Born in the suburb of Paris, France on October 27, 1958, he studied classical piano at age seven in Paris, and at age 19 enrolled at the Conservatoire National de Paris. He then became a session and concert drummer with a wide range of groups, but in the mid-'80s, Katche's stock rose considerably, thanks to his involvement with the touring and recording projects of Peter Gabriel and Sting. A French debut CD It's About Time was followed by a string of engagements as a backup musician. The impressive roster of artists he has played with include Joni Mitchell, Gloria Estefan, Michael McDonald, Simple Minds, Afro Celt Sound System, Jeff Beck, Al DiMeola, Tears for Fears, Dire Straits, Jan Garbarek, Loreena McKennitt, Youssou N'Dour, Robbie Robertson, Joe Satriani, Tori Amos, Richard Wright, Julia Fordham, the Bee Gees, Joan Armatrading, Tracy Chapman, Bob James and Hilary James, Gipsy Kings, Anna Marie Jopek, Black Eyed Peas, Kyle Eastwood, and David Lanz. After issuing a demo for the Zildjian cymbal company in 1999, he joined the ECM stable of artists., releasing his breakout recording Neighbourhood, with help from labelmates Jan Garbarek, Tomasz Stanko, and Stanko band members. Katche's ECM follow-up Playground came out in 2007 with assistance from saxophonist Trygve Seim and trumpeter Mathias Eick, followed by Third round and the last one with ECM: Manu Katché. He is sign now to the record company ACT and just released a "Live" album.Katche has also worked with popular Croatian singer Gibonni on his albums Mirakul (2001) and Unca Fibre (2006). He has performed on film soundtracks:

Un indien dans la ville, Quand Les Etoiles..., Le Demenagement, Mookie, Zone Franche, The Professional and For the Love of the Game.

He hosted the monthly program "One Shot Not" from 2008 until 2012

Michael G. Nastos