This year belonged to Matthew Shipp in a pair of mediums. First, the perennially prolific pianist dropped three stellar records this year alone: the solo piano genius work The Cosmic Piano, his String Trio’s Armageddon Flower with saxophonist Ivo Perelman and duo album Horizon with fellow pianist Eri Yamamoto. Then the downtown New York City avant-gardist achieved further greatness on the printed page with the revelatory read, Black Mystery School Pianists And Other Writings. Absolutely essential for hardcore enthusiasts of Shipp’s craft and novices and jazz fans alike, the words, subjects and opinions Shipp tackles in Black Mystery School Pianists And Other Writings is as forward-thinking, radically adventurous and fearless as his piano playing itself. With musings, opinions, anecdotes, poems, in-depth analysis, personal stories and reflections, Shipp invites the reader into his constantly churning brain as he delves into a plethora of subjects including but certainly not limited to, the thought process behind what exactly is the “Black Mystery School” and which pianists make the cut into this exclusive club (and who doesn’t), the relationship between boxing and jazz and ruminations on Wayne Shorter, Sun Ra, Paul Bley, Monk, Roscoe Mitchell and his friend and bandmate, the late great David S. Ware. Shipp even devotes a chapter to his partying club days in the 80’s where you would have found him dancing the night away at New York City hot spots like The Pyramid Club. Shipp explores more ideas in a shade under 100 pages than most authors do in epic-length books. Complete with an incredibly detailed introduction by visual artist, poet and longtime friend Yuko Otomo, Shipp’s Black Mystery School Pianists And Other Writings is a deep dive into the heady mind of one of the avant-garde’s genius minds of our time.
— Brad Cohan, December 29, 2025