Born January 23, 1960, in Tucson, Arizona, Michael X. Alvarez was always encouraged by his mother to learn the music dear to her heart. So, at the age of 10, he began to learn classical and flamenco guitar from a passionate Spaniard named Carlos Davila who performed flamenco guitar at local venues. Carlos agreed to teach Michael privately in his home. Michael developed a love for finger picking that would serve him well when he transitioned to bass in the band’s later years. 

In elementary school, Michael formed his first singing group with a few classmate girls who wanted to sing while he played the guitar. As he was the only instrumentalist, he named the group The Vocal Chords. They learned songs from the Beatles to Burt Bacharach, the 5th Dimension, Brasil 66 to the Association. In his early teens, Michael was drawn to the flavor and sounds of Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass. He convinced his parents to buy him his first trumpet which allowed him to enroll in the school band. When he moved to La Verne, CA, he found jazz offered a new challenge of playing as part of a horn section. With the support of his uncle Joe, a Jazz trumpeter and club performer, Michael was determined to become a soloist. In 1978, he found himself in the award-winning Bonita High School Jazz Band. It was here he met like-minded music enthusiasts and now life-long friends. They became the first high school jazz group to win both the Monterey Jazz Festival and the Reno International Jazz Festival within the same year. It was especially gratifying for Michael as he was a featured trumpet soloist on the jazz number, “I Remember You”. 

Michael wasn’t part of the original Thin Ice initially formed to compete in the 1977 Hollywood Bowl Battle of the Bands. It was the group’s second place finish in this event that caught the attention of Gene Iacono. Gene convinced the young band that under his direction and management they could reach new musical heights and success, but a change was necessary to form the right chemistry for such a journey.  Michael offered a combination of talent that resonated with the group’s new vision. His trumpet style complemented their solid sax player for delivering punchy horn parts. He also brought his talent as a singer, guitar player, and in later years, a bass player. 

While in Thin Ice, Michael helped Gene run his new music store, aptly named The Music Store, with adjoining recording studio. He later made the move to the musical instrument wholesale industry. For the next 16 years, Michael developed various lines of nationally distributed musical instruments including guitar lines Sebring Electrics & WindRose and Ashland Acoustics, as well as other music products. 

After Thin Ice, Michael continued playing bass and singing for several years with a Christian worship music group. In 1995, Michael married the love of his life, Kita Pawlak and now has 4 children and 7 grandchildren.