Matthew Kaminski (musician)


Matthew Kaminski is the organist for the Atlanta Braves baseball team. He is known internationally for his use of Twitter to interact with fans to select walk-on music for members of the opposing teams. The BBC News featured Kaminski's use of social media to crowdsource ideas for amusing or pointed walkup songs, and Sports Illustrated accused him of "expertly trolling" with his musical choices.

Early life and education

Matthew Kaminski grew up in Chicago, in a Polish-American family and began playing the Hammond organ at age five. His father, grandfather, and great-grandfather all played the accordion. He studied piano at the University of Arizona jazz studies program then moved to Atlanta where he graduated from Georgia State University in 2000 with a bachelors of Music and an emphasis in Jazz Studies. He received the Master's degree of Music from Georgia State University in 2011 while working for the Braves.

Baseball organist

Matthew Kaminski was selected as organist for the Atlanta Braves in 2009. In an interview with Atlanta's NPR affiliate, Kaminski introduced his album, Stadium Organ Sounds. National Public Radio, Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich, featured Kaminski in The Takeaway in his series, Ballpark Figures: The Unsung Heroes of Baseball in 2015. In 2019 he released Baseball Organ in Hi-Fi.
Kaminski is also the University of Georgia baseball organist playing at Foley Field in Athens, Georgia for the Bulldogs, and for the Auburn University Tigers at Plainsman Park.

Performer and educator

Kaminski sings, plays piano, and accordion in polka bands.Matthew Kaminski is a member of the Latin Salsa orchestra Orquesta MaCuba, the Western swing band Back in the Saddle, and leads the Georgia Polka Band. Matthew Kaminski is a Hammond Organ/Leslie Speaker Artist and is highlighted at the instrument maker's website as representing a passion for playing the organ. He performs regularly on the Hammond Organ SK1, SK2 and uses Leslie 21 System speakers. Kaminski teaches at The North Fulton School of Music’s Atlanta locations and has taught applied jazz piano at Georgia Tech.

Discography