Rebeca Vallejo´s Interview at Spain Culture NY

We met in a lovely little bistro at West Village to discuss and try to understand REBECA VALLEJO's unique music style.
Santiago Alcanda, from the Spanish newspaper El Mundo (Spain), defines her as "... A brave and growing creator, daughter of Andalusians who reinvents herself in the big apple, soaked in funk, bossa-nova, soul, jazz and flamenco sounds".

Let's see, WHAT DO PEOPLE SAY ABOUT YOU?
I think my music falls under the label of WORLD MUSIC. It has a base in Jazz, but you can definitively hear my Flamenco origins and the very, very strong influence of my passion for Brazilian music..., it is a really personal style. Maybe Jazz World Music Fusion, or Jazz Flamenco Brazilian Fusion would be more adequate labels to what I do: JAZZ is my guiding map, FLAMENCO comes out strong in my rhythms and the melodies are influenced by BRAZILIAN MUSIC. There is a good balance of sounds.
She was born in Madrid, Spain, into a family of singers that immersed her in Flamenco. She discovered Jazz in Great Britain and Brazilian Music in New York. Rebeca Vallejo's life has led her across several continents and infused her music with an awareness and UNDERSTANDING OF A MULTITUDE OF CULTURES.
My new album fits this definition, and has a lot of original material. My first album also contained original material but the sounds were far away from my flamenco origins and closer to funk and pop, with a very strong Brazilian element... During the recording of the second album I was studying Jazz so most of the songs are Jazz Standards that I arranged in my own personal way.

HOW DO YOU MANAGE LIVING BETWEEN SPAIN AND NEW YORK? OR SHOULD I SAY BETWEEN AMERICA AND EUROPE?
I try to expand and project my music as much as possible. I will be launching the new album on both sides of the Ocean, through Festival Circuits in Summer and Spring. But I think the style of music that I do probably resonates a little bit more with the European audiences, especially because of my Spanish origins. I believe that the concept WORLD MUSIC is still quite new for Americans. You will be able to hear my new album on iTunes, Pandora or my website!

Rebeca Vallejo's career has certainly expanded on BOTH SITES OF THE OCEAN. She has performed in some of the most prestigious jazz and world fusion clubs in NYC, such as Zinc Bar or DROM; Participated at JamNoMan at the Contemporary Art Museum in Salvador, BRAZIL; In Cuba she lead an all-star band with musicians from Chucho Valdes's band; in WASHINGTON DC she was showcased as backing vocals to Gospel Grammy award winners Yolanda Adams and Dorinda Clark for "Unveiling of Sojourner Truth's bust at the United Stated Capitol"; Rebeca also toured extensively through Belgium with "EuroLatinJazz's summer 2008". In Berlin she performed at the legendary club B-Flat.

YOU HAVE BEEN LIVING IN NEW YORK SINCE 2000, WHAT BROUGHT YOU HERE?
I wanted to become a JAZZ SINGER and that's why I came to NYC. I'm a very ambitious person and I wanted to be the best singer I could be. So I decided to train myself in one of the most difficult styles... When I was living in Great Britain I heard an Ella Fitzgerald CD and I thought to myself, "That's it! I need to become a Jazz Singer!"
I believe that to learn a certain style of music, you have to go where this music grows. Music is not just "the study of the notes", you have to breathe and live the life of where the style of music developed. For this reason, if I wanted to become a jazz musician I had to come to live in NY. And after a while living as NEW YORKER, you can sing as a New Yorker as well.
Everybody comes here looking for something, looking for themselves, seeking a unique experience. And New York gives you that, and 1000 times more than you expected. Not all is good, though! But you learn some very important lessons in life!

TELL ME YOUR MAGIC PLACE AT THE CITY:
New York is a city of CONTRASTS. Within two seconds you can have two opposite sides of life in front of your face. For example, in this fast, loud and crazy city you can find a lot of little OASES, in the middle of the jungle. And I love those Oases, and always try to find them. One of these magical places is Bryant Park: when you are sitting on the grass, looking at the sky, relaxing and Zen-ing, you can't imagine all the madness that is happening in the buildings and streets around you.

AND TO FINISH THIS CONVERSATION, YOUR ADVICE FOR THE SPANISH PEOPLE THINKING ABOUT COMING TO THIS UNIQUE CITY:

NY is not a city, is a LIVING ENTITY, so you have to interact with it as if it were a person; you need to have some open-mindedness and you have to interact with NY with a good, positive attitude, with good karma. You have to learn how to go with the FLOW and you have to follow your instincts. Be welcoming to everything that NY can offer you, even if it is not so pleasant, because will bring you to wonderful conclusions.

Posted at Spain Culture New York, Consulate General of Spain in NY's website, on August 23th 2012: http://www.spainculturenewyork.org/beta/cms/mapping-the-arts/spanish-creators-in-ny/spanish-creators-detail/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=25&cHash=6718ac26a971febb945ce301d36f9a05