melaniejane, whose real name is Melanie Hoffmann, taught herself to play piano and guitar. "It was really weird at first. I had to hold the guitar like a cello for a long time, but now I can hold my own," she says, smiling in a shy-but-sly sort of way. Her stage name "melaniejane" is one-word and all lower-case letters.

melaniejane's evolution from classical cellist to indie-Americana rocker started almost a decade ago when she joined the band, Ward and his Troubles. It was while recording a track for Ward that she met Mike Hoffmann, a guitarist, songwriter and producer who later became her husband.

Her first album "Flower" was released in March of 2002. It received great reviews and a fair share of radio play, especially in Europe. The first single from the record, "Caroline," is popular in France, Belgium and Germany.

Although melaniejane still continues to perform solo as a singer/songwriter she has also been developing a new sound over these past few years with her electric cello and backing tracks. It all began while trying to come up with something "different" to perform at the No More Handguns benefit (Tribute to John Lennon) at Linneman's Riverwest Inn in Milwaukee, WI. "Come Together" was the first performance in this medium and the performance of this song continues to be a hit with audiences wherever it is performed.

melaniejane performs regularly with pat mAcdonald as what she affectionately calls herself his "sideguy." Playing electric cello, percussion, keyboard, background vocals and accordion against his raw guitar, cigarbox guitar, harmonica and full-out, rock-on stomp board, these two carry the weight of a full band. While performing with pat, melaniejane truly finds herself "at home" as they rock their way across the US and in Europe.

While not on tour with pat mAcdonald, you will most likely find her out with Victoria Vox. The combination of ukulele and cello coupled with Victoria's crystal clear voice and incredible talent for songwriting in both English and French leaves audiences wanting more.

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