Mike Lindup began a staggeringly successful professional career as founder and keyboard player in platinum pop band Level 42. He is now going solo with a brand new CD, crossing jazz, Cuban, classical and pop styles.
Born in London March 1959 to musical parents, Mike started composing at age 3, and took piano lessons from age 6. He was influenced by a wide variety of music all around him in the family household, from Menuhin to Miles Davis, Bartok through the Beatles to Bossa. At Chethams School of Music, he studied piano, percussion and composition, and sang in senior and chamber choirs, then graduated to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. There his musical experience spread to include playing percussion in orchestras in concerts at the Royal Festival and Albert Halls, drums and keyboards in jazz ensembles and participating in pop workshops.
In 1980 he co-founded Level 42 with Phil and Boon Gould and Mark King.
In the next 15 years Level 42 went on to achieve worldwide success:
-13 albums recorded between 1981 and 1994
-worldwide sales of over 15 million albums
-top 10 singles in Europe, North America, South Africa and Japan
-a reputation for live performances which included multiple nights at Wembley Arena and Hammersmith Apollo, and 3 Princes Trust Gala concerts performing alongside Elton John, Phil Collins, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Bryan Adams, George Martin and others.
- Level 42 also toured the USA with Madonna, Tina Turner and Steve Winwood.
He used his experience as a songwriter, singer, arranger and producer to produce "Changes", his first solo album, released in 1990.
Since Level 42 stopped working together at the end of 1994, he has diversified musically and explored styles of music which echo his breadth of tastes and influences. He has written music for an Audi Sport video (Return of the Four Rings,in'96), given concerts with Latin Jazz band Negrocan ('94-98) and plays regularly with sell-out UK/Brazilian band Da Lata, after studying Cuban Popular Music and Dance at the National School of the Arts in Havana (Feb 98).
On 3 November 2003, he released his second solo piano album, entitled Conversations with Silence, which combines classical, latin jazz and film music and features leading guest artists including percussionist Bosco dOliveira, violist Steve Tees and bassist Danny Thompson.
His role, since July 2000 in Da Lata involves playing keyboards, percussion and providing backing vocals (in Portuguese). They who have been performing from clubs to festivals in the UK & Europe, USA & Canada, Japan, South Africa and China.
