About

Beginning a journey in Irish music at the age of 6 listening to Lúnasa, Matt Saunders started studying flute and tin whistle when he was 13. Matt comes from a line of Irish and Nova Scotian folk musicians and dancers. He went to workshops with his childhood hero Kevin Crawford from whom he received much encouragement. Then Justin Murphy took him under his wing and prepared Matt for the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann. He placed 1st in U18 going on to represent The United States in the All-Ireland Competition. 

​

Along the way, he made appearances at The Mississippi Celtic Music Festival, performed on Céilí House for RTÉ, and was accepted into The Irish World Academy's Irish Music and Dance Bachelor's program at the University of Limerick in Ireland. In Ireland he taught at The Mountshannon Irish Festival and adjudicated the Millstreet Comhaltas Fleadh. Matt performed with members of what would become Fourth Moon in Vienna, Austria at the Vienna Folk Festival in 2012. He returned to the U.S. briefly on J1 and worked at the Roy O. Disney Production Center in Hollywood Studios for Express Music Services. Experimenting with EDM and Irish music, he performed with African percussionist Greywolf and the traditional Irish music band Crooked Road at The Orlando Museum of Art as part of a collaboration series.  WUCF featured his music in an "Artisodes" episode in 2013. He returned to Ireland and performed as part of a cultural exchange program between the Irish and French local governments of Athlone and Châteaubriant respectively.

​

In 2015, he left Ireland and joined The U.S. Coast Guard where he sailed onboard some of the largest ships in the fleet, becoming a member of many ancient orders of sailors. He was awarded the Coast Guard Achievement Medal for his actions leading a misfire team inside a MK75 Weapon system that had jammed with high explosive ordnance. Whilst at sea, he worked on his Master's in Finance with a concentration in Investments and Securities from Southern New Hampshire University. When not deployed, he ran sessions in Boston, MA with Cliodhna Field, Callum Bell, and others.

Upon leaving the Coast Guard in 2020, Matt started working for StoneX Financial as a Financial Operations Analyst working  primarily in equities with fintech developers, compliance, and market makers. The accounts he was responsible for reconciling totaled over $4B in multiple currencies. During this time he focused on playing Irish music again, and began promoting Irish music with videography for  several establishments in the state, turning a trio band into a $20k venture during a pandemic.

Matt is currently recommitting himself to working as a creative professional, elevating traditional folk music from around the world, and playing high art music. He is working on another Master's degree in Entertainment Business at Full Sail University.