Results for "Cross-Cultural Fusion"

LETIZIA GAMBI

Born in Naples, Letizia Gambi is an Italian singer, songwriter and actress who has a wide-ranging education. She has studied dancing, acting, singing, painting and musical theater.

Letizia Gambi’s music is Cross-cultural combination of her Neapolitan-Italian roots with the heritage of Black American Jazz. Her Mediterranean passion sings through Jazz's language in a contemporary, crossover, personal style.

She lived in New York, Los Angeles and now she is based in Miami and Milan (when she is in Italy).

Letizia began dancing lessons at age eleven, attended art school at thirteen and began showcasing her art and winning awards for her paintings when she was fourteen . At fifteen, she began traveling to London, in the summer, to study musical theater. Continuing to dance, she became a dance instructor and choreographer at a very young age, while continuing to sing and act. She studied acting and worked as an actress. Finally, because of her great love and passion for music, she auditioned for the International Jazz Academy in Milan, out of 60 people who auditioned, she was one of only seven who was accepted into the program.
She studied for four years and became an assistant to the vocal professor in her fifth, "Master Year.” Letizia graduated with a Masters Degree in Jazz Vocal Performance.

Jonathan Suazo

Born: July 8, 1989

Jonathan Suazo is an award-winning saxophonist, composer, and cultural seeder who utilizes music to shine a light on elements of his Puerto Rican and Dominican roots. Jonathan was named one of the top ten emerging Jazz artists of 2023 by the GRAMMYS and his debut album “Ricano” (Ropeadope Records) was listed as one of the best Jazz albums of 2023 by The New York Times.

​A Berklee Global Jazz Institute graduate (M.M), he’s received many honors including the 2024 Chamber Music America New Jazz Works Grant, The WBUR Makers Series Award for generating impact in the Boston's community, The Winter 2023 South Arts Jazz Road Tours Grant, and the Berklee Urban Service Award for using the arts to bring awareness about the needs of the Puerto Rican people during hurricane Maria and supporting humanitarianism. Jonathan has also served as a grant reviewer for organizations like New Music USA and Mid Atlantic.
 
Catalina Maria Johnson of Downbeat Jazz Mag describes his music as “a soundscape propelled by lyrical sax playing” and Giovanni Rusonnello from the New York Times describes his music as “richly built, written from the heart and packed with complexity, always seeking the next level of altitude.”