sophye soliveau

Thursday, January 9, 2025

Le Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street NYC (French Quarter Artist Showcase)

With Aja Monet & Victor's Herbie Nichols SUNG

FRIDAY, January 10, 2025, 10:30 pm

APPEARING @ MANHATTAN MARATHON AT THE BITTER END (French Quarter Artist Showcase)

Sophye Soliveau is a singer, harpist and choir director. Her love of Afro-American music, from R’n’b to soul to gospel, took root in her childhood, and she deepened her skills through classical training. Her first album, INITIATION, is the result of the detour that nourishes her improvisations, the search for healing and the learning of freedom. A spirited celebration of voluptuous R’n’b.

Sophye’s creations, written and composed mainly at night, emerge from the need to transcend her sorrows and share the emotions that run through her. She celebrates joy and explores trance, always in search of an intense, immersive sonic experience, whether solo, in a trio or sextet, or as part of the group Ábàjade , an 8Tet of jazz fusion and Cuban tradition, in which she recently made her mark.

Passionate about vocal harmony, from Francis Poulenc to Angie Stone and Rachelle Ferrell, Sophye puts her voice to work as an instrument in its own right. She has directed or still directs vocal ensembles: the Oshun choir, a vocal collective of professional female singers united around a project of original arrangements on a soulful repertoire; and Maré Mananga, an Afrofeminist choir exploring Afro-diasporic repertoires. Collective creation, improvisation and the involvement of the body in the work of voice and music are the very essence of her approach with the different ensembles.