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Michael English
At the tender age of 11 years, Michael English sat at his piano in his home in Castledermot, County Kildare. He composed a piece of music which he called Perestroika, a term that translates as ‘peace’ and one which dominated global political news at the time.
Soon after, Michael would make his first appearance on national TV, performing on Ireland’s most popular and highly-rated talk show. For him, The Late Late Show was a small-town boy’s dream come true. For those who watched and listened, it was the public birth of an extraordinary talent.
By the time he had reached his late teens, Michael English was a seasoned professional in the music business. His father and mother would accompany him to dance-hall and ballroom venues throughout Ireland, watching and encouraging as their son followed a family tradition. For the English family, music and showbusiness was a way of life. Michael was merely doing what appeared completely natural. After all, his father was a gifted accordion player and Michael’s childhood remains, to this day, stained with happy memories of Irish traditional music filling the kitchen air at home.
In 1997, Michael’s first album was released. But what started out as a low-budget experiment to gauge what audiences really thought soon delivered a resounding verdict. The album began to snowball and people wanted more. And lucky for them, so did the young, dashing and rising Irish star.
Long before he had reached the age of thirty years, Michael English was quickly becoming a household name. He had completed his classical training in music and went on to record an astonishing five albums, each one leaving a more memorable impression than the next. Touring extensively all over Ireland, the UK and the USA, the boy-wonder from Castledermot was living his dream. Recording and performing music was always what it was; always what it had to be.
But perhaps it was his unexpected phone call from Louis Walsh in 2005 that catapulted Michael’s musical career onto a higher plane. To many, he was an unlikely choice for the music mogul to want added to his growing list of sell-out international pop bands and performers. But Louis Walsh liked what he saw. He knew Michael was different, and more of the world needed to know more about his gift.
Signed to Sony Records and under the guidance of Louis Walsh, Michael went on to record two further albums, All My Life and Portrait Of My Love. The first was a diverse collection of easy-listening hits featuring duets with international stars such as Daniel O’Donnell and Linda Martin. And for Portrait Of My Love, Michael met and sat with Roger Whittaker to fine-tune his interpretation of one of Rogers’ tracks, The Last Farewell; a song particularly close to Michael’s heart and one he had wanted to record for years.
Today, the Michael English story has almost come full circle. During his prolific career to date, Michael has been the recipient of numerous music and entertainment awards, including recognition at the Irish Entertainment Awards for Best Album of The Year (2010), Number One Selling Album (2008 and2009) as well as a Golden Roll of Honours Award in 2008 from the Performing Artists Trust Society. And for good measure, it so happens that he also holds five All-Ireland ballroom dancing titles!
Underneath, Michael English still remains the unassuming and witty Kildare man who lives to sit at his piano and compose music and songs, just as he did as an 11-year-old boy. Now, the experience and passion brought about by a fascinating music career and life itself have been woven into his unique style and the stories his music tells.
For Michael English, composing and performing aren’t really things he chooses to do. It’s as if the passion of music continues to choose him. And perhaps for the first time ever, the very core of Michael’s raw musical talent will be unleashed in his new album due out in 2012. Produced by music legend Phil Coulter, Michael has created an album that is original, stunningly melodic and lyrically profound. The album is, in his own words, “without doubt my best work yet”.
Michael currently divides his time between Ireland, the UK and the USA, writing more new material now more than ever before and performing sell-out concerts to audiences who want to be part of this extraordinary personal and musical journey.
For further information please contact:
OFFICE: +353 (0) 1 234 2564
Fax: +353 (0) 1 234 2400
info@michaeltenglish.com
www.michaeltenglish.com |
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