Her father was a jazz trumpet player... her mother is a painter and visual artist. With two such gifted parents, Linda was raised in a home rich with music and art and blessed to have varied creative influences from an early age. This inspirational environment provided a fertile planting ground to fuel her artisic growth and expression. With exposure right from the start to an eclectic array of music styles and genres, it's no surprise that Linda's musical tastes are so diverse: growing up in New York , while listening to the contemporary Pop, Rock and R&B artists of her time, she was simultaneously steeped in the music of the great jazz artists from her father's era.
"My Dad and his musician buddies would sit me down at the piano and teach me these wonderful old torch songs and jazz standards. These are still some of my favorite songs to perform."
"I've always been drawn to singers with powerful, richly textured voices," says Linda, who cites artists as diverse as Gladys Knight, Patti Austin, Michael McDonald, Ann Wilson (Heart), Celine Dion, Pat Benatar, Kenny Loggins, Annie Lennox, David Pack, and Eva Cassidy as some of her strongest influences.
Linda has been an avid student of vocal technique from a young age - years of classical training, commencing at the early age of 11, gave her a solid basis in the technical aspect of singing. However, Linda feels the best vocal education comes from listening to and learning from the vocalists that move you.
"I've spent a lot of time intently studying singers who intrigue me - their tone, their phrasing; the way they make each song their own. Each vocal artist has their own way of imbuing the song with meaning that goes beyond the lyrics and melody."
But, singing is not just about technique. The ability to convey the raw emotion of the music is what transforms a vocalist into an artist. This is one of Linda's strongest gifts as a performer.
"Music is about 20% in the head, and 80% in the heart. Once you feel comfortable in your own skin [as a vocalist], let your head bow out, and let your heart take over."
This approach has paid off : Linda's blend of chops and artistry have developed into a level of versatility and performance that has kept her booked steadily in some of the top-flight musical organizations in both New York and South Florida.
di·va (dē'və) n. pl. di·vas or di·ve (-vā) - a distinguished female singer
Although currently based in South Florida, Linda spent the early part of her career in New York, where she performed at venues ranging from C.B.G.B.s and The Bitter End to The Rainbow Room. For six years prior to relocating to Florida, Linda was lead vocalist with the Stuart White Orchestra (a Steven Scott Music and Entertainment group), with whom she performed at such high profile special events as President Clinton's Inauguration and the Super Bowl NFL Commissioner's Party - an annual press event.
In recent years, Linda has joined the South Florida music scene. Since relocating here a few years ago, she has performed at local Jazz/Blues venues such as O'Hara's, One Night Stan's, Ray's Downtown Blues and the Jazz Concert series at CityPlace in West Palm Beach. For her first six years in Florida she was Lead Vocalist with The Manhattan Music Band, of Manhattan Music & Entertainment, performing at high-end special events from The Breakers in Palm Beach to The Fontainbleu in Miami. Linda has since moved on from Manhattan Music to pursue other performance opportunities and to afford more time to concentrate her artistic focus on her original songwriting and recording projects.
In addition to her live performance work, Linda is currently involved with various local and long-distance recording projects as songwriter, vocalist and vocal arranger (for many of her original projects, she writes, records, and performs under the pseudonym of .) The remote recording projects are a perfect convergence of Linda's recording and technology skills with her musical artistry.
Linda's writing style is as eclectic and powerful as her vocal style. Her projects include an Industrial Metal/Gothic Metal band (in the vein of NIN / Evanescence / Dalbello ... hear a studio demo clip here), a Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band (in the vein of Sevendust), and various television and movie soundtrack projects. Visit Linda's Original Music page for a sampling of songs from her original projects and her work as vocalist/vocal arranger.
During the course of her career, Linda has had the pleasure of performing for many celebrities, visiting dignitaries, and notable people, affording her some wonderful experiences. To mention a few:
The Linda MacLean Band The Linda MacLean Quartet The Honeymooners Band, Palm Beach, FL Will Bridges Music, Coral Springs, FL Manhattan Music and Entertainment, Ft. Lauderdale, FL Various Florida Blues Bands, including The Jeff Prine Group, Motel Mel and the Innkeepers
Steven Scott Music and Entertainment, New York, New York Jerry Kravat Entertainment Services, New York, New York The Rainbow Room Orchestra, New York, New York Mark Towers Orchestras, Great Neck, New York Eccentrix, New York, New York