Toni Castells - Artist and Composer brainchild of the Momo Project

Toni Castells - Biography

Toni Castells was born in Berga, Barcelona, and started his classical musical
training at the age of 5 playing guitar, piano and clarinet.
He joined several youth orchestras either as a guitar soloist
or as an instrumentalist and toured Europe several times.
As a teenager he'd win the prestigious III Young Composers Competition,
organized in St. Joan de Vilatorrada,
with the experimental composition “Images”, written for flute and piano.

By the age of 12 Toni had already started his first band, Korrefok,
in which he composed and played the keyboards.
The band's self-entitled 4-track demo
attracted the interest of the Spanish music industry
and soon after legendary label AZ Records offered the band a record deal.

Herzia, who'd become the new name of the band,
released its debut album 'Coses que Passen' in 1999
instantly receiving strong airplay combined with widespread critical acclaim.
Spanish leading music magazine Popular 1 quoted:

“If there be justice, Herzia’s ‘Coses que passen’ should become
the most important pop release this year.” (Popular 1, May 1999)

Toni's increasingly growing interest in engineering and producing materializes
with an opportunity to work at the extremely fashionable Musiclan Studios.
Musiclan had emerged as the Spanish Hit Factory and attracted
the most talented and successful artists, bands and producers of the moment.

Toni moves to London in 2000 to work with Spanish song writing legend Jose Maria Cano,
who became one of his mentors of this new era in Toni's career.
Through him Toni has the chance to work alongside stars like Placido Domingo,
after having secured a position as a recording engineer at the Royal College of Music,
one of the main sources of musical talent in the world,
where he spent 4 years recording conductors like Lorin Maazel, Bernard Haitink,
Sir Charles Mackerras and Sir Roger Norrington amongst others.

In Momo, Toni's latest artistic incarnation, Toni produces a very intimate display,
a combination of genres that uniquely reflect Toni's upbringing and influences,
a mixture of pop, electronica, pop, opera, classical music and visual arts.
Toni releases under his own label Instant Attraction Records and is published by Respect Music.

Collaborators with the Momo Project

Beth Rodergas
www.myspace.com/bethmusica

Beth was born in Barcelona,
and it wasn't until she was 16 that she started her singing career.
Beth's life would change dramatically in Septeber 2002
when she became a contestant in the talent TV show 'Operacion Triunfo',
excelling in a casting amongst over 80,000 hopefuls.
She entered the 'Academia' (Academy) where she'll overcame evictions for a period of 4 months.
There she had the opportunity to perform with artists such as Kenny G.

Beth came third in the final round of the series,
achievement which allowed her to record her debut album 'Otra Realidad' (2003)
in Abbey Road Studios under the production of Carlos Quintero.
The album has sold so far more than 300,000 copies.

A year later Beth released her second album,
a self-entitled live concert held at Barcelona's renown modernist concert hall
Palau de la Musica Catalana, which is also available in DVD.

Beth represented Spain in the Eurovision contest in 2003
with hit-song 'Dime', ending up in a meritory eight position.

Beth released her third solo album 'My Long Way Home' in 2007,
produced by Spanish legendary producer and musician Suso Saiz,
which was licensed to Warner Brothers for the world.

Beth is at the moment touring Calixto Bieito's operatic adaptation of 'Tirant Lo Blanc',
an epic romance written by Valencian knight Joanot Martorell and first published in 1490.

Amelia Whiteman
www.elysiumdivas.com

Amelia – like most kiwis, loves to explore the world.
Singing brought her across the UK to study at the Royal College of Music in London.
It was here that Amelia met Toni. Two years studying at the RCM
were followed by a year at the Gent Opera Studio in Belgium.

An absolute Mozart freak – her career highlight so far
was to perform the role of Cherubino in ‘The Marriage of Figaro’ in Italy and France.
Handel and Strauss are other favourite composers.

Amelia also enjoys the oratorio repertoire
and has regularly performed as a soloist around London.

Maria Callas is a singer that Amelia aspires to.
Her philosophy is summed up by the words of Victor Hugo,
“Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”

She is now involved in an operatic trio called ‘Elysium’.

Roberta Howett
www.myspace.com/robertahowett

Dublin born singer/ songwriter Roberta Howett came onto the international music scene in 2004
when she was one of a select few to be chosen as a finalist to compete live on The X-Factor.
Managed by Sharon Osbourne, Roberta was also afforded the opportunity to perform
on an arenatour around the UK, including Wembley arena, and the Manchester arena.

Roberta’s musical background began at an early age and is grounded in classical training.
It was while learning to play classical songs on the piano that Roberta began to write her own more
contemporary style of music and began putting her own lyrics to the melodies she created.

Her passion for performing led her to sing in many venues around Ireland,
including Bar Number Five, an exclusive Dublin Jazz venue.

After competing on XFactor, Roberta was encouraged to move to London
as she began working with UK based producers.

Roberta's vocal ballad 'Shadows' has recently been play-listed on Dublin’s Q102 radio station
as well as on their sister stations in Limerick and Cork.

Roberta is now putting the final touches to her long awaited solo debut album

Gracie Patton
www.myspace.com/graciepatton

Gracie Patton is the artistic name of singer Frances Hardcastle,
a Royal College of Music graduate
who has become an accomplished Jazz singer.

Toni knew Gracie since his time at the Royal College of Music,
and when Momo started to take shape
Gracie became a natural choice for collaboration.

Gracie sings in Diamonds, the only song sung in French,
thanks to the translation of Gracie herself
with the unestimable help of Zorah Moul.

Gracie Patton is a product of her own imagination.
She lives in Toon Town next door to Jessica Rabbit
(who is really a drag queen that steals all of gracie's dresses).

When not singing in smoky bars, she can be found drinking in them.

Sacconi String Quartet
Ben Hancox - violin
Hannah Dawson - violin
Robin Ashwell - viola
Cara Berridge - cello
www.sacconi.com

Formed in 2001 at the Royal College of Music, the Sacconi Quartet is rapidly gaining an enviable reputation
as one of the outstanding quartets of their generation.

Last year the Quartet won 2nd Prize at the 2006 London International String Quartet Competition,
along with the Esterhazy Prize & Sydney Griller Award, following their 1st Prize win in the 2005
Trondheim International String Quartet Competition.

They also won the Kurtag Prize at the BordeauxInternational String Quartet Competition,
1st Prize in the Royal Over-Seas League chamber music competition
and were shortlisted for a Royal Philharmonic Society award.

In May 2006 the Quartet was selected for representation by Young Concert Artists Trust (YCAT),
and in August 2006 was awarded an Angel Award by The Herald newspaper
for outstanding performances in the Edinburgh Festival.

Abroad the Quartet has appeared at the St. Olav Festival in Trondheim, Norway and given recitals in Geneva,
Barcelona and France. They have collaborated with the Chilingirian Quartet, Wihan Quartet, Gary Matthewman, David Campbell, Morgan Szymanski, Tim Boulton, Lawrence Power and Raphael Wallfisch in quintet, sextet and octet concerts.

The Quartet’s recording of Finzi’s song cycle By Footpath and Stile
with baritone Roderick Williams was released on Naxos in 2006
and received four- and five-star reviews in all the national broadsheets
and BBC Music Magazine.

Louis Sebastian Mander

Louis began his musical studies from an early age, his early musical training and appreciation
was instilled in him by his initial piano teacher, Angele McKenzie-Smith.
And it was whilst studying with Angele that Louis' first creative compositional ideas began.

In December 2000 Louis was awarded the 'Gloucestershire Young Composer of the Year',
and his 'Fantasy for Bassoon & Orchestra' was premiered by the Gloucester Symphony Orchestra.

At 17 Louis accepted his place to study music at Birmingham University, and in 2006 he completed his BMus with Hons,
specialising in piano with Johnathon French, composition with Vic Hoyland, conducting with Martin Leigh
and orchestration & arrangement with Dr. Paul Rodmell.

In 2006 Louis was accepted to study Composition & Composition for Screen at the Royal College of Music in London,
completing his Postgraduate Diploma the following year. It was whilst at the Royal College of Music that he met Toni Castells,
with whom he continues to collaborate as orchestrator & composer.

He currently makes his living as free-lance composer, orchestrator and piano teacher.
Current commissions include a multi-million dollar feature-length film score,
for 'The Crayola Tree', the pre-production for which begins in December 2007,
a new score for the theatre company 'Another Midas' at the Globe Theatre,
and a commission for song cycle setting of poetry by Shelley Vaughan Williams.

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