Interview: Miel de Botton
Miel de Botton proves that it is never too late to dream, and that those dreams can come true. The 46 year old mother of two has embarked on a music career that has already seen her perform at the Aldwych Theatre and at the Southbank Centre's Purcell Room and this week she has released her debut album 'Magnetic'.
Born in Switzerland, Miel and her younger brother – philosopher Alain de Botton – had an idyllic childhood growing up by a lake in Zurich. Her financier father, Gilbert de Botton, shared his love of music with her, often singing French chansons with his young daughter. Miel, who divides her time between homes in Kensington and Hampshire, told The Lady last year "My father always admired my singing and made me feel very special as a child. Then I sang in choirs, but I was never sure that I could develop this into a professional capacity. It was like a secret thing that gave me pleasure."
Miel studied law in Oxford before qualifying as a Clinical Psychologist in Paris where she practiced for six years in drug addiction centres. On her move to London and her father's death, with a one-year old son and much of her father's estate issues to look after, she took a break. Then, a few years and another child later, her marriage fell apart. "Out of that pain came a feeling that I wanted to be free, to fully express myself," she says, adding "I had a deep desire to pursue what I needed to do in life.
Following this realization, doors opened that led her to meeting record producer Andy Wright who has worked with household names including Simply Red, Eurythmics and Jeff Beck. Miel says, "He really gets me. We have these amazing moments when I give him my songs and he sits at the piano and starts the chord arrangements, and every time I cry, because what comes out is magical." Recording the album was indeed a tear- and yet joy-filled journey of self-deliverance that has resulted in a collection of deeply personal songs, in English and French, that include the chansons of her early childhood and deeply personal self-penned songs inspired by her own life.
'Magnetic' is the sensuous, exultant sound of a woman who is finally following her path; a woman who has dared to dream.
To buy album click here
Miel de Botton will be at the Crazy Coqs. For more information click here
Born in Switzerland, Miel and her younger brother – philosopher Alain de Botton – had an idyllic childhood growing up by a lake in Zurich. Her financier father, Gilbert de Botton, shared his love of music with her, often singing French chansons with his young daughter. Miel, who divides her time between homes in Kensington and Hampshire, told The Lady last year "My father always admired my singing and made me feel very special as a child. Then I sang in choirs, but I was never sure that I could develop this into a professional capacity. It was like a secret thing that gave me pleasure."
Miel studied law in Oxford before qualifying as a Clinical Psychologist in Paris where she practiced for six years in drug addiction centres. On her move to London and her father's death, with a one-year old son and much of her father's estate issues to look after, she took a break. Then, a few years and another child later, her marriage fell apart. "Out of that pain came a feeling that I wanted to be free, to fully express myself," she says, adding "I had a deep desire to pursue what I needed to do in life.
Following this realization, doors opened that led her to meeting record producer Andy Wright who has worked with household names including Simply Red, Eurythmics and Jeff Beck. Miel says, "He really gets me. We have these amazing moments when I give him my songs and he sits at the piano and starts the chord arrangements, and every time I cry, because what comes out is magical." Recording the album was indeed a tear- and yet joy-filled journey of self-deliverance that has resulted in a collection of deeply personal songs, in English and French, that include the chansons of her early childhood and deeply personal self-penned songs inspired by her own life.
'Magnetic' is the sensuous, exultant sound of a woman who is finally following her path; a woman who has dared to dream.
To buy album click here
Miel de Botton will be at the Crazy Coqs. For more information click here