BATAGUA mixes brasilian, afro-latino et hispanic sounds
Singing, dreaming, dancing poems created by famous latino-american poets or written by Marie Abela herself, rooted in latino-american culture… Poems inspired by love, life and death, prayers to the moon and to the earth… Musical ideas have germinated to open a new expressive horizon and identity to these compositions, integrating a sustained rhythmic bringing to dance.
This project is the result of the meeting of the dancing singer Marie Abela who composes music rooted in american poetry, and the bassist and arranger Percy Louis
Marie Abela started performing at only 19 years old in a group whose concerts were real shows in two acts, with rock and acid jazz influences. At the same time, she studied sociology, dance and took singing courses. She carried on with a year at a jazz school (C.I.M), learnt music theory at the conservatoire, vocal jazz with Laurence Saltiel and Marc Murphy, and bettered herself with a singer from the Opéra de Paris. While singing reggae in Woloff, she created her own songbook of jazz standards, performing in parisian coffee bars as well as in famous hotels in Mauritius. In TV shows, she accompanied spanish actress Victoria Abril and rock/world musician Geoffrey Oryema.
During 3 years, she was a chorist and dancer in a salsa band. At the same period, she sang afro-cuban songs in Yruba as well as « son » with Mosquito. She then came back to pop-rock music, recording with Melocoton. During 2 years, she travelled betwen Paris and south of France and formed a duet with Didier Gambino, singing latin-american songs. Since 3 years, she is a writer and composer. She also deepens her work in the « chant dansé » (dancing singing) approach, based on flamenco and modern dance.Percy Louis: Born in Mauritius, he started with percussion before specialising in bass (5 years at the conservatoire). His influences are diverse including jazz, classical and world musics. The special touch of his playing is the reflect of his will to find the “sound” in his rhythmic and solos: that's what he defines as the personalisation of its identity work. He impacted a lot the quality of the tone of the various bands he worked with: PERCO BB (salsa band), Nemla, Nosfell, Lando. Today, he leads his own jazz trio (Quatro cento) and is Bat'agua's music director. On TV, he accompanies such famous artistes as MC Solaar, Corneille, Kelly Joyce, Zucchero, Lionel Ritchie and Henri Salvador. Since 3 years, he plays with Ray Lema, performing trios with Francis Lassus (drums) and performing with Chico Cesar (Brazil).
“ Share the adventure“ Experiences 2007, July: opening for Yuri Buenaventura , Agde festival, south of France 2008, March: concert at the Théâtre des 3 Vallées, in Palaiseau, near Paris 2008, August: La nuit des Arts, Agde 2008, October: l'Antirouille Montpellier/France
Espace Culturel Jean Carmet in Étampes,Paris
..Première partie de Yuri Buenaventura, Festival d'Agde Um dia
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