Michael Mayo

Michael Mayo has a listening horizon that extends far beyond jazz. Vocal artists like Bobbie McFerrin are unquestionably present, but on the other hand, Mayo's influences range from the Beach Boys to Earth, Wind & Fire to Theo Bleckmann, José James, D'Angelo or J Dilla. As a sideman he could be heard on albums by Ben Wendel, Cory Smythe, Kneebody or Nate Smith, shared the stage with Christian Sands or Gretchen Parlato. His debut album as a leader - "Bones" - released in the early summer of 2021, inspired by compositional originality and amazing versatility, also outstandingly produced by Eli Wolf.

The critics reacted enthusiastically to "Bones", whose material stages technical sophistication with vocal virtuosity beyond autotune and knows how to redefine the "possibilities of the voice in the age of its technical multiplying potentials" (Rondo). In 2022 Michael Mayo was awarded the German Jazz Prize in the category "International Artist".