Julia Biel

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Julia Biel
BornLondon, England
Genres Jazz
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, songwriter
Instrument(s)Vocals, piano, guitar
LabelsRokit, Khanti, Brilljant Sounds
Website www.juliabiel.com

Julia Biel is a British jazz singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist.

Contents

Early life

Biel was born in London on 22 February 1976. [1] [2] She was brought up in Sutton, then studied French and German at the University of Oxford. [1] There, she was in a band with Idris Rahman. [1] She was a pianist first, then developed her singing. [1]

Later life and career

Biel won the Perrier Young Jazz Vocalist of the Year in 2000, which brought her more attention. [1] She then joined the F-IRE Collective. [2] In 2005 she made her recording debut as a leader, with the album Not Alone. [2] She also appeared on the Polar Bear album Dimlit. [1] Her compositions appear on the Unity Collective EP Love in the Dead of Night and on recordings by guitarist Jonny Phillips. [1] She also featured on and co-wrote Ben Watt's "Guinea Pig" and "Bright Star" alongside Watt and the German producer Stimming. [2]

Her second album, Love Letters and Other Missiles, was released in 2015 [3] and led to her being nominated in the Best Jazz Act category for the MOBO Awards. [2]

She performs accompanying herself on piano or electric guitar with backing from bass and drums and tours extensively in the UK and abroad. [4]

Discography

As leader

As guest

With Polar Bear

With Soothsayers

With others

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Larkin, Colin (2006), "Biel Julia", Encyclopedia of Popular Music , Oxford University Press, ISBN   978-0-19-531373-4 , retrieved 17 January 2019
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Kellman, Andy. "Julia Biel". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  3. "Albums of the Week (March 27-April 2)". Evening Standard. 27 March 2015.
  4. Künzler, Hanspeter (24 April 2015). "Julia Biel: "Love Letters and Other Missiles": Eine Frau von Welt". Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in Swiss High German).