Maria Blatz & Tom Keller
GermanyThe German singer and songwriter Tom Keller and the enchanting German pianist, songwriter and singer Maria Blatz succeed in captivating the audience with their balladic interpretations of well-known and popular hits – but also with their own songs. With charm and professionalism, the two present themselves as a musical unit.
The duo’s trained singing voices, paired with Maria’s virtuoso piano playing and Tom’s rhythmic accompaniment on the cajon, a Cuban percussion instrument, are the ingredients for their soulful, honest, handmade pop music that touches the audience.
Tom Keller and Maria Blatz are with blacksheep on Saturday, 22nd June
The eldest of seven siblings, Maria grew up in a forester’s lodge. Her passion for the piano awoke at the age of eight; she wrote her first songs at fourteen. She was awarded the German Rock & Pop Prize at the age of 17. Even before completing her studies at the Popakademie Mannheim, Maria meets Tom Keller.
The singer and songwriter, who is well-known in the Mannheim music scene, is currently on tour with his German rock band Evassohn when the two meet during a jam session in a music club. Two voices, a box (cajon), a piano. An extraordinary musical collaboration begins.
The Singer/Songwriter Tom Keller
The story of singer/songwriter Tom Keller shows that life sometimes takes detours in order to bring the true essence of a person to light. In Keller’s case, these are emotionally charged compositions and lyrics that cover major human themes such as love, loss and becoming. The early death of his mother changed the direction of Tom’s life: Instead of studying social pedagogy, the trained lithographer discovered music.
The son of an organist and singer already has experience with piano and percussion. But listening to his music, who would believe that Tom only taught himself to play the guitar a few years ago? His passions are live performances, composing, devotion to his inspirations Beatles, U2 and Coldplay and, again and again, life. For Tom Keller, his voice can be heard most clearly in a small coastal town on the island of Crete.
The most beautiful songs are created in Crete
Matala has been an irresistible magnet for musicians, artists and free spirits since the 1960s. And so Tom Keller also found a special source of inspiration between rocking boats with chipped paintwork, Greek warmth, the eternal blue of two great elements and the seclusion under the stars of the eastern Mediterranean. It almost seems as if a disembodied voice mingles with Tom’s singing in the songs created here and calls out to us: “The only thing that matters is doing what you love.”
The sonority of Tom’s guitar playing proves that it’s never too late for that. His music touches people on many stages. Whether at the wedding of German football star Mats Hummels or at intimate, candlelit house concerts between light-heartedness and melancholy.
Tom Keller’s latest work, “Where are you Brother”, brings together twelve songs to create an atmospheric tableau of musical complexity. Nosie Katzmann, hit songwriter and producer, and Stefan Kahne are responsible for the production. He is supported in the studio sessions by musicians such as Ralf Gustke on drums (Söhne Mannheims), Herb Jösch (Stefan Raab’s Heavytones), Tommy Baldu (drums on one song each), Stefan Kahne on guitars and bass, Xaver Fischer on keyboards and Christin Kieu and Nosie Katzmann on backing vocals. Tom’s live partner Maria Blatz from the duo Tom & Maria provides prominent second vocals. “Where are You Brother” enchants with timeless and honest lyrics.
The songs come to life both with a big band and in an unplugged guitar version, free from current trends and yet so timelessly close and in resonance with moods that we all know, but for which there sometimes seems to be no soundtrack. The goosebumps you get when listening to this album feel a bit like after a cold swim in the sea at sunrise.
The Band
- Tom Keller – Guitar, Cajon, Vocals
- Maria Blatz – Piano, Vocals
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