VOCALIST*COMPOSER*ARRANGER nataliemichan.com
[email protected]
Natalie Michan is an artist who recognizes music as a manifestation of the transcendent. She sees in music, the power to unite the world and its people. Drawing on her Middle-Eastern and Latin heritage, and inspired by the vitality of the many places she has lived, she has woven a vibrant musical tapestry of her journeys.
Natalie’s formal music training began when she was a young teen with several years of opera study. She then made a transition into the jazz world and studied with Jane Getz. Shortly afterwards, Natalie went on to attend The New School University’s Jazz Conservatory in New York City. During this time she decided to further explore both her Latin and Middle-Eastern roots and traveled to Cuba and Israel to deepen her musical knowledge of these cultures. In Cuba she studied folkloric Afro-Cuban music and dance with Grammy nominated rumberos, Los Munequitos de Matanzas. While in Israel she was taken under the wing of BBC Radio 3 winning Yair Dalal to study Oriental music. She has appeared on recordings with such artists as the Pharcyde, Maurice el Medioni, Henri “Scars†Struck Works for Film as well as others.In her New York years Natalie studied with and performed with David Oquendo and his Grammy nominated group Raices Habaneras as well as Habana Tres. She has played in such venues as SOB’s, Makor, Central Park, the Zinc Bar, Cornelia Street Café, etc. Her music has been played on New York’s WBGO fm where she was also interviewed for her first album entitled “Madrugada†which she recorded with Meshell Ndegeocello’s pianist, Jason Lindner.Most recently, Natalie toured Europe with both Babylon Circus and Babylon Circus Experience’s group 3W. In this group she and David Baruchel (frontman of Babylon Circus) experimented with a fusion of reggae, Latin, Oriental and a bit of hip-hop for good measure. The songs, written by both David and her, are in French, Spanish and English as well. Some festivals in the tour included the European Union’s 50th Anniversary Celebration filmed by the BBC in Berlin which also featured artists such as Joe Cocker, the Garorck Festival in south-west France filmed by France 4 tv featuring as well Ojos de Brujo and Public Enemy, the Dour festival in Dour, Belgium featuring Les Ogres de Barback and Sizzla. In addition to these festivals, the group has played in some of Europe’s finest, most cutting edge venues such as Amsterdam’s Melkweg, Paris’s La Maroquinerie, Barcelona’s Casa de La Musica Popular (otherwise know as el CLAP) etc. Natalie has been interviewed for"La Pulperia", one Barcelona’s premier alternative radio stations and twice by the Garorock media team for her work with Babylon Circus Experiance as well as for her performance at the opening of the le Phare venue in Toulouse. As recently described by one French journalist her performances have been known to “bewitch the public with her electrifying vocals and dancing to rival Shakira’s.â€
Currently Natalie is working on her second album in New York and France with composer and arranger, Alvaro Martinez of Spain’s El Combo Linga. This project incorporates elements of her work with Babylon Circus as well as her unique fusion of Latin and Oriental sounds. The result is a dynamic expression that is a culmination of her experiences to date. In this work we hear fiery gypsy horns, a fierce rhythm section as well as the the languid, melodious traditions of the Orient and Latin America. The band line up includes members of Babylon Circus and promising young members of Spain’s Flamenco community.PURCHASE NATALIE’S 1ST ALBUM AT http://nataliemichan.com/ (SCROLL DOWN ON FIRST PAGE FOR PAYPAL LINK) OR http://cdbaby.com/cd/michan
