Michael Blanchfield

Description

I have extensive experience performing at private and corporate functions, weddings and parties.  My career as a professional session musician, teacher, and artist puts me in the perfect position to adapt my music to your event's needs, with reliable assurance and commitment to the genre and setting. 
Playing across genres, I whole-heartedly embrace the particular energies of the music I play, whilst retaining my own unique musical signature and character. This is clear in both my solo piano and ensemble arrangements, in which I bring together influences from my eclectic musical backgroun ... d and the rich history of jazz music: from folk, pop, blues and swing, to be-bop, funk and jazz fusion. 
Venues played include: Wales Millenium Centre; Cardiff Castle; Vortex Jazz Club; Manchester Academy; Belfast Empire; Battersea Arts Centre; Lattidue Festival; Glastonbury Festival; The Ambassador's Residence, Paris, and more... 
Currently touring with: Cardinal Black; This Flight Tonight: Songs of Joni Mitchell; Angharad Jenkins.
BMus 1st class honours in jazz piano from The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Cardiff. Read More

Set-List

JAZZ LIST:
A Foggy Day
After You’ve Gone
All Blues
All Of Me
All The Things You Are
Ambleside
Anthropology
Autumn In New York
Autumn Leaves
Bags' Groove
Beatrice - Ella Fitzgerald
Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered
Billie's Bounce
Blue Bossa
Blues For Alice
Bolivia
Bye Bye Blackbird
Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man
Cheek To Cheek - Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong
Chelsea Bridge
Cherokee
Days Of Wine And Roses
Desafinado
Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?
Donna Lee
Don’t Get Around Much Any More
Doxy
Four
Four Brothers
Georgia - Ray Charles
Girl Fr ... om Impanema - Antonio Carlos Jobim
Have You Met Miss Jones?
Here’s That Rainy Day - Bill Evans
Honeysuckle Rose - Ella Fitzgerald
How Deep Is The Ocean? - Bill Evans
How High The Moon
I Could Write A Book
Isfahan
I Should Care
I Got Rhythm
I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free - Nina Simone
If I Had You
In Your Own Sweet Way
I’ll Be Seeing You - Chet Baker
I’m Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter - Fats Waller
I’ve Got The World On A String
Just Friends - Chet Baker
Lady Is A Tramp
Lester Leaps In
Like Someone In Love
Little Suede Shoes
Love For Sale
L-O-V-E - Nat King Cole
Lullaby Of Birdland
Mack The Knife
Maiden Voyage
Mean To Me
Misty
Moments Notice
Moonlight In Vermont
Mr. Pc
My Foolish Heart
My Funny Valentine
My Silent Love
No Greater Love
Nobody Else But Me
Now’s The Time
Oleo
On The Sunny Side Of The Street
Our Love Is Here To Stay
Pennies From Heaven
Pent-Up House
Sandu
Satin Doll
Scrapple From The Apple
Softly As A Morning Sunrise
Somewhere Over The Rainbow
St Thomas
Stablemates
Stars Fell On Alabama
Tad’s Delight
Take The A Train
Taking A Chance On Love
Tangerine
Tenderly
Tenor Madness
That Old Feeling
There Will Never Be Another You
Things Ain't What They Used To Be
Wave
What A Wonderful World
What Is This Thing Called Love?
When You're Smiling
Whisper Not
Without A Song
You And The Night And The Music
You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To
You’re Just Too Marvellous
POP LIST (by artist):
ABBA - Dancing Queen
- Chiquitita
- Slipping through my fingers
- Waterloo
- Knowing me and knowing you
- Take a chance on me
- Lay all your love on me
- The winner takes it all
- SOS
- Does your mother know?
- Money, money, money
- I have a dream
Adele - Someone like you
- Rolling in the deep
- Skyfall
Alicia Keys - If I ain't got you
Al Green - Let's stay together
Billy Joel - New york state of mind
- My life
- Always a woman to me
Bruce Springsteen - She's the one
Bruno Mars - Just the way you are
Bryan Adams - Summer of '69
Coldplay - In my place
- Yellow
- Viva La Vida
Eagles - Hotel California
Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
Elton John - Your Song
- Rocket Man
Elvis Presley - Can't Help Falling in Love With You
- Blue Christmas
Etta James - At Last
- Stormy Weather
Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons - Oh What A Night
Jimmy Hendrix - Wind Cries Mary
John Lennon - Imagine
Marvin Gaye - I Heard it Through the Grapevine
Norah Jones - Don't Know Why
Queen - Don't Stop Me Now
Shania Twain - Forever and For Always
Stevie Wonder - Isn't She Lovely
- I Wish
- You Are The Sunshine of My Life
- I Just Called To Say I Love You
The Beatles - Let It Be
- When I'm sixty-four
- Lady Madonna
- Here Comes the Sun
Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl
And many more... Read More

Biography

Performer, collaborator and recording artist at the epicentre of the South Wales music scene.
RWCMD graduate
Performing in/touring with a variety of groups, including: Cardinal Black; Songs of Joni: This Flight Tonight; Angharad Jenkins; Arkocean; Matheus Prado Septet; Michael Blanchfield Trio.
Studied under: Huw Warren, Richard Roberts, Gilad Hekselman, Iain Ballamy, Dudley Phillips, Paula Gardiner, Alex Merritt, Steve Waterman, Geoff Simkins, Nick Weldon

Reviews     (6 Reviews)

Experience

Bachelors degree 1st class BMus hons from The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama
Sample list of venues played:
Wales Millenium Centre
Cardiff Castle
Battersea Arts Centre
Zoom, Frankfurt
013, Tilburg
De Kantine, Cologne
Le Cabaret Sauvage, Paris
The Academy, Dublin
St David’s Hall, Cardiff
The Senedd, Cardiff
The Ambassador’s Residence, Paris
Vortex Jazz Club, London
Green Man Festival
Glastonbury Festival
Lattidue Festival
02 Academy, Manchester
Komedia, Bath
The Fire Station, Sunderland
Eden Court, Inverness
The Empire, Belfast
Heb Celt Festival, Stornoway

Previous Clients

Katherine Jenkins Christmas Special 2023 (BBC)
National Youth Jazz Orchestra
The Musicians' Company
Welsh Government
Middle Temple
University of Worcester
Mercure Hotel, Cardiff
Marriot Hotel, Cardiff
Horatio's Garden, Llandough
Santa Maria, Cardiff
Gin and Juice, Bristol & Cardiff
Penny Royal, Cardiff
Jacob's Rooftop, Cardiff
Black Mountain Jazz, Abergavenny
Community Music Wales
Nicholas (private client)
Yvette (private client)
Allie (private client)
Ed (private client)
Tayla (private client)
Simon (wedding client)
Ross & Sarah (wedding clients)
Lily & Ryan (wedding cli ... ents)
Thom & Pip (wedding clients)
Adam & Charlie (wedding clients)
Katy (wedding clients)
Steven & Kris (wedding clients) Read More

Suitable for

Anniversary Party Birthday Party (Adult) Casinos Charity / Fundraising Event Christmas Party Cocktail Party / Drinks Reception Conference / Meeting Corporate Event Dinner Party Engagement Party Funeral/Memorial Service Hotel Event New Year's Eve Party Nursing / Care Home Event Private Party Restaurant / Bar / Pub Event Retirement Party Session Work Social Club Trade Show / Exhibitions University / College Event Wedding Ceremony Wedding Cocktail/Drinks Reception

Acting Experience

Supporting Actor in 'Dope Girls' featured on BBC 1

Modelling Experience

None

Meet the Act

I started gigging at about age 16 in local pubs with my sister, in Hertfordshire where we grew up. Since then I've played in so many different settings across the UK - rock bands (Cardinal Black), singer-songwriters (Tom Jenkins), modern jazz quartets (Clem Saynor Quartet), orchestras, musicals, solo, duos and more. From Glastonbury Festival to Dublin Academy, Stornoway to Gibraltar, music has taken me touring across the world!

Additional Information

Insured for public liability

Virtual Services Offer

Remote keyboard/piano recording

High-quality audio keyboard recordings using some of the best keyboard samples available on the market. I have a brand new Nord Stage 4 as well as Keyscape, giving me access to thousands of the best sounds currently available. I can collaborate on your project, record parts from audio or develop piano parts from other instrumental parts. I can play and record from sheet music or audio.