Paul Matthew Moore

Musician

Composer and performer Paul Matthew Moore’s music has been hailed for its “paradoxical lush minimalism” (Chicago Tribune) and described as “comically charged, dynamic…bursting with creativity and energy” (Seattle Times).

Moore is the Music Director for the University of Washington Department of Dance and has collaborated extensively with dance, theater, and film artists. His film scores have been heard in festivals worldwide including Sundance Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, and SXSW Film Festival. 

Paul received a BA in music composition from the College of Creative Studies at University of California, Santa Barbara (1993). He continues to compose and perform in a variety of settings, and has worked with notable musicians such as Tim Hecker, Degenerate Art Ensemble, Kronos Quartet, Reggie Watts, Wayne Horvitz, Eyvind Kang, Timothy Young, Randall Dunn, Skerik, Tucker Martine, and Andy Coe, among others.

He has been the resident musician at the Silent Reading Party for almost a decade.

Christopher Frizzelle

Inventor and Host

Writer, editor, and teacher Christopher Frizzelle launched the Silent Reading Party in 2009, when he was editor-in-chief of The Stranger.

That first party was inspired by Frizzelle’s previous experiences hanging out and reading with two of his Stranger colleagues, Annie Wagner and Brendan Kiley. They would sit around reading, silently but in each other’s company, on weeknights after work.

The Silent Reading Party was also inspired by bad experiences Frizzelle had had trying to read in bars—from music that’s too loud to other patrons being distracting or interruptive. 

Once the pandemic hit, Frizzelle and Moore collaborated on a new format, transforming the party into a Zoom event that was held every Wednesday for the first two years of the pandemic. The virtual party was also featured for an hour-long set on KCRW 89.9’s 24 Hours of Serenity festival in 2021, and has been booked for library association conferences and other events. 

Frizzelle is also the founder of FrizzLit, and the curator and lecturer of the Quarantine Book Club.