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Marque Mesa:
BioE alumnus launches music career
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| Mesa
appeared one summer night at Larry Blake’s, playing
selections from Conflicting Memories, whose title
track is about his father. With each song, he admits, he feels
as if he’s saying, “This is me.” |
When Marque Mesa (B.S.’98 BioE) started his engineering
studies in 1994, he didn’t realize he was destined for a
different career. Nearly 10 years later, he has produced a music
CD and is booking live performances at cafes and clubs throughout
the Bay Area, in Los Angeles, and overseas.
Following in the footsteps of his father, who earned his degree
in EECS, Mesa intended to become an engineer. As a BioE major,
he loved the science, found the people inspiring, and started
doing environmental research in the Earth Sciences Division at
Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory.
But one day about three years ago he started "messing around"
on a keyboard and found himself singing, then writing songs. He
started playing guitar, got a good response to his music, and
even made a little money. With almost no formal musical training,
he has learned how to play from videos, books, and simply listening.
He wrote all the songs on his debut CD, Conflicting Memories,
and recorded them in his home studio, performing every track —
guitar, keyboard, bass, percussion, lead and backup vocals —
himself.
"Going through BioE taught me that if you want to learn something,
you can," Mesa says. “Engineers love problem solving
and they are extremely creative people. That’s why so many
engineers are musicians."
With a voice that can range from breathy falsetto to angry growl,
his sound is vulnerable and raw. The songs themselves —
some sad ballads, others sweet and upbeat — are intensely
personal. They tell the flip side of this soft-spoken young man’s
transformation from scientist to artist: the healing power of
music.
"My pop left the family my first year, so college was a trying
time for me," Mesa says about the wound left by his father’s
departure. "I started to ask, 'How can I heal myself?' and
the music has really done that for me. The power of a song is
amazing."
Strong CD sales (he’s sold more than half the 1,000 CDs
he produced) and support from fans and music business insiders
have given him the confidence to pursue his music seriously.
"My grandparents wish I was still in engineering," he
says, "but I’m happy." Details about Mesa’s
CD and upcoming engagements can be found at www.marQuemusic.com.
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