...the zones where different ideas rub up against each other and make sparks.

Born 1973
Guitarist and composer

A rising star in Philadelphia’s music community, Chris Forsyth seeks out and articulates intersections of various musical traditions, including free jazz, American folk, blues, and 20th-century electronic music. Drawn to rock music while growing up in New Jersey, Forsyth immersed himself in improvisational music in the mid-’90s, hearing and learning from many important experimental artists, including Richard Lloyd, a founding member of the influential punk band Television, and jazz guitarist Joe Morris. Since then, he has embarked on a musical career that remains devoted to his rock roots while questioning and expanding them, resulting in work that is multifaceted and pushes boundaries. “I like to explore the zones where different ideas rub up against each other and make sparks,” says Forsyth. Like Charles Cohen, Forsyth finds himself especially attracted to the dynamism and singularity of improvisational music. ”Improvisation involves the chance of failure as much as invention, but when it works, it is, for me, the best kind of music—living, evolving music.” Forsyth has performed throughout Europe and the U.S. with various ensembles and collaborators, and has over 30 releases available on independent record labels, including his own, Evolving Ear. He currently writes and performs with a number of collaborators for various musical projects, including the experimental, folk group Peeesseye and a new band called Chris Forsyth & The Paranoid Cat Band.