User:SkrymSay/Marina Belica (article draft)

This is a draft page for a new article for musician Marina Belica. Once the page is submitted, I will remove the draft content. The draft process can be seen in the history of this page.

Marina Belica is a singer, pianist, and music management consultant based in New York City. She is most well known for being a founding and current member of adult alternative band October Project.

Background
Belica was involved with music from a very young age. She began to learn to play the piano at the age of four from from her mother, a pianist and opera singer who studied at the Vienna Conservatory and sang at the Slovak National Theatre. Some of the artists she was inspired by at a young age include the Beatles, Joni Mitchell, and Fleetwood Mac.

October Project
Belica met singer and songwriter Julie Flanders while they were students at Yale University. The two were roommates, and remained so for several years. While at Yale, they collaborated with keyboardist ans songwriter Emil Adler on musical projects. Eventually, Belica, Flanders, and Adler formed October Project along with David Sabatino and vocalist Mary Fahl. The band released several critically acclaimed albums and toured internationally before being dropped by their label, Epic Records. The band broke up soon after.

decembergirl
In 2000, Belica, Flanders, Adler, Sabatino, and Sanchez came together to record a new version of October Project's first single, "Return to Me." Marina sang lead vocals on the song, which was produced by Adler. The cover became the feature track of a five-song EP released by Belica under the name ''decembergirl. ''The EP features guest musicians including Joy Askew, Matt Garrison, Cheryl Ann Fulton, and Randy Brecker. "Return to Me" was featured in a pivotal scene of the film The Adulterer by writer/director Douglas Morse.

One Sky
In 2002, Belica released an instrumental classical/new age album called One Sky under her own name. She described it as "modern, intimate chamber music" and it features string, wind, and percussion instruments as well as her own vocal work. Belica produced and arranged the album in collaboration with percussionist Randy Crafton and guitarist Christopher Cunningham.

October Project reunion
In the early 2000s, Belica, along with Flanders and Adler, reunited to form the current October Project. The band has toured and released several EPs, including 2002's Three, 2003's Different Eyes, and 2012's Uncovered and More Uncovered. The band are currently recording a self-produced new album that is expected to be released in 2014.

Other activities
From 2000 to 2002, Belica ran an unplugged concert series in Gilda's Club, a New York City organization for people living with cancer.

Beyond her career as a performer, Belica works as a consultant in music management. She considers this work a useful complement to working as a performer as she was able to become very familiar with the business aspects of the music industry.

In June of 2013, Belica and the October Project performed a benefit concert at the Washington Montessori School in New Preston, Connecticut. A portion of the proceeds were donated to a fund which was set up to support David and Francine Wheeler, whose six-year-old son Ben was killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.