Matthew "Matt" Savage (born May 12, 1992) is an American

autistic savant Savant syndrome () is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory. This may include rapid calcu ...

musician.

Early life

Born in Sudbury, Massachusetts,Pine, Dan
"Autistic jazz prodigy already playing with greats"
''The Jewish News Weekly of Northern California'', September 16, 2005. he is the son of Diane and Lawrence "Larry" Savage.Morrow, Marsha. https://web.archive.org/web/20060514114802/http://www.mledger.com/2004/archives/1_news_040804.shtml "N.H. geography champ"] '' Monadnock Ledger'', 8 April 2004. (cached webpage) Savage was a precocious infant who walked early and learned to read by the age of 18 months. He was diagnosed with

pervasive developmental disorder The diagnostic category pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), as opposed to specific developmental disorders (SDD), is a group of disorders characterized by delays in the development of multiple basic functions including socialization and co ...

, a form of

autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

, at age three. He did not like any noises or music during his early childhood. At age six, Savage taught himself to read piano music.Massimo, Rick
"N.H. pianist, 13, considers autism one of his strengths"
''

Providence Journal ''The Providence Journal'', colloquially known as the ''ProJo'', is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island, and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper was first published in 1829. The newspape ...

'', October 23, 2005. He studied classical piano for less than a year before discovering jazz, which became his main focus. He and his younger sister, Kitty, were both

home schooled Homeschooling or home schooling, also known as home education or elective home education (EHE), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted by a parent, tutor, or an onlin ...

. He began studying at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on H ...

in Boston, Massachusetts, in the fall of 1999. He continued his classical studies as well. Among Savage's talents are

hyperlexia Hyperlexia is a syndrome characterized by a child's precocious ability to read. It was initially identified by Norman E. Silberberg and Margaret C. Silberberg (1967), who defined it as the precocious ability to read words without prior train ...

and

perfect pitch Perfect commonly refers to: * Perfection, completeness, excellence * Perfect (grammar), a grammatical category in some languages Perfect may also refer to: Film * ''Perfect'' (1985 film), a romantic drama * ''Perfect'' (2018 film), a science ...

."Pianist Matt Savage"
''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

'', April 24, 2002. Coupled with his extremely high intelligence, these abilities have allowed him to achieve other distinctions as well, such as winning a statewide geography bee.

Career

Despite his young age and his autism, and even without formal instruction in musical composition, Savage is an accomplished musician and composer. He has released twelve albums as a solo performer, as leader of the Matt Savage Trio and as leader of various sized ensembles. By the age of 14, he had also performed with

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...

and other popular singers.''Genius: Quest for Extreme Brain Power'',

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

program hosted by Dr.

Sanjay Gupta Sanjay Gupta (born October 23, 1969) is an American neurosurgeon, medical reporter, and writer. He serves as associate chief of the neurosurgery service at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, associate professor of neurosurgery at t ...

, September 17, 2006. His compositions are very approachable and often humorous.

Awards and appearances

Savage has received many awards, including being signed in 2003 to

Bösendorfer Bösendorfer (L. Bösendorfer Klavierfabrik GmbH) is an Austrian piano manufacturer and, since 2008, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yamaha Corporation. Bösendorfer is unusual in that it produces 97- and 92-key models in addition to instrument ...

pianos. He is the only child to be so recognized in the company's 188-year history. Savage has toured the world, performing for heads of state and others, and appearing on numerous television and radio programs such as ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

'', ''

Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and music ...

,'' ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...

,'' and ''

''. In 2006, at age 14, he was featured on a CNN report about the human brain, in which he was defined as a

prodigious savant Savant syndrome () is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory. This may include rapid calcu ...

, as opposed to the other types of

savants Savant syndrome () is a rare condition in which someone with significant mental disabilities demonstrates certain abilities far in excess of average. The skills that savants excel at are generally related to memory. This may include rapid calcu ...

. Savage has also appeared in several documentaries about savants.

Collaborations and studies

In 2007, he played with Scottish folk songwriter/singer Al Stewart, on piano. In 2009, Savage enrolled at

Berklee Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

for continued studies. The following year, in November, he prepared to release his ninth CD. In December 2012, Savage received his

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of prescr ...

(B.Mus.) in Performance (Piano) from Berklee College of Music. In 2014, he composed and recorded the score for a full-length documentary film, ''Sound of Redemption: The Frank Morgan Story''. In May 2015, he received his Master of Music (M.Mus.) in Jazz Performance (Piano) from the Manhattan School of Music. Currently, Savage balances his professional music career with teaching.

References

External links