Pioneering Kent musician Matthew Herbert has a very unorthodox approach to the unique sound and performance he produces – including keeping the skeleton of a horse in the boot of his car.

Its bones have been fashioned into flutes, percussion instruments and even a harp which he transports to gigs.

But little is off limits when it comes to creating unique sounds from his surroundings, which has found his music featured in Eurovision, Yves St Laurent fashion shows and films.

He has also produced albums and remixes for stars including Quincy Jones, Mica Levi, Björk, and Róisín Murphy and is renowned for his DJ sets across Europe.

Recently Matthew was nominated for a BAFTA for his work on the BBC crime series, The Responder, starring Martin Freeman. He is currently working on a movie called Hot Milk for Film 4.

And now the 51-year-old dad from Reculver, near Herne Bay, has been recognised at the prestigious Ivors Classical Awards where he last week collected a ‘Gift of the Academy’ for innovation.

“It’s a huge privilege to receive the award because it is given by your peers and that’s something special,” he said.

Matthew, the son of a BBC sound engineer, was perhaps destined for a career in music.

He studied drama at university in Exeter because there was no electronic music course but soon embraced the emerging dance music explosion.

He subsequently developed his unique approach to storytelling in the 1990s – harnessing, recording and synthesising everyday sounds from all around him.

It has led to him being widely recognised in the industry for his innovative approach which has led to many international commissions.

He is also variously known as Doctor Rockit, Radio Boy, Mr. Vertigo, Transformer, and Wishmountain for his legendary DJ sets.

With countless award-winning projects across television, film, video games and theatre under his belt, Matthew has also been commissioned by institutions including the Royal Opera House, Manchester International Festival and Deutsche Grammophon.

He lectures at universities such as Goldsmiths and Trinity and completed a PhD examining power and meaning in post-concrète music.

“My first ever recording was that of myself biting into an apple,“ he said.

“I found that everyday sounds have the capacity to tell a story and since then I’ve sampled everything from the noise of a toaster and microwave to 25,000 chicks hatching and the noise of a sewer beneath London,” he said.

Add to that the sounds of the life cycle of a pig, from birth to dinner plate.

“I sometimes have the skeleton of a horse in the boot of my car when I’m travelling to performances, which might sound a bit odd,” he said

“But the bones have been skillfully transformed into musical instruments which create unique sounds.”

Matthew says that by hearing and interpreting everyday sounds and materials all around us, he is painting a picture, unrestrained by conventional instruments, like piano and violin, which incidentally he does play.

But it’s his electronic music output which has perhaps the widest reach, from the early days of micro-house through big band experimentation to production work with artists.

His label Accidental Records has long been the vehicle for platforming similarly spirited music, while he still regularly DJs in party spots from Ibiza to Berlin to Glastonbury.

Matthew lives with his wife Jan, who runs a musical production company, and their two boys, who have also developed a love of music.

“With the advancement of artificial intelligence, the music scene is set for another revolution,” he predicts.

“Around 100,000 pieces of music are uploaded to Spotify every day, but that could become millions.”