About Matthew Tyas

Matthew Tyas is an English-born, France-based composer, improvisational electronic artist, and piano educator whose creative world sits squarely at the crossroads of acoustic intuition and hardware experimentation. Born in England in 1977 and arriving in France in 1983, he has spent decades cultivating a musical language that bridges classic keyboard discipline with the unpredictability of patch cables, generative algorithms, and custom code. Today, working from his home in Béarn near the foothills of the Pyrenees, he balances an active teaching practice with an uncompromising drive to explore new sonic territory.

At the piano bench, Matthew mentors students across all skill levels, demystifying everything from dense jazz voicings and contemporary harmony to broad classical repertoire. Away from acoustic keys, however, he shifts into sonic architecture. His sprawling discography—spanning dozens of releases primarily across Bandcamp and Jamendo—showcases a deep affinity for live improvisation, polyrhythmic grooves, and layered analog textures that unfold in real time rather than under surgical grid-editing.

His studio workflow reflects a maker’s mindset. Armed with Eurorack modular systems, synthesizers, drum machines, and Reaper, Matthew doesn't just play instruments; he frequently writes the tools that shape them. Whether crafting custom JSFX audio plugins or coding interactive web audio applications to experiment with algorithmic composition, he treats software programming and sound design as complementary musical voices.

Creative marathons are an essential part of his artistic rhythm. His annual Jamuary commitment turns every January into a prolific daily ritual of live hardware synth jams, echoed by ambitious events like Noisevember live streams and interactive digital art calendars. Shared through his website at mtyas.com and across his video channels, Matthew’s work champions spontaneous discovery: the spark of what happens when muscle memory, spontaneous human instinct, and generative electricity collide in the room.