Matthew Horsley is a Melbourne-based percussionist and composer. Hailing from Brisbane, he received a Bachelor of Music at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music with Dr Vanessa Tomlinson. In 2009 he relocated to Melbourne and has completed a Master of Music Performance (by Research) at the Victorian College of the Arts as the recipient of a Melbourne Research Scholarship. His teachers have included Vanessa Tomlinson, Peter Neville, Alex Pertout, Kevin March and Graeme Leak.

Matthew has performed extensively across classical, experimental, popular, jazz and folk genres, both solo and with artists such as Steve Reich (USA), Andy Madadian (Iran/USA), Gary Nesteruk (USA), the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Topology and Clocked Out. He performs regularly with Speak Percussion (including their acclaimed 2011 appearances at MONA FOMA and the Totally Huge New Music Festival), Manteia, Baba Yaga Orkestar and is a founding member of the percussion duo Nonzero. Matthew was an invited speaker at the Australian Percussion Gathering in 2010 and winner of the multiple percussion category in the associated competition. He participated in the 2012 Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival in Massachusetts, working and performing with Steve Reich and members of the Bang on a Can All-Stars.

In recent years, Matthew has become increasingly prolific as a composer. He has written music for The Generous Ensemble (USA), Aviva Endean, Ryan Williams, Manteia and Nonzero. His music is characterised by unexpected genre combinations, theatrical conceits, and an absurdist vein of humour. Matthew has an avid interest in Irish traditional music and plays uilleann pipes, whistles and Irish flute. He is an erstwhile participant in Melbourne’s session scene and an inveterate busker. His other interests include Afro-Cuban sacred and folkloric music, improvised music and performance art.