three by rising star flugelhornist-composer bandleader Dmitri Matheny. Working with his remarkable trio of pianist Darrell Grant and bassist Bill Douglass, Matheny embarks on an exquisite ride through the cosmos, romancing and musing on his horn with balladic delicacy and gorgeous ebullience. This is dimmer-switch and candlelight music, best savored when the lights are low. Rich with improvisation and played to perfection, Starlight Cafe gleams with rapturous jazz radiance.
—Dan Ouellette

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
With resonant, soft-toned flugelhorn lines, Matheny casts a silvery blue glow over Penumbra, his radiant sophomore CD conceptually linked by a lunar theme.

 A wonderfully lyrical flugelhornist whose clean, thoughtfully sculpted lines and warm tone bring to mind those of Art Farmer and Clark Terry.
—Lee Hildebrand

CONCERT REVIEW: GRANT & MATHENY
In their solos Grant & Matheny favor the "Stan Getz, less-is-more" style, striving to create a mood rather than displaying hot licks. It's hard to imagine any music more perfect for a warm, romantic summer evening.

The Dmitri Matheny Group is an all-star jazz band featuring some of the most accomplished musicians in the western United States.
~Rick Busciglio

BAY AREA BEST: HOME SEASON
March usually means spring, but it also means the DMITRI MATHENY HOME SEASON, a wonderful series of jazz concerts and events throughout the Bay Area.
—George Powell

BAY AREA BEST: RED REFLECTIONS
Red Reflections, jazz flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny's maiden offering as a leader, is a lovely collection of tunes in the cool jazz tradition of the late, great Miles Davis' Kind of Blue and of Matheny's mentor, Art Farmer. These moody tunes, mostly composed by Matheny himself (he also covers pieces by Horace Silver and Michael Brecker) are musical tone poems far more affecting than the usual fusion static. Recommended.

ALBUM REVIEW: RED REFLECTIONS
Say you're a thirty-year-old flugelhorn player, and Art Farmer, the legendary master of the big horn, says your debut release "sounds so good I wish I'd made it myself." You must might have to pinch yourself. RED REFLECTIONS, the excellent debut from Dmitri Matheny, has a little bit of everything, from a serene, floating calypso reminiscent of Tony Williams' "Sister Cheryl" to burning bebop, a mid-tempo Horace Silver tune, a free association mosaic, film noir ballads, and a strutting Michael Brecker number.
—Jason Olaine

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Dmitri Matheny has the kind of flugelhorn sound that has inspired this Metheny to start spending an extra hour each day in the woodshed. It's as gorgeous and soulful as a sumptuous full moon on a breezy summer night. And that's not to mention a level of technique and fluidity that will probably end up adding another hour to this admirer's new regimen...one of the jazz world's next important flugelhorn players.
—Mike Metheny

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Playing a whole gig without a drummer takes a special kind of musicianship. This threesome pulls it off brilliantly.
—Mike Metheny

TESTIMONIAL: DMITRI MATHENY
It is a giant joy to soak and bathe in his virtuosic lyricism, clarity, savoir faire, sensitivity, and integrity. Dmitri Matheny sings on his horn, illuminating the fresh vocal quality of his instrument and improvising with imagination, witticism, and emotion. Remember his name.
—Dr. Herb Wong

TESTIMONIAL: DMITRI MATHENY GROUP
As the past President of the International Association of Jazz Educators, I'm warmly gratified that the Dmitri Matheny Group has made jazz education a prominent and vital part of their busy touring season. As a veteran jazz media producer, author and historian, I'm particularly proud that this world-class group of artists is based right here in my home, the San Francisco Bay Area.
—Dr. Herb Wong

INTERVIEW WITH DMITRI MATHENY
July 2004

JI: Tell us about growing up in Tennessee, Georgia and Arizona and the kinds of encouragement, surroundings, experiences and attitudes that provided the foundation for your career pursuits.

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DM: The south is a beautiful, soulful place, despite deeply entrenched racial and class tensions. People smile at you and look you in the eye. Neighbors know one another.

Growing up in the south has given me a deep appreciation of human warmth and kindness; of southern hospitality. If you come to my show, I'm the host and you're my guest. It's my job to make you feel welcome and comfortable so we can enjoy each other's company. The south also gave me a love of the blues and spirituals, and ingrained in me a relaxed pace -- the southern stroll. I imagine you can hear these influences in my music.

When I was about twelve, we moved west to Arizona. I spent my formative years there, and I still feel a strong connection to the landscape. The desert gives you a perspective. It calms your spirit and invites contemplation, in much the same way that the ocean does in California. Play your horn into those canyons and foothills, and you'll experience for yourself the Japanese concept of "ma" -- the sacred silence between sounds.

At the end of high school, I left home to attend a private boarding school in Michigan called Interlochen Arts Academy. Interlochen was for me a magical place, populated by individualists, social misfits, and eccentrics — kids who, like me, were passionate about art. I loved Interlochen. For the first time in my life, I was surrounded by creative people my own age: musicians, painters, actors, dancers...it was like coming home. Interlochen was where I learned the discipline required to build a life in the arts, and where I learned how rewarding an artist's life can be.

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JI: What were some of the recordings you heard and experiences you had that inspired you to pursue a career as a jazz player?

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DM: I credit my father [a naturalist and school teacher] and his hip record collection for kindling my childhood interest in music. There was great music on our turntable all the time, from Rachmaninoff to Ray Charles. According to Dad, one time when I was about five, he was spinning Kind of Blue. I asked, "Daddy what's that sound?" When he answered, "That's Miles Davis, a great jazz musician." I responded, "That's what I want to be when I grow up!" The story may be apocryphal, but Miles is still my man."

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JI: After you graduated from Berklee College of Music [Boston] in 1989, you relocated to San Francisco. What benefits and what pitfalls or challenges do you experience by being based in San Francisco as opposed to New York?

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DM: New York is Jazz Mecca, of course. It's the place to go if you want to meet great musicians and gain experience as a sideman. And L.A. is cool because you can see movie stars on the street. But San Francisco has always been my favorite American city. As Tony Bennett says, "San Francisco is America's Paris," so culturally rich and so livable, and the second largest jazz market in the country. I originally came out here from Boston to play at the Monterey Jazz Festival, but when I took that breathtaking drive down Highway One along the Pacific Ocean, I immediately fell in love with the area and decided to stay.

The question for me has always been, when I come home from the road, where do I want to come home to? We musicians travel quite a bit to make our living. Each place we visit has its unique charms, but when you spend so much of your life in hotels and airports, living out of a suitcase, your home really needs to be a  sanctuary; a place that feeds your soul. San Francisco is home to me. If I were ever to move, it would probably be to Kyoto or Paris.

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JI: You've cited flugelhornist Art Farmer as your inspiration. Could you talk about his sound, his recordings and performances? Tell us about specific recordings and experiences you had with Farmer and his music that provided you with significant lessons about music and inspired your life and dreams.

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DM: Art Farmer was my mentor and one of the wisest and kindest men I have ever met. My years under Art's tutelage was an invaluable part of my education. Art was my finishing school. I'm profoundly grateful to him for how generous he was with his time, sharing his wisdom about music and life.

Art taught me about what to value in this craft of jazz: the importance of taking risks and challenging yourself, but never losing the fundamental primacy of playing in tune with a mature tone above all.

He would say, "Fill that horn with air! It doesn't matter how hip you can play if you don't maintain a good sound." And he really walked the talk. Art developed a tone so rich, round and warm, it has become the gold standard for all of us who are serious about the big horn.

Farmer made over 200 recordings, many of them brilliant, but to my ears his masterpiece is Warm Valley on the Concord label. Art was at the top of his game, and the tunes he picked for the date are perfect showcases for the effortless logic of his improvisations. His band on the recording was one of his best, and they all give great performances [Akira Tana's playing on 'Three Little Words' is absolutely killing].

Art had a comfortable life in Vienna, with a house, a family and a steady gig as soloist with the radio orchestra there, but he never rested on his laurels. He continued to practice every day and develop as an artist, maintaining his profile, recording and touring internationally right up until the very end of his life.

When he died, Billy Taylor and I performed a duet at his memorial, and I was honored to play one of Art's flugelhorns. This is the horn I play today: a custom hybrid with an American Kanstul bell, French Besson lead-pipe and English Besson valves. I treasure this one-of-a-kind instrument, but I'll probably go to my grave trying to figure out how Art Farmer was able to produce such a gorgeous tone on it.

It's truly a remarkable gift, to meet your hero, the world's acknowledged master on your instrument, and for him to ultimately become your teacher and friend. Miraculously, it happened to me, and I will be forever grateful.

Mentor-protege relationships in jazz are so important. While it's wonderful that colleges, conservatories and other institutions are now embracing jazz education, I feel strongly that our master musicians need to maintain the lineage of the oral tradition. There are some things you just can't learn in school.

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JI: In addition to Art Farmer, who have been some of the most influential musicians in your development, and what specific ways have they effected your music and artistry?

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DM: There are so many, but I'll name a few.

I try to phrase like a singer, so I listen to a lot of vocalists, especially Ella Fitzgerald. Because I favor a melodic, lyrical approach to improvisation, most of the jazz instrumentalists I listen to are also from that tradition -- people like Stan Getz, Miles Davis, Paul Desmond, Chet Baker, Art Farmer and Ben Webster.

One of my favorite players on the scene currently is Ingrid Jensen. Ingrid is inspiring because she's expanding the vocabulary for trumpet and flugelhorn, extending the innovations of Kenny Wheeler and Woody Shaw in a very personal and compelling way. Incidentally, Art Farmer was also a fan of Ingrid, and predicted that she will ultimately be recognized as a major artist of historical significance.

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JI: Could you cite one or more significant lessons learned or insights you took with you [about music or life in general] after your performing or recording experiences with James Moody, Max Roach, Sam Rivers, Bud Shank, Billy Taylor or Bobby Watson?

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DM: All the master musicians you named generously shared the stage with us at one time or another. The lesson I learned from all of them is to follow their example, aspire to excellence, and pay it forward. So now that I'm having some modest success of my own, I try to encourage young talent they way I was encouraged by these great men. As James Williams used to say, "Jazz is about passing the torch, from one generation to the next."

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JI: Could you share some of your perspectives about learning to improvise and the process of improvisation?

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DM: I'm still learning; I'll always be learning. Currently, I'm working on eliminating the nonsense phrases from my improvisations -- the musical equivalent of "like," "ya know" and "umm." There are certain cliches I reflexively insert whenever I'm grasping for the next idea. I'm training myself to embrace more negative space during those searching moments, to simply be still and listen, to just pay attention, rather than to compulsively fill the space.

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JI: Discuss the temptation to focus on technique over music that some artists experience. How have you worked to balance the two?

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DM: For an artist, technique and creativity are both necessary. They are medium and muse. They're like your left foot and your right foot: you need both to get anywhere. Because technical mastery devoid of inspiration is bunk, and an artistic vision without the skill to express it is a tragedy. I always work on technical drills and etudes when I practice, but when I perform I forget about technique and play from the heart.

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JI: What kinds of processes do you go through in composing songs. Please tell us about some of the rhythmic, melodic, harmonic or other sources that provide seeds for your creations.

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DM: For me, melody is the soul of a song. It comes first and matters most. Anyone can learn orchestration from Adler, or study arranging in school, but a melody is a precious, heaven-sent thing. Some composers write religiously at the same time every day. Not me. I can't compose unless I am inspired. Occasionally I will feel an overwhelming desire to write late at night or at other inconvenient times. I've learned to pay attention to that feeling, to drop whatever I'm doing and "strike while the iron is hot." I write most prolifically when traveling, so you might say that many of my compositions are inspired by my travels. A melody will come to me and I'll sing it to myself, allowing it to evolve and develop organically in my mind. Eventually harmony, counterpoint and other formal elements will begin to suggest themselves. That's when I sit down and take out my score paper.

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JI: How did your first CD, Red Reflections, develop? What kinds of preparation did you do for that recording?

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DM: Red Reflections was my debut CD as leader, recorded when I was 29. We mostly recorded my originals. Art Farmer recommended that we include "The Outlaw" from the Horace Silver book. We also did a Michael Brecker tune we all used to play at jam sessions in Boston. We played a string of club performances and then went into the studio—old school—so the recording really captures our live quintet sound just as it was in the mid-'90s.

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JI: Your album Starlight Cafe featured pianist Darrell Grant with whom you continue to work as a duo. What kinds of advantages, freedoms and challenges do you experience in that setting? Please cite one or more specific interesting or unusual performances or compositions that might help us feel what you experience in that setting?

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DM: Grant & Matheny is my favorite project. Darrell Grant is simply the finest musician I've ever had the pleasure of working with. His conception is so complete that playing with him in duo is like being supported by a full symphony orchestra. And the two of us are such great friends; we really have a ball together on stage. Our repertoire includes everything from Spirituals to Sting to Samuel Barber, allowing us the opportunity to blend the intimacy and precision of chamber music with the vitality, freedom and spontaneity of improvisation. The result is an elegant "chamber jazz" unlike anything you've ever heard.

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JI: How did your association with Azerbaijani pianist Amina Figarova develop? How does her playing provide a foil for or contrast with your own?

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DM: Amina Figarova can play faster and with more energy than any horn player on the planet. I tease Amina and the "crazy Euros" about their intensity, but I admire their joie de vivre and their work ethic. They challenge me artistically and every performance is a party. Amina is a world class pianist and is one of the most distinctive jazz composers in Europe today. I met her at the Monk Institute's summer jazz colony in Aspen a few years ago and we hit it off. In the years to follow, our international band became like a family, touring and performing all over the world together and having a great time always.

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JI: What kind of sound and group dynamic are you seeking when you lead your own group?

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DM: I take the Miles Davis approach to band-leading: hire the best cats, give them lots of freedom, and embrace the music, wherever it leads.

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JI: How do your private teaching efforts and the instructional clinics and workshops that you conduct impact your creativity and artistry? What are the benefits and/or the drawbacks?

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DM: That's a great question. When I am at home in San Francisco, I serve as director of education for SFJAZZ, leading music education programs for children and adults. I love this work, and am energized by my colleagues and our students. Since accepting the appointment at SFJAZZ, it has been necessary for me to spend less time on the road; however, I have experienced a corresponding burst of creativity and productivity in my other composing, performing and recording projects.

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JI: Tell us about the Friends of Matheny Music and the Art Farmer Memorial Scholarship to the Young Musicians Program of the University of California, Berkeley.

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DM: Both are very close to my heart. A few years ago some of our patrons started the Friends of Matheny Music, to support our educational and charitable activities in the community, such as visiting artist residencies and free concerts for children in the schools. The Friends are much more than your typical "fan club." Their annual, tax-deductible contributions enable us to take on important community projects, and in appreciation for their support, we extend special privileges to them such as preferred seating during our annual Home Season. One of their success stories is an endowed scholarship in memory of Art Farmer. Through this fund, a different aspiring young artist each year receives conservatory training at the Young Musicians Program of UC Berkeley.

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JI: You recorded and produced a number of albums for a San Francisco-based label. Could you tell us about those experiences?

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DM: Like so many independent jazz labels, Monarch Records was a labor of love. None of us got rich, but we had fun and were able to make available some quality music by Cedar Walton, Dave Ellis, Eddie Marshall and others. We released dozens of recordings before the company was sold. I am most proud of our live recording by Art Farmer, one of his last and best.

===

JI: Could you share some of your business experience—especially any eye opening lessons you've gleaned—as an artist dealing with record labels, producers or managers?

===

DM: I'll share something Art Farmer told me about the music business. When I was trying to choose a manager, he advised, "Most cats think they need a powerful representative with lots of contacts, but Dmitri, if you find somebody you can really trust, stick with 'em, because in our business, that's gold."

===

JI: What are some of the essential non-musical qualities that artists who are seeking success and respect in the music industry must develop?

===

DM: Humility and quiet consistency, like the grandfather clock in the corner that steadily ticks away quietly, regardless of the weather outside.

===

JI: How do you stay balanced as an artist and as an individual given the many distractions and stress that surround us?

===

DM: When I feel overly stressed by my own ambitions and aspirations, I find it helpful to set them aside for awhile, focus on helping other people, get out into nature, or to spend time with family and friends. When the chaotic and competing demands of others overwhelm me, I just stop. To sit still and do nothing requires a great amount of self-discipline, but counter-intuitively, non-action is often the best course of action. In the silence, clarity may be restored, and the dance begins anew.

==

JI: What authors, artists, philosophers or others have significantly influenced you and how?

===

DM: I'm a voracious reader of Asian classics. Lately I've been reading the collected works of Eihei Dogen, a thirteenth century Japanese teacher in the Soto Zen tradition. Dogen's writing on time and the nature of existence reveals the precise mind of a scientist interpreted through the poetic soul of an artist. He would have made a phenomenal jazz musician!

===

JI: Briefly, how do you want your music to influence people? What do you want it to say or do?

===

DM: The power of music is that it expresses what words cannot.

===

JI: What foundational understandings are the guideposts by which you live your life?

===

DM: That we are, all of us, interconnected. Life is a work of art, each one of us is an artist, and compassion is our medium of expression. Daily we have the opportunity to create and shape our lives.

===

JI: In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's mind there are few. As artists, we experience this paradox. Many of us feel we have to be as practiced, expert and competent as possible. But the moment we perceive ourselves as experts, and enlarged egos emerge, we face the pitfall of stopping or impeding our own growth and artistic possibility. What are your views?

===

DM: Right on.

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Dmitri Matheny hardly plays an unpretty note on his flugelhorn throughout Starlight Cafe. Matheny essays ballads and mid-tempo pieces with a winning, natural lyricism...unquestionably a master.
—Steve Futterman

ALBUM REVIEW: RED REFLECTIONS
The debut CD of flugelhorn player Dmitri Matheny is an intricate, colorful, slowly whirling vortex that draws you in deeper with each listening. The entire CD is steeped in the shadowy mood of a rain slicked city street at night. The five original songs on Red Reflections show him to be a major talent as a composer.
—Mike Ervin

INTERNATIONAL READERS POLL
Artists of the Year: Wynton Marsalis, Sonny Rollins, Chick Corea, Diana Krall. Best New Artists: Brad Mehldau, Dmitri Matheny, Stefon Harris, Ravi Coltrane.

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Matheny's composition "Whisper, Muse" adopts a reflective attitude. Its minor key and somber melody create a sense of subtle beauty.
—Jim Santella

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
The subdued sonority of the Wallace Stevens poem in the liner notes is a reflection of Matheny's similar qualities—understated, understanding, assured and explicative elegance. Legendary producer Orrin Keepnews lends decades of expertise to this fine album. The title song is especially beautiful. Penumbra offers innovation, maturity of style, an ensemble sensibility, a deference to influences, wit, controlled and masterful technique and evident joy.
—Bill Donaldson

CONCERT REVIEW: HOME SEASON
Dmitri is a very laid-back player with a gorgeous tone who speaks the language of jazz in measured eloquence.
—Robert Tate

ALBUM REVIEW: NOCTURNE
Dmitri Matheny, the acclaimed jazz flugelhornist and composer, has been recording for over a decade, but Nocturne, his latest release on the Papillon Recordings label, outdoes them all.

Here, Matheny reveals his passion for the night and takes the listener to a place of serene contemplation. With its romantic yet innocent melodies, rich orchestral harmonies, and the heartbreakingly lyrical sound of Matheny's flugelhorn, this album is surely his greatest musical achievement to date.

Matheny takes a wonderfully subdued approach to his enchanting collection of melancholy originals, whose subtle, intimate qualities may surprise those of his fans who best know his more lively and popular concert fare. More than simply expressing romantic love, Matheny has created a mysterious and compelling world where songs that touch the heart combine with the atmospheric texture of violins to provide an escape from life's ups-and-downs and allow us to re-connect with our true spirit.

Nocturne is a winner.

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
On this album, Matheny draws lyrical inspiration from the Moon. The flugelhorn player is a glowing alternative to today's fiery, chops-parading brassmen. He demonstrates a firm jazz perspective that incorporates lyrical predecessors such as Miles Davis and Wayne Shorter, Chet Baker, Kenny Wheeler and Tom Harrell. 
—Owen Cordle

ALBUM REVIEW: RED REFLECTIONS
Matheny’s approach to the flugelhorn is lyrical, lean and often lithe, and his varied compositions are open to myriad possibilities. The tunes groove mightily and the players are clearly listening to each other, evident by the ensemble interaction and the various ways they key off of each other’s solos...the group is long on sound and spirit.
—Jim Ferguson

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
Flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny and Dave Ellis are tight. The complement each other well, offering harmony, color, and tonal variety. With a theme album that refers to the majestic beauty of the Moon, the flugelhornist offers a set of beautiful, interesting pieces...a set that demonstrates well the variety and sensitivity evoked by the composer and performers. Recommended.
—Jim Santella

CONCERT REVIEW: JAZZ BAKERY, LOS ANGELES
Matheny’s talent, deserving wider recognition and focused solely on the flugelhorn, lies in his ability to quietly charm an audience with subtle nuances that include cohesive teamwork, rhythmic variety, and individual virtuosity. He uses a lot of notes in the Dizzy Gillespie tradition; he has developed a unique and pensive tone in the Miles Davis tradition. This flugelhornist deserves to be heard by a larger audience.
—Jim Santella

CONCERT REVIEW: JAZZ BAKERY, LOS ANGELES
Flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny was joined by pianist Bill Bell and bassist Tom Wakeling on Sunday, January 10th, for a set of acoustic mainstream jazz before an appreciative and enthusiastic audience. Matheny's seamless phrasing and warm, full tone made the set both informal and spontaneous. Up-tempo jaunts and lush ballads balanced the leader's presentation.

An artist who seems to love appearing before an audience, Matheny employs natural eye contact with his listeners. That trait carries over through the horn, as the flugelhornist turns from side to side during the performance. The Jazz Bakery's acoustics are just right for that kind of intimacy; no microphone was needed for Matheny or his guests.

After contrasting a ballad and a bossa nova, the flugelhornist introduced tenor saxophonist Chuck Johnson, who joined the trio for Herbie Hancock's "Empty Pockets." Solos from each of the artists led to fours from saxophonist and flugelhornist, who remained loose with spontaneous quotes from other tunes.

It was the kind of spontaneity that brings a smile to the faces of fans and performers alike. "Soca Nova," from Matheny's most recent album Starlight Café, invited fours between piano and flugelhorn, as the trio presented the tune via a happy calypso arrangement. Throughout the CD, the leader offered glimpses of his unique style as he employed a personal touch through adaptations such as half-valve growls and playing directly into the piano strings for a faraway sound.

Born in Nashville on Christmas Day in 1965, the artist and his family moved to Tucson, Arizona when he was thirteen. It was there that he picked up the trumpet and learned to appreciate the myriad sounds available to a performer. After graduation from the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, Matheny enrolled at the Berklee College of Music in Boston while still a teenager. By the time he graduated (Magna Cum Laude), the trumpeter had turned to the flugelhorn for a darker, more melancholy sound. Study with Art Farmer and performances at the Monterey Jazz Festival led the flugelhornist to move to the Bay Area.

Since he recently won the “Talent Deserving Wider Recognition” award in the 46th Annual Down Beat Critics Poll, word of Matheny's ability and stage presence may start to get around.

It's about time.

—Jim Santella

CRITICS' PICK: DMITRI MATHENY GROUP, JAZZ BAKERY, LOS ANGELES
Don't miss flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny, who hails from Northern California, as he leads a quintet at the Jazz Bakery this week. More concert space than club, the Jazz Bakery (brainchild of singer Ruth Price) offers the best big name performers for those of us who really like to listen to music rather than talk through it. We like the cool tones of flugelhornist Matheny's new release Red Reflections, and we're not alone. The disc has drawn praise from Art Farmer, perhaps the reigning master of jazz flugelhorn.

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
There is no faulting the quality of their playing. Matheny's compositions and arrangements exploit this group with a loving concern for fine detail. The music ranges from boppish blues to a surprisingly vigorous  3/4 romp through "Moonlight in Vermont," from Tom Harrell's "Moon Alley" to "Autumn Moon," a traditional Chinese melody. A substantial number of the new jazz albums released every week are locked into repetitive sequences that move predictably from written theme to improvised variations. So it is a particular pleasure to hear an outing that mixes solid straight-ahead blowing with thoughtful composition and a subtle understanding of the crucial musical balance between sound and silences.
—Don Heckman

FEATURE: PEOPLE TO WATCH
WHO'S GOING TO DO GREAT THINGS THIS YEAR?
Dmitri Matheny, Musician
Few horn players dedicate themselves exclusively to the flugelhorn, a first cousin to the trumpet, but Dmitri Matheny has found a soulmate in the mellow-toned instrument. With his gift for soaring lyricism, Matheny plays jazz that's emotionally open but full of mystery. His latest album, Starlight Cafe, showcases his talent as a composer and features pianist Darrell Grant and bass virtuoso Bill Douglass. Though he's spending more and more time on the road, Matheny is scheduling a series of Bay Area concerts bringing together some of the region's top improvisors. 
—Andrew Gilbert

FEATURE: PEOPLE WHO WILL CHANGE
SAN FRANCISCO AND THE WORLD IN THE COMING YEAR
Dmitri Matheny, Musician
As one of the jazz world’s most talented horn players, Dmitri Matheny may not be a household name...yet. With three excellent albums under his belt, he is a rarity in the music world: a rising star free of ego and hubris. Matheny’s mild mannered appearance belies the smoldering passion that oozes from his horn. His recent CD, Starlight Cafe, shows off Matheny’s prodigiously versatile talent and promises that San Francisco’s jazz scene is well-stocked for the future.

ALBUM REVIEW: PENUMBRA
Surrounding himself with players comfortable with the cool jazz idiom, flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny is as unhurried as a full moon rising.

On his new album, in addition to his own songs, Matheny assays tunes composed by hot bopper Lee Morgan and rocker Neil Young.

Penumbra is a thematic set obsessed with moon-age daydreams. Tom Harrell's "Moon Alley," the traditional Chinese composition "Autumn Moon" and Young's "Harvest Moon" all glow with Matheny's imaginative arrangements.

On "Desert Moonlight," the saxophone is employed to fine effect as a foil for Matheny's own taciturn flugelhorn. "Moonlight in Vermont" boasts some slippery bass, Jim Hall like guitar and more saxophone warbling.

With veteran jazz producer Orrin Keepnews at the boards, it is no surprise that the production values are crystalline; even on tape you can discern every sweep of the drummer's brush, every "step" the bass takes on its myriad "walks" as it escorts a tune to its conclusion.

With his gift for soaring lyricism, Matheny plays jazz that's emotionally open but full of mystery.
—Andrew Gilbert

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
One of the jazz world's most talented horn players, Dmitri Matheny is a rarity in the music world: a rising star free of ego and hubris. Matheny's mild-mannered appearance belies the smoldering passion that oozes from his horn. His recent CD, Starlight Cafe shows off Matheny's prodigiously versatile talent and promises that San Francisco's jazz scene is well-stocked for the future.

ALBUM REVIEW: SANTA’S GOT A BRAND NEW BAG
Dmitri Matheny's Santa's Got a Brand New Bag crossed my desk a few weeks ago, and I can't seem to keep it off my desktop CD player. It's downright refreshing. That’s probably due to Matheny, a rising star in the jazz firmament, whose warm tone, playful nature and lyrical sensibilities add an extra dimension and freshness to this collection of tried-and-true holiday tunes.

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
This is music to touch your heart. A twilight mood for lovers of leisurely paced music. Dmitri Matheny's warm pellucid sound truly encapsulates the essence of jazz.
—Marian McPartland

The new voice in Boston jazz: Matheny and company have been heralded throughout New England for their spirited performances.

CRITICS' PICK: GRANT & MATHENY
As part of a three-week, 18-city tour, Grant & Matheny will bring their intimate chamber jazz sound to the Oregon Coast this weekend. Grant & Matheny have appeared together on major concert stages from Carnegie Hall to the Monterey, Telluride and San Francisco jazz festivals. The classically trained duo blends the intimacy of chamber music with the spontaneous spirit of American jazz to take listeners on an inspired musical journey.

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Starlight Cafe is a real winner. Matheny mixes soulful, torchy ballads and inventive uptempo numbers with deft ease.
—Chris DeBenedetti

ONE OF THE TEN BEST JAZZ RELEASES OF THE YEAR: STARLIGHT  CAFE
Recorded live in Berkeley, Starlight Cafe is an exquisite, soft-spoken album of standards and originals, ideal for quiet nights. In the company of bassist Bill Douglass and pianist Darrell Grant, Matheny savors a relaxed, reflective mood through a handful of nocturnes and standards. Matheny's velvety horn glides effortlessly above the sympathetic, sparse accompaniment of Douglass and Grant, weaving a spellbinding tapestry of sounds.
—Wayne Saroyan

CONCERT REVIEW: HOME SEASON
Imagine settling back into a soft, reclining chair as the sky darkens and the stars begin to twinkle and dance overhead. Swirling tones of flugelhorn, bamboo flutes and piano fill the night air, gently coalescing into a sweetly celestial music. That was Tuesday night's "Celestial Jazz," featuring five jazz luminaries under the starry canopy inside the Morrison Planetarium in Golden Gate Park, part of the Dmitri Matheny Home Season.

CRITIC’S PICK: HOME SEASON
Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the publication of On the Road, the magnum opus of seminal Beat writer Jack Kerouac, is a special performance by innovative San Francisco jazzman Dmitri Matheny. The flugelhornist will present his new “Visions of Kerouac” a three part suite based on the writer’s work. He’ll be backed by some of the top jazz talents in the Bay Area modern jazz community.
—Dave Becker

Under the guiding hand of flugelhorn player Dmitri Matheny, the Dmitri Matheny Group has earned a reputation as one of the most eclectic and daring groups on the jazz scene. As likely to borrow from classical chamber music structures as Bebop or blues, Matheny and his cohorts treat music as a fertile landscape without boundaries.
—Dave Becker

CONCERT REVIEW: HOME SEASON
Matheny and company performed two sets of enthralling music dedicated to Marian McPartland in celebration of her recent 80th birthday. The most ethereal moment on Sunday’s performance came with Matheny’s rendition of “Stardust.” He began the tune playing his flugelhorn into the Grand Piano. The sounds caused he strings to vibrate, adding a gorgeous introduction to this recognized standard. 
—Wayne Saroyan

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
The music on Starlight Cafe, Matheny's live disc, is splendid—familiar standards such as "Stardust," "When Lights Are Low," Jobim's tropical "Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)," and a few originals—is lush, seductive and dreamy. The album also continues Matheny's unabashed passions for all things celestial.
—Wayne Saroyan

A fluid player with a reliable sense of adventure and a solid feel for jazz tradition, Dmitri Matheny has emerged in the past few years as one of the most vital talents on the Bay Area jazz scene.
—Dave Becker

CRITICS' PICK: GRANT & MATHENY
Over the years, "pretty" became a dirty word in jazz circles. But players as hip as fabled saxophonist Dexter Gordon have always honed the sweet as well as the tough. When asked his musical goal, Gordon answered simply, "Why, to play pretty, of course."

Into that tradition comes Dmitri Matheny, a rising young flugelhornist, composer and this year's winner of Downbeat's "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition" poll. Inspired by his mentor, the great Art Farmer, Matheny's playing is lyrical, flowing and graceful. He plays pretty.

A shared love for melody and a lyrical rather than percussive approach make Grant & Matheny a good match. Their elegant understatement should restore Beauty to its rightful position alongside Truth in the pantheon of jazz values.
—Lynn Daroch

Ever since hearing Miles Davis at age 5, Dmitri Matheny has been in love with jazz music. He began by playing the trumpet in the dry Sonoran Desert of Arizona, a place of wondrous tranquility where Matheny was able to listen and be inspired by the beauty around him. Eventually, the Tucson Jazz Society recognized Matheny's talent and gave him a scholarship. This schooling eventually led to a successful career in jazz music. After years of trumpeting Matheny took up the flugelhorn, which allowed his music a more lugubrious sound. He is now a spectacularly popular flugelhornist who continues to bring new and innovative sounds to his field.

Dmitri Matheny has diverted his ample talent from trumpet to flugelhorn, performing beautiful Hard Bop lines with a flawless warm tone. He's an excellent performer on gentle ballads and bop scorchers alike.

Protege of the late Art Farmer, flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny works along the edge between chamber music and jazz, weaving a musical landscape found when lights are low. The lyricism of his horn work is achingly poignant.
—Andrew Gilbert

ALBUM REVIEW: NOCTURNE
Nocturne is a haunting meditation on the beauty of the night.
—Andrew Gilbert

 Dmitri Matheny has matured into one of jazz's most talented horn players.
—Dan Ouellette

CRITIC'S PICK: HOME SEASON
Flugelhorn virtuoso Dmitri Matheny returns to the Bay Area this week for a series of home season dates after a composition retreat in Barbados. A prolific composer who graduated with honors from Boston's Berklee College of Music, Matheny recently made his Carnegie Hall debut and is about to embark on a four-month U.S. tour.

CONCERT REVIEW: GRANT & MATHENY, NORTH BEACH JAZZ FESTIVAL
At the shrine of St. Francis of Assisi on Vallejo Street, Grant & Matheny (flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny and pianist Darrell Grant) were playing beautiful duets in the hushed sanctuary. Standing near the relics of St. Francis and beneath Luigi Brusatori's murals depicting the saint's life, Matheny played an exquisite "Stardust" that sailed through the Gothic vaults. Standing in back was Franciscan friar Robert Ouellette, swaying to the music in his hassock and sandals. "Hearing "Stardust" in a church—for me it became a prayer" said brother Robert.
—Jesse Hamlin

CRITICS’ PICK: HOME SEASON
Jazz, new music and chamber music come together as two of the hottest talents on the Bay Area music scene offer new works...this brass comes pre-polished.

CRITICS’ PICK: RED REFLECTIONS CD RELEASE CELEBRATION
Swing low, sweet horn: lyrical Bay Area flugelhornist and composer Dmitri Matheny celebrates the release of his new CD, Red Reflections at the Plush Room. Matheny’s playing evokes the great jazz flugelhorn sounds of Art Farmer and Clark Terry, and the show is a benefit for the San Francisco Symphony’s public schools music education programs.

A true jazz visionary. Dmitri Matheny's flugelhorn is both hot and cool, wide of range, always sure of tone and brilliantly imaginative. He is a fine instrumentalist and composer with a mature understanding of jazz roots and—happily—an optimistic view of his own, and the music's future.
—Phil Elwood

The first breakthrough flugelhornist since Chuck Mangione.

This guy blows a flugelhorn so cool it'll run a shiver through your martini.

CONCERT REVIEW: DMITRI MATHENY, STANFORD JAZZ FESTIVAL
On the wonderful Hoagy Carmichael song "Stardust," his flugelhorn playing was warm, lyrical, wistful and perfectly suited to the lovely standard. A stellar evening.
—Jim Harrington

Dmitri Matheny's lyrical approach to the flugelhorn has earned him a legion of fans.

Dmitri Matheny is among the vanguard of today's musicians who have helped propel the Bay Area jazz community onto the international scene.

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
Extravagantly, unashamedly, irresistibly pretty. A spirit voice that compels attention even when it whispers. Dmitri Matheny. Now you know.
—Thomas Conrad

Grant & Matheny are intense listeners, sometimes anticipating and instantly echoing ideas, yet always weaving one fabric.
—Thomas Conrad

"Dmitri Matheny is a velvety player who favors the lyrical and poetic side of jazz over the fire and brimstone championed by many of his contemporaries. His tone and approach bear the strong influence of his mentor, the impeccable Art Farmer, and his ballad playing recalls another master of California romanticism, Chet Baker."
~Melody Romancito

CRITICS' PICK: GRANT & MATHENY, TELLURIDE JAZZ CELEBRATION
Like the petroglyph musician Kokopelli centuries before, Dmitri Matheny developed his horn skills in the acoustic canyons of the American Southwest. Now based in San Francisco, Matheny has broadened his career to encompass composing, educating, and bandleading one of the most eclectic and daring groups on the Bay Area jazz scene. Joining Matheny at the Telluride Jazz Celebration is Darrell Grant, who will add his dynamic, transcendent keyboard skills to this exciting date.
—Karen Metzger

CRITICS' PICK: THE SNOWCAT
In this spellbinding performance, jazz flugelhornist and composer Dmitri Matheny and his band weave a magical, musical tale of a little girl searching for her missing white cat on a snowy afternoon. Based on a medieval Japanese parable, The SnowCat reveals the spirit of sharing and gratitude that makes the holiday season such a wonderful time of year.

The Players Who Shaped The Sound of Jazz Trumpet: Dmitri Matheny is a mellow-toned flugelhornist who particularly excels on ballads, and is a fine composer.
—Scott Yanow

ALBUM REVIEW: BEST OF DMITRI MATHENY
Wet streets glisten in the cold mist of lonely nights on empty avenues, reflecting jagged streaks of neon outside narrow bars full of old wood where a handful of jazz musicians lean against a battered piano to take their chances on tender ballads filled with rue.

Welcome to the burnished world of flugelhorn artist Dmitri Matheny, a native Tucsonan who found relief and a permanent home in San Francisco years ago. Preceding the popularity of Chris Botti’s haunting trumpet solos by at least a decade, Matheny has spent his entire recording career giving the jazz heart of film noir a gilded elegance.

Hear fresh proof in “Star Dust” and Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon,” then enjoy the full spectrum of Matheny’s artistry in his own compositions “Sea of Tranquility,” “Penumbra” and “Red Reflections.”

Not that this lovely collection is full of downers. Beauty will always be its own reward.

But give a strong rap on the knuckles to everyone who automatically thinks slow songs are boring. Working in an ensemble setting, Matheny offers the listener a warm embrace, then a sly wink, by including “White Christmas” and as a bonus track, “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.”

Overall, the album’s texture is thoughtful. Best appreciated by those whose lives have not been like freeways covering the most ground in the least time, but more like a favorite stretch of two-lane blacktop with dips and curves adding interest, slowing the pace while enriching the experience.
—Chuck Graham

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
I've finally found it: Dmitri Matheny's Starlight Cafe. This is the album I've spent a lifetime looking for.
—Stephen Siegel

ALBUM REVIEW: STARLIGHT CAFE
A fine new CD, Starlight Cafe affirms Matheny's atavistic standing as a romantic and as a brass player who can limn slow motion ballads without referencing Miles.
—Gary Giddins

CRITICS' PICK: GRANT & MATHENY, MLK MEMORIAL CONCERT, NEW YORK
Grant & Matheny (pianist Darrell Grant and flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny) are a chamber duo modeled after the old Willie Ruff-Dwike Mitchell team, though I imagine they swing a lot harder. They are gifted technicians with lyrical streaks a mile long, capable of surprising melodic and harmonic twists. Their performance at St. Peter's Church, honoring Martin Luther King's birthday, follows a tour of dozens of concerts in Europe, Japan and around the country.
—Gary Giddins

An active part of the San Francisco jazz scene, Matheny plays the seldom-seen but versatile flugelhorn with verve and virtuosity. Not smooth, but cool, Matheny is a player in the Art Farmer school of soft-toned melodicism, with kudos coming from near and far for his radio-ready discs.