Skip to content
Matt Rollings: Grammy winning producer, arranger and piano player extraordinaire on being a master player episode artwork

EPISODE · Nov 23, 2022 · 1H 37M

Matt Rollings: Grammy winning producer, arranger and piano player extraordinaire on being a master player

from What's in a Song · host Scarlet Keys

Send us Fan Mail Master piano player Matt Rollings Matt has played on countless records for artists such as: Wynonna Judd, Lyle Lovett, Shania Twain, Trisha Yearwood, Leonard Cohen, Mark Knofler, Dixie Chicks, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Billy Joel, Steve Martin, Bruce springsteen, Toy Story 4 Randy Newman and Christ Stapleton. Matt has produced many artists such as: Keith Urban and Mellissa Manchester He won a Grammy for Producing, arranging and playing on Willie Nelson’s record: Willie Nelson Singers Gershwin and Willie Nelson’s record Willie Nelson Sings Sinatra Matt has toured extensively with Lyle Lovett and Allison Kraus and is here today to talk about songwriting and the elements of being a master player in service of the song or the singer. Show takeaways: The importance of feel and timing Lean into the nervousness Lead with your weakness The importance of vulnerability When playing: 80% attention on the singer who is performing and 20% read the chart, play the fills, adjust, play in time, remember the song and create the part Voicing an F Major chord: CFA: F chord in second position. Take the F out of the middle and drop it an octave When you play close voicing, all of the overtones bash into each other When you don’t, it doesn’t ring the same way and you give the overtones room The Three things: Time, Feel and Function Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattrollings88/ https://www.scarletkeys.com https://www.instagram.com/scarletkeysofficial/ https://www.amazon.com/Craft-Songwriting-Music-Meaning-Emotion/dp/0876391927/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2PP55NU6E9ST6&keywords=the+craft+of+songwriting&qid=1659573139&sprefix=the+craft+of+songwritin%2Caps%2C153&sr=8-1 Engineer: Peter Sykes https://www.petersykesmusic.com The show's theme song "What's in a Song" was co-written with Otto Gross Recorded and performed by Otto Gross: @OttoGrossProduction (instagram) @OttoGrossMusic (Youtube, facebook, TikTok) https://biglink.to/ottogrossmusic Scarlet's website: https://www.scarletkeys.com Scarlet's instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scarletkeysofficial/ To purchase Scarlet Keys' book "The Craft of Songwriting: https://www.amazon.com/Craft-Songwriting-Music-Meaning-Emotion/dp/0876391927/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2PP55NU6E9ST6&keywords=the+craft+of+songwriting&qid=1659573139&sprefix=the+craft+of+songwritin%2Caps%2C153&sr=8-1

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Nov 23, 2022

Embed this episode

Send us Fan Mail Master piano player Matt Rollings Matt has played on countless records for artists such as: Wynonna Judd, Lyle Lovett, Shania Twain, Trisha Yearwood, Leonard Cohen, Mark Knofler, Dixie Chicks, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Billy Joel, Steve Martin, Bruce springsteen, Toy Story 4 Randy Newman and Christ Stapleton. Matt has produced many artists such as: Keith Urban and Mellissa Manchester He won a Grammy for Producing, arranging and playing on Willie Nelson’s ...

Distinct summary based on available episode metadata or transcript content.

Ready to play

Matt Rollings: Grammy winning producer, arranger and piano player extraordinaire on being a master player

0:00 1:37:12

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of What's in a Song?

This episode is 1 hour and 37 minutes long.

When was this What's in a Song episode published?

This episode was published on November 23, 2022.

Can I download this What's in a Song episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!