ARTIST'S BIOGRAPHY

Mike Massy meets Sary & Ayad Khalife in NASEEJ

A musical Journey from East to West, Medieval to Andalusian, Ancient to Contemporary, with a SUFI SOUL.
NASEEJ in ITS WORLD PREMIERE is staged by director Nagy Souraty and its album produced by the Zouk Mikael International Festival before the world tour starts.

Mike Massy

With Middle-Eastern roots, and hungry for the harmonious elegance of the West, Mike Massy, Murex d'Or award winner, is noted for his vocal and pianistic distinctiveness, and intuitive talent. He revisits the Lebanese Oriental music, proposing a unique fusion between the passion for Andalusia, Baroque harmonies, and Jazz rhythms.

Songwriter, film score composer, performer and actor, from the Phoenician town of Anfeh - Lebanon, Mike Massy was born on the 31st of March 1982, and grew up fascinated by the inimitable voice of Feyrouz, the nostalgic melodies of Zaki Nassif, and the poetry and authenticity of Brel and Aznavour texts. Despite the unstable situation in Lebanon, he started piano courses at the age of nine. In 1996 he joined the National High Conservatory of Music. At the age of seventeen, he learned Arabic Opera; his musical curiosity led him to explore the "Mouwachahat", as well as Oriental and Occidental singing, along with his classical piano education.

In 2001, his passion for theatre led him to join the Faculty of Fine Arts where he obtained his degree in Drama. Simultaneously, for 10 years he followed Jazz Ballet dancing courses at a well-reputed dance school, Arabesque, eventually joining its acclaimed troupe.
As a multitalented artist, a pianist, and an outstanding singer, Mike Massy has collaborated with the most important artists in the Lebanese and Middle Eastern music scene. From Lebanon to Egypt, Syria to Abu Dhabi, Algeria to Morocco, and from the Netherlands to Italy through Belgium, Bulgaria, New York, Washington. Mike Massy has participated in renowned festivals, performed in prestigious halls, gave lectures in distinguished universities and toured with internationally known musicians and artists.

His talent as an actor was soon noticed by both film-makers and directors. That's how he was offered many roles in TV series, TV films, short films, plays and musicals.
Eclectic in his musical choices, in 2003 Mike Massy released his first album of spiritual hymns "ila ssama atba'ouka". In 2008, he composed the music of the documentary "Itsy Bitsy Spider" by Tanya Nasr.
Mike Massy released his first official album "Ya Zaman" in November 2011, which won him a Murex d'Or for innovation in music. 
In 2012 he wrote the original soundtrack of Joe Bou Eid's controversial feature film "Tannoura Maxi". 
In 2014, he composed an orchestral piece and recorded it with the Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of Bulgaria.
Mike Massy is currently preparing his second acoustic Lebanese Baroque - Jazz song album in addition to his collaboration with the Khalife brothers on Naseej.

Ayad Khalife

Born in 1990, he pursued piano lessons since five years old at the Lebanese National Conservatory where he brilliantly obtained his diploma at the age of fifteen. From 1998 till 2005, he performed with his cellist brother Sary in concerts, auditions and recitals organized by the National conservatory and Al Bustan festival. Ayad played twice as soloist with the National Lebanese Symphonic Orchestra: at the age of thirteen with Kabalewski second concerto and at the age of fifteen with Mendels sohn second concerto. 

In 2004, Ayad obtained the 3rd prize at the 6th international competition of piano in Morocco (Jury president: France Clidat). A year later, he won the Margot Babickian 1st prize piano competition in Beirut. 
In 2006, Ayad joined the national conservatory of Boulogne -Billancourt in France. 
He assisted at Paul-André Gaye piano classes and Hortence Cartier-Bresson Chamber Music classes where he acquired his U.V of chamber music with honors. After obtaining his certificate of graduation in piano music with honors in unanimity, Ayad obtained 2 years later a 1st prize in unanimity in piano. During that same year he took Jazz classes with the jazzman Damien Nédonchelle and Chamber Music classes with Jérôme Voisin. Ayad incorporated the curriculum of PSPBB in 2010 where he brilliantly obtained three years later his higher national diploma as a professional musician and a degree in musicology at the Sorbonne University in Paris. He participated in many events, concerts and recitals in France and abroad in the most prestigious halls such as le théâtre de la place des arts in Montréal, Barbican Hall in Londres, Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha or also le grand Palais in Paris with a very rich repertory including concerto n°1 of Beethoven and Concerto n°1 of F. Liszt consecutively interpreted in 2010 and 2011 with CRR orchestra of Boulogne-Billancourt, and the Triple concerto of Beethoven with Qatar philharmonic Orchestra along with his cellist brother Sary Khalife and violinist Karim Saleh under the direction of Michalis Economou. Ayad regularly composes and improvises, he participated from 2009 till 2013 in the improvisation class of Vincent Lê QUANG. He mainly improvised with his brother Sary in Paris Grand Palais as well as in la Maison du Liban in Paris. In 2011, he took part of a series of 3 animations cine-concerts with Jazz professionals quartet. Ayad was also interested in world music; he participated around the world with the Lebanese artist Marcel Khalife in the most prestigious halls such as Art hall in Montreal and in World Trade Center in Dubai.

Ayad was also fascinated by pedagogy, a key focus for his personal and musical development. In 2013, along with a selection of professors, he took part, as a piano teacher, in a musical workshop of Chambre Musique. He is currently preparing his piano state teacher diploma.

Sary Khalife

Born in Lebanon in 1990, Sary Khalife started playing the piano at the age of five. 
He Pursued piano studies for 10 years and attended classes with Narine Abrilian and Angela Hadichian From the age of eight, he began to perform in recitals with his brother Ayad.

Sary started learning the cello when he was seven years old with Sarkis Kochkarian. He performed many concerts along with his brother at the Assembly Hall at the American University of Beirut (AUB), in the Unesco hall in Lebanon, and in the Evangelical church of Beirut in 2005 part of Al Bustan Festival. At the age of twelve, he won the Babikian competition first prize and performed the Saint-Saëns concerto as cello soloist with the National Orchestra of Lebanon then the Haydn concerto in D three years later. 
In 2004, Sary got his Cello degree from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique Liban. He was then admitted in the prestigious West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Barenboïm with whom he tours 6 weeks per year in the most prestigious halls such as Albert Hall in London, Pleyel Hall, Oriental Art Center of Shanghai, and in Berlin grand theaters, Vienna and Cologne. 
In parallel to his young career, Sary improved his skills by taking classes with great masters such as Yoyo Ma, Lluis Claret, Anne Gastinel, Jerôme Pernoo. In 2006, he was admitted to the class of Xavier Gagnepain in the conservatoire à rayonnement régional de Boulogne-Billancourt (France) and obtained his first prize unanimously in June 2008, while taking advantage of the Chamber Music classes of Hortense Cartier-Bresson's, before being admitted in the Pole supérieur d'enseignement artistique Paris Boulogne –Billancourt in September 2009.
In January 2013, he performed along with his brother Ayad Khalife and Karim Saleh the triple concerto of Beethoven in C Major with the National Orchestra of Qatar under the direction of Michalis Économou. Ever since September 2011, Sary has been the student of Rolland Pidoux, Xavier Phillips and currently the student of Marc Coppey and Pauline Bartissol at Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique.
Sary is also interested in improvised and traditional music, he is a permanent member of Al-Mayadine Ensemble established by the Lebanese artist Marcel Khalife.