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Mike Rauss
Mike Rauss is a guitarist, composer, and vocalist born in Israel, whose music reflects the richness of his multicultural upbringing. Raised across Israel, England, and Germany in a nomadic family, Mike was immersed in a wide spectrum of musical and cultural influences—from traditional Irish folk music on his mother’s side to the ancient melodies of the Middle East.
He describes his unique style as Falafel Pop—a playful blend of folk, jazz, flamenco, and world music, infused with emotional depth and spontaneity. On stage, Mike crafts intimate and evocative soundscapes using his guitar, voice, and loop station as his main instruments. Each live performance is an immersive journey, where improvisation plays a key role and ancient sounds, sometimes even jokingly “from Atlantis,” might make an appearance.
Together with his sister, he forms the band KAYAM, a project that explores experimental and soulful musical expressions. After studying Jazz Guitar in Cologne—where improvisation was central to his education—Mike has toured extensively across Europe and Latin America, performing solo and in collaborative settings.
His discography includes albums like Minutes Made Of Years (2024), Live in Spain (2021), and Live in Mexico EP (2022), which showcase his emotional range and technical finesse. The guitar is at the heart of his artistry, and that’s why Mike trusts instruments that allow him to explore sound freely—with warmth, clarity, and soul.
admira: What inspires you to make your Falafel-Pop music?
Mike: I’m trying to find that out myself haha. I think it’s a combination of many things, and mainly its playing music with other people and expressing difficult feelings.
admira: What do you look for when choosing a guitar?
Mike: Mainly that it’s comfortable to play and that I like the sound of it. Also that it inspires me to play.
admira: What would you like to highlight from the admira Bulería-ECF, Flamenco Series?
Mike: That it’s comfortable to play, it has a bright sound which is good for flamenco and also I like that it has a cutaway which suits my style of playing.
admira: Giving free rein to your imagination, what would your ideal guitar that doesn’t exist yet be like?
Mike: Probably a triple neck guitar with one for bass, one for electric guitar sound and one with nylon strings. But that would probably be uncomfortable to play and too heavy lol. So a nylon string with a good amount of bass for the Kick drum sound when playing percussion on the wood, that would be great.
admira: Tell us, what projects do you have on the agenda for 2025?
Mike: Releasing a few new songs, and recording an EP with some ancient Hebrew prayers. Also going on Tour with my sister in May and hopefully playing some shows with my favourite musicians in Barcelona!
