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2007-04-18
7:30PM
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"Sofia is a very gifted Latin American singer. She knows how to combine the best of her Argentinian roots with the skills and passion necessary to make many contributions to our music community."
- Danilo Perez
"Ojala is a very fine debut from an extremely talented singer, composer and arranger (...) a unique, very attractive and extremely seductive recording"
-All About Jazz |
[ Complete Show Schedule... ] |
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FEATURING:
Sofia Koutsovitis - vocals
Dan Blake - soprano sax
Leo Genovese - piano
Jorge Roeder - bass
Richie Barshay - drums
Jorge perez Albela - percussion |
SOFIA KOUTSOVITIS belongs to a new generation of musicians who imaginatively explore the connection between jazz and contemporary music and the rich musical traditions of South America. An active vocalist, composer and arranger, her primary musical project to date, the Sofia Koutsovitis Group, is grounded in traditional South American rhythms such as chacarera and zamba from Argentina, Afro-peruvian festejo and lando and various Brazilian genres that merge organically with sophisticated harmonies and exploratory improvisations. Singing in Spanish, Portuguese or English, Sofia's voice is alternately graceful and authoritative in interpreting her dynamic original compositions or her own innovative arrangements of pieces by Latin American composers such as Silvio Rodriguez, Astor Piazolla, Paulinho da Viola, and Chabuca Granda.
Sofia grew up in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She started her musical studies at the age of 4 and began singing professionally in the prestigious Children's Choir of Buenos Aires Opera House Teatro Colón when she was 9 years old. She studied classical vocal performance at the National Conservatory and gained experience within the circles of classical and avant-garde music, performing in the most distinguished halls of Buenos Aires.
In 2001, incited by her desire to learn vocal improvisation techniques and composition, she moved to Boston to pursue a Master's Degree at the New England Conservatory, where she studied with Danilo Perez, Dominique Eade, Charlie Banacos, Bob Moses and Steve Lacy. Sofia has also been invited to take part in the international 'Betty Carter Jazz Ahead' institute, a program designed to promote emerging jazz composers, and in 2005 her music was featured during a residency at the 2005 Aspen Jazz Academy, directed by Christian McBride.
Currently a resident of New York City, since making the move in 2005, Sofia has become a very active member of the new Jazz and Latin American music scene. She is the lead vocalist of several music projects that involve Jazz, experimental music, tango, Afro-Peruvian, Afro-Colombian, Brazilian and Argentine music collaborating with musicians and groups such as Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, Geoffrey Keezer’s Aurea, Aquiles Baez ,Lionel Loueke, Pablo Mayor- Folklore Urbano. Alcatraz and Pablo Aslan’s Avantango. Sofia has toured Europe, North and South America singing at renowned international jazz and world music festivals and venues such as Aspen/Snowmass Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, the Blue Note (NYC), the Chicago World Music Festival, the International Jazz en Lima Festival (Peru) and the Festival de Jazz de Barcelona. Her debut album OJALA has received great critical acclaim and has been chosen a top 10 album of 2006 by the Jazz Journalists Association.
www.sofiamusic.com |
