Matt Silver

Matt Silver is a journalist, commentator, and storyteller who’s been enamored with the concept of performance since his grandparents told him as a toddler that singing "Sunrise, Sunset" in rooms full of strangers was the cool thing to do.

In his writing—informed by backgrounds in law, reporting, and creative writing— he seeks to understand the indulgent, joy-enhancing, and therapeutic power of music within the context of our everyday lives and the challenges of our wider culture; he knows of no other artistic medium that speaks to, speaks for, and nourishes life’s panoply of emotional shades and colors to a similar extent. Why does music not just provide enjoyment but imbue us with purpose? Why, when awestruck by a piece of music, do you play it over and over again so as to hold onto that exalted feeling for just a moment longer? Wait, it can’t be just Matt who does that, right?

His love of jazz comes from his father, Ken, an accomplished clarinetist, bandleader, and educator, who's passed on his extensive knowledge of the Real Book and an abiding love for jazz tunes with Broadway origins.

Matt’s contributed regularly to WRTI's Arts Desk since 2018; his work has also appeared on NPR.org and public media platforms across the country, as well as in The Jewish Exponent (Philadelphia), Washington Jewish Week, Jewish News of Greater Phoenix, and The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle.

In addition to writing for WRTI's Arts Desk, Matt can frequently be found whistling Gershwin or Bernstein with gusto or trying to replicate the sounds of Stan Getz and Larry McKenna on his saxophone, which he's found is a good deal harder than it looks. He is a proud member of that group of hardy souls who got their start at WRTI hosting Jazz through the Night, and is the host emeritus of The Silver Standard, a weekly sports-talk program that aired on Philadelphia’s 610 ESPN.