Memories of Music
Bringing live musical entertainment to nursing homes and other healthcare facilities around the Twin Cities metropolitan area of Minnesota since 2024
About The Performer
Here you will find a list of my musical experiences. I hope these will help illustrate my musical background.
Musical Performer Matthew Sudduth's Musical Experiences
2022-present
and 2017-2019
Minnesota Renaissance Festival
I auditioned to be a solo performer at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival in the spring of 2017. I went through their Academy training that summer and created my character Tedric Dagworth The Strolling Minstrel. It has been a wonderful experience learning to work the crowds and perform in the various locations around the festival. In my free time between solo sets of that first year, I joined up with the musicians of the Terpsichory Courtly Dance Troupe. When I was feeling less sure about my solo sets during my first few years performing at the festival, playing with Terpsichory gave me a sense of belonging and helped boost my moral. In recent years, I don't spend as much time performing with them anymore. That is because I am much better at my solo performances now, but I do still join them on occasion.
2014-present
Various local bands
Along with my performances at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival and singing with the Angelica Encore Choral Ensemble, I have also been a member of a few local bands in recent years. I played some trumpet, euphonium, and bass guitar in a fun glam rock party band. I played djembe and sang backup vocals in a folk band. I sang lead vocals and played a little guitar as part of a chaotic punk rock band. I currently play bass with my roommate and a friend in a casual blues rock band. I also play my renaissance festival and nursing homes music sometimes with my co-worker/friend who is a drummer.
2011-present
Angelica Encore Choral Ensemble
I have been singing first tenor with the Angelica Encore Choral Ensemble for over 13 years now. I joined the very first year of the choir, when it was called the Angelica Encore Choir. Back then, it was exclusively alumni of the Angelica Cantanti Youth Choirs. I was only in one of the Angelica Cantanti Youth Choirs for one year when I was in grade school. But, by a wonderful stroke of luck, that brought me into the Angelica Encore Choral Ensemble many years later. Since that first year, we have expanded into a regional choir with auditions open to all. We sing at least two concerts each year. We always have one Christmas/holiday concert in December, and one spring concert in April-May. Over the years, we have had the honor to perform at Holidazzle, Westminster Concert Hall (Westminster Presbyterian Church), Orchestra Hall (Minneapolis), and many other beautiful churches. I also had the honor of singing as part of Beethoven's 9th Symphony at Orchestra Hall April 16th, 2023 along side some of the other Angelica Encore members, the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, and singers from Normandale College Concert Choir, and Twin Cities Catholic Chorale. You can find out more about our choir at https://www.angelicaencore.org/
2009-2010
University of Minnesota
Twin Cities
While working on my eventual Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science, I chose to take two semesters of guitar courses as electives at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Those classes were my introduction to playing guitar. The classes were focused on classical finger picking style and basic guitar music theory.
1994-2002
School band years
My school based musical education started in grade school. I began playing trumpet in 5th grade band class. I also took private trumpet lessons outside of school. I joined the All City Band for the 1995-1996 school year seasons while I was also in my 8th grade year junior high band class. I joined the Jefferson Senior High School marching band under the direction of Dr. Orzolek my freshman year of high school. I was in the Jefferson Senior High School marching band all four years of high school. My senior year I became an assistant rank lieutenant. However, going into sophomore year of high school, I actually wanted to quit band. I was not going to progress into the next higher band because there were too many trumpet players. Dr. Orzolek convinced me to switch to playing the baritone euphonium instead. Our bands needed more of them, and the valve fingerings were the same as those on trumpet. As a result, I started the sophomore year in "Varsity Band", which made me happy. I moved into the highest band called "Concert Band" just one year later and got the opportunity to go with them on a trip to Japan! I continued taking private lessons when I switched to euphonium too. However, I stopped taking band the second half of my Senior year. I chose to take photography instead that semeseter. We had the "block schedule" back then which meant only 4 classes a day, so at that time I decided I didn't want to have spent essentially one full year of high school in band. Alas, I likewise chose not to pursue music as a career in college. In fact, I took a long hiatus from formal music training until I took guitar classes at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cites nearly a decade later.
1994-1995
Angelica Cantanti Youth Choirs
Varsity Choir
Along with beginning to play trumpet in the school band in 5th grade, I also sang in the Varsity Choir of the Angelica Cantanti Youth Choirs during the academic year of 94'-95'. They are a set of regional choirs based in the southwest metro area of the Twin Cities. I was only in one year of choir with them, but they actually have choirs that span all the way from grade school to high school. Likewise, despite only having one year of experience with them, it was that experience that later in life brought me in 2011 into the Angelica Encore Alumni Choir that started out as exclusively alumni from their choirs and later expanded into the open audition Angelica Encore Choral Ensemble that it is now.
Sept 1990 - June 1995
Private Piano Lessons
My parents started me in private piano lessons when I was 6 years old. I continued having weekly piano lessons during the academic calendar for 5 years. I learned a lot and got fairly good, but school band and singing in the Angelica Cantanti Youth Choir in 5th grade took over in my life in the fall of 1995.