Michel BENEBIG, the New Caledonian Soul-Jazz organist in New Zealand in April! [fr]

Michel BENEBIG will be touring New Zealand (Wellington, Palmerston North, Napier, New Plymouth, Whanganui), from April 22 to May 1 (See programme Attached), at the invitation of Mr Rodger FOX, New Zealand’s foremost jazz trombonist from the New Zealand School of Music, Victoria University of Wellington. On April 26 in Wellington, Michel will play with the New Zealand School of Music Big Band.

Born in New Caledonia, New Zealand’s closest neighbour, Michel BENEBIG started playing bass, accordeon and electronic-organ when he was 11. He studied classical piano and music-theory at the “Ecole Territoriale de Musique” de Nouméa, where he obtained the “Golden Medal” in Piano in 1988.

From 1990 to 1992 Michel went to France where he studied classical-piano at the ‘National Conservatory of Music’. In June 1992, Michel switched from Classical Piano to Jazz-Organ (Hammond B3 Organ), and taught himself how to play that amazing instrument built in 1934 by Mr Laurence Hammond (Chicago, Illinois USA).

Michel has toured all around the world over the last 20 years: Australia & Tasmania, New Zealand, Fiji, Vanuatu, USA (Los Angeles, San-Francisco, New York), Ile de la Réunion (Indian Ocean), and France.

Michel is today recognized as one of the leading ‘Soul-Jazz’ organist around the world, being one of the rare French jazz organist to be listed in the official ‘Hammond Organ USA company’. Michel was elected the “Organist of the Month” of May 2006 by “The International Archives for the Jazz-Organ“.

Michel met and played with legendary Jazz musicians and organists such as Jimmy Smith, Rhoda Scott, Papa John Defrancesco, Houston Person, Frank Potenza, Randy Johnston, Doug Webb, and Denise Perrier.

Access the ‘SOUL – JAZZ EXPERIENCE 2018’ programme

For more information, please contact Rodger Fox : rdfoxtrombone@gmail.com