Melina Soochan
Encyclopedia
Melina Soochan is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Montreal
, Quebec
.
She is a classically trained pianist with a Bachelor of Music from McGill University
in Montreal and an ARCT from the Royal Conservatory of Music
of Toronto.
Melina's original music is a fusion of styles, a blend of acoustic urban and indie pop, R&B, jazz, soul and folk. She can be seen and heard performing in various Montreal area venues, with occasional appearances in places like Toronto, Ottawa and New York.
A member of SOCAN, Melina has filmed three official music videos, the first two of which are based on songs from her debut album entitled City of Love and the third one is based on a song from her first full length album Hold On. The music videos are entitled X-Ray Eyes, City of Love and The Mama Song.
Melina has also performed quite often with various bands, notably Patrick Lehman and the Dropbeat Kings.
As she is continually expanding her repertoire to include genres such as Jazz, she now performs regularly with her own band, Melina Soochan's Jazz Ensemble.
During high-school (Riverdale HS, in Pierrefonds) she was active in the school band and participated in numerous student talent shows.
At the age of 15 she was briefly part of a rock band (Fubar), together with 2 high-school friends, and they entered the Granby Note Festival 2000 (for music students of all ages) where they won gold medals for performing one of Melina's early original songs and some classic rock covers. Later in 2000 Melina and the other two band members (Brandon Posner and Eliott Hayut) won the Pfizer Young Achiever Award.
She entered and won the RapSohd Talented Teen Competition in 2001, and went on to represent Canada at the Hal Jackson Talented Teens International (HJTTI) Scholarship Competition in New York later that same year. There she performed one of her early original songs and won the Wilda Labrie Scholarship. At the HJTTI competition she met a young guest artist who has greatly inspired her ever since, Alicia Keys
.
As part of the RapSohD organization, Melina met and later performed as a guest artist in two concerts (March 2005 and May 2009) given by Lorraine Klaasen
.
She also found time to study and practice Kyokushin kaikan karate and obtained her black belt at the age of 16. She won trophies in many karate tournaments, both for kata and combat. Throughout high-school and junior college she was also actively playing rugby, and continuing her piano studies, as well as composing and performing her original music at any opportunity.
After high-school she went on to Marianopolis College
in Montreal to get a double diploma in Music and Science (2005). Subsequently she received a Bachelor of Music from McGill University
in Montreal (2008) and has received the ARCT from the Royal Conservatory of Music
in Toronto.
From 2006 until 2008 Melina was a regular member of the cast of the Belluscious Girls, a Montreal cabaret troupe that have performed at many events, such as La Relève en folie 2006 fund raiser.
In 2010, with the help of Artists Alliance Productions in association with Global NTT, Melina started producing the regular series called Acoustic Nights Montreal
, which take place in various venues in Montreal every two months and showcase a different set of five or six singer/songwriters (in solo/duo/trio acts) who perform their original music acoustically, without the help of electronic enhancements. Artists such as SuLE, Patrick Lehman and Sabrina Correa, to name just a few, have been featured, alongside Melina.
.
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
.
She is a classically trained pianist with a Bachelor of Music from McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in Montreal and an ARCT from the Royal Conservatory of Music
Royal Conservatory of Music
The Royal Conservatory of Music is a music school and performance venue in Toronto, Canada. Other uses of the term include:*The Madrid Royal Conservatory, Spain*The Royal Academy of Music, London, United Kingdom...
of Toronto.
Melina's original music is a fusion of styles, a blend of acoustic urban and indie pop, R&B, jazz, soul and folk. She can be seen and heard performing in various Montreal area venues, with occasional appearances in places like Toronto, Ottawa and New York.
A member of SOCAN, Melina has filmed three official music videos, the first two of which are based on songs from her debut album entitled City of Love and the third one is based on a song from her first full length album Hold On. The music videos are entitled X-Ray Eyes, City of Love and The Mama Song.
Melina has also performed quite often with various bands, notably Patrick Lehman and the Dropbeat Kings.
As she is continually expanding her repertoire to include genres such as Jazz, she now performs regularly with her own band, Melina Soochan's Jazz Ensemble.
Bio
Born (May 17, 1985) and raised in Montreal, Melina started composing and recording music for various school projects in high-school.During high-school (Riverdale HS, in Pierrefonds) she was active in the school band and participated in numerous student talent shows.
At the age of 15 she was briefly part of a rock band (Fubar), together with 2 high-school friends, and they entered the Granby Note Festival 2000 (for music students of all ages) where they won gold medals for performing one of Melina's early original songs and some classic rock covers. Later in 2000 Melina and the other two band members (Brandon Posner and Eliott Hayut) won the Pfizer Young Achiever Award.
She entered and won the RapSohd Talented Teen Competition in 2001, and went on to represent Canada at the Hal Jackson Talented Teens International (HJTTI) Scholarship Competition in New York later that same year. There she performed one of her early original songs and won the Wilda Labrie Scholarship. At the HJTTI competition she met a young guest artist who has greatly inspired her ever since, Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
.
As part of the RapSohD organization, Melina met and later performed as a guest artist in two concerts (March 2005 and May 2009) given by Lorraine Klaasen
Lorraine Klaasen
Lorraine Klaasen is a Montreal-based world music singer. Her mother is South African singer Thandi Klaasen. She has performed at the Montreal International Jazz Festival, and her international itinerary has included the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean...
.
She also found time to study and practice Kyokushin kaikan karate and obtained her black belt at the age of 16. She won trophies in many karate tournaments, both for kata and combat. Throughout high-school and junior college she was also actively playing rugby, and continuing her piano studies, as well as composing and performing her original music at any opportunity.
After high-school she went on to Marianopolis College
Marianopolis College
Marianopolis College is a private, subsidized CEGEP in Montreal nestled against the side of Mount Royal in Westmount, Quebec, Canada. It is one of the smallest anglophone colleges, with a student body of fewer than 2,000...
in Montreal to get a double diploma in Music and Science (2005). Subsequently she received a Bachelor of Music from McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in Montreal (2008) and has received the ARCT from the Royal Conservatory of Music
Royal Conservatory of Music
The Royal Conservatory of Music is a music school and performance venue in Toronto, Canada. Other uses of the term include:*The Madrid Royal Conservatory, Spain*The Royal Academy of Music, London, United Kingdom...
in Toronto.
From 2006 until 2008 Melina was a regular member of the cast of the Belluscious Girls, a Montreal cabaret troupe that have performed at many events, such as La Relève en folie 2006 fund raiser.
In 2010, with the help of Artists Alliance Productions in association with Global NTT, Melina started producing the regular series called Acoustic Nights Montreal
Acoustic Nights Montreal
Acoustic Nights Montreal is a series of bi-monthly music shows, staged in various venues in Montreal, aiming to promote local Montreal musicians, with emphasis on singer-songwriters....
, which take place in various venues in Montreal every two months and showcase a different set of five or six singer/songwriters (in solo/duo/trio acts) who perform their original music acoustically, without the help of electronic enhancements. Artists such as SuLE, Patrick Lehman and Sabrina Correa, to name just a few, have been featured, alongside Melina.
Discography
- 6-song EP City of Love 2009
- X-Ray Eyes
- City of Love
- Place in My Heart
- Fireflies
- New Phase
- Threadbare
- 10-song LP Hold On 2011
- Bang Bang
- Hold On
- Blu-Ray Blues
- Hey
- Love's Got Me Livin'
- The Mama Song
- Over and Out
- New Phase
- Royal Flush
- Hold On (acoustic)
Videography
- Official Music Videos
- X-Ray Eyes 2009
- City of Love 2010
- The Mama Song 2011
Collaborations
Melina has been collaborating with several other established musicians such as singer-songwriter guitarist Sule Heitner, electronica producer Override and metal band The AgonistThe Agonist
The Agonist is a Canadian metal band from Montreal, Quebec. Their debut full-length album, Once Only Imagined was released on August 14, 2007. Their second full-length album, Lullabies for the Dormant Mind was released on March 19, 2009. Alissa White-Gluz uses both vocal fry and clean vocals for...
.