Playing Classical music was never everything to Noah Hoffeld. Since his days as a Juilliard undergrad, Noah's been pushing the limits by improvising, bringing rock and pop to the cello, and asking questions that would push his career beyond the ordinary. Noah's musical life is extremely varied, alternating producing and touring his own music, playing featured cello for the likes of Renee Fleming, Philip Glass, Bebel Gilberto, and Brad Mehldau, recording cello solos for films like The Skeleton Twins (Kristin Wiig and Bill Hader) and Experimenter (Peter Saarsgard) as well as for the TV show Happyish and an upcoming HBO miniseries by David Simon, maker of The Wire. A composer himself, he's currently attached to two indie films in production. He enjoys arranging and producing other artists as well. Growing up in a home that prioritized the arts turned Noah towards cello, piano and voice at an early age. But it was his parents' eclectic listening habits that formed him. "Mom and Dad were both fanatical about art and classical music and they both worked in the arts, but they listened to all sorts of things while I was growing up. On any given day I was equally likely to soak in a Mozart Serenade as I was to be getting down to a new cut by Michael Jackson. I sang in the Metropolitan Opera Boys' Choir and went to pre-college at Juilliard on the weekends, but at night I was devouring records by Bowie, Lou Reed and the Beatles." And all those influences found a home in Play Human- Hoffeld's new album of original songs. The debut LP, produced by Hoffeld and mixed by Mark Plati (Bowie, the Cure, Philip Glass) is the culmination of his musical searching and deeply held beliefs. "I always wanted to share my view of things through the cello, purely through sound. But I came to a certain place where I realized using lyrics was gonna be necessary. I had some very specific things I wanted to say. I couldn't stop playing for playing's sake but I wanted to add another dimension to the picture." After graduating, while living on a bluff overlooking the Pacific, he started to write songs. And spurred on by an intense need to communicate to a broader audience than just Classical fans, he taught himself to play guitar and bass, and to produce tracks to make those songs come alive. Amidst rocking, passionate love songs, Play Human's power ballads like 'Stop Slow Down' bring Noah's message home- That Now's the best time for us to breathe and tune into who we are. A longtime devotee of yoga and meditation, Noah believes in the power of reflection to create the change we're looking for in our lives and in our environment and takes to heart Gandhi's 'Be the change that you wish to see in the World." The title song 'Play Human' incites us to take a bigger view of life and to stand up for our brothers and sisters. The chorus shouts out- 'Why don't we all play human for a change? Loving each other shouldn't be out of range." And the thrashing 'Role of Rock,' insists that saving the World is the purpose Rock was born for. Fighting for each other and a just planet isn't a new theme in Noah's music. His single 'One Family' created for Martin Luther King Day 2015, was inspired by the intensity of current events and what he calls "the ever-growing imperative of Dr King's Dream." One Family rallies against abuses of power and backpedaling of the civil rights train. The self-produced song and music video were an internet success, shared by over 100 people in their first week on Facebook. But it's not all fun and games either. Noah's a proponent of what he calls 'CelloRock'- he sings while playing rhythmic rock patterns on cello, or adds vocals to ambient layers of looped cello and beats he produces in real time. 'Same Old Song' - the first single off Play Human- is a cello based romp dedicated to the grooves he grew up on. Noah takes us back and lures us into our own musical memories with the infectious beat of this pop-rock tune. Noah performs powerful and intimate solo concerts incorporating electronics, live looping and beat production while he sings from the cello, piano and guitar, as well as explosive full band shows. Critics agree his songs and shows have "depth and soul" (The Berkshire Eagle), are "moving and haunting" (SeeDance.com) and are "filled with expressiveness and warmth" (Tablet Magazine). Jay Hall, a friend and fellow Juilliard alum says with great relief, "Noah's music is not embarrassing." Noah has recently been added to the endorsed artist roster of hallowed Moog Synthesizers. He's been in a photo spread with his cello and Iman in W Magazine and taught cello to James Taylor.