Biography

Marjan Welman hails from Lichtenvoorde, Holland. A natural born artist, she can't remember a time when she wasn't busy singing. Inspired by a multitude of bands and artists from various genres and being very much mood-driven when it comes to her choice of music to listen to, she has developed into an open-minded and versatile vocalist. Marjan on her broad musical taste: "Because of that, I love singing all kinds of music. I'd hate to restrict myself to one particular genre." With a smile she adds she has "... no ambitions in country, by the way..."

Her love for singing eventually finds a focal point in the band Elister, which she has been involved in from day one for approximately five years now. Elister's music is best described as a mishmash of groovy rock with a hint of stoner. Furthermore, she's lent her vocals to progressive rock project Elemental Journey and the band Dialogue, to name a few. Throughout the densely populated Dutch rock music scene, the name Marjan Welman slowly starts ringing some bells.

Fast forwarding to late 2007, she finds herself among a select group of internationally renowned vocalists chosen to appear on Arjen Lucassen's latest Ayreon release, entitled '01011001'. Marjan: "One of my personal highlights is being asked to sing on '01011001'. Arjen Lucassen has always been one of my favourite artists and getting the chance to work with him was an unbelievable experience for me." Upon release, Marjan joins Lucassen to promote the album as the sole vocalist during numerous semi-acoustic sessions.

Early 2008, opportunity knocks when Dutch rock band Autumn are looking for a new vocalist and ask her if she'd like to audition for the job. After giving it some thought, she gladly accepts the invitation. Marjan: "After I sang away some remaining nerves I got the chance to enjoy it all. On my way back home I could only hope that they would pick me, and so they did."

With Autumn's fourth album entering the pre-production stages soon, some major festival appearances this Summer and new Elister recordings well on their way, 2008 promises to be a year of new challenges for Marjan. She's looking forward to facing them head on: "To have become a part of Autumn in addition to Elister feels wonderful and I hope that we'll do great things together!"