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A Cyber-Chat with Vocalist, Composer Jessie Marquez TP: Congratulations on your debut release, "Sana Locura." What is the significance of the title?
JM: The title comes from a bolero that was composed for me by
Jorge Perez Pena. Sana Locura describes love. However, it loses
something in the translation. It could mean sane madness or healthy
abandon, however, neither of these descriptions seem to have the
same poetic quality . . . "Sana Locura" also describes the spirit
in which the recording was made. It was a personal and creative leap
of faith.
TP: Tell me about your formative years in
Oregon and how you gravitated toward Cuban music.
JM: We left San Juan, Puerto Rico when I was about four years old
and moved to Eugene, Oregon (my mother grew up in Portland, Oregon).
For the first few years we lived in an old farmhouse on the
outskirts of town. I still have very vivid images of that house and
of singing and dancing on my parent's bed, demanding their applause.
When I was eight years old, my parents divorced and my mother and
I moved to San Francisco. She became good friends with a bohemian
group of artists and performers. I had a number of "aunties" in the
group and one of them was Margaret Burke, a young, beautiful and
talented singer from the Midwest who taught me how to accompany
myself on the guitar. I had a repertoire of folk, country, blues and
spirituals that I sang at parties. I moved back to Eugene (Oregon)
when I was eleven to live with my father, stepmother and baby
brothers. I performed in a community theater, danced and sang in the
high school jazz choir.
I was sixteen when I finished high school. I struck out on my own
and lived in San Francisco, Barcelona and later New York where I
studied at New York University. I graduated with honors from New
York University and was on my way to becoming an anthropologist. In
fact, I was awarded an internship by a professor from the University
of Mexico to document the indigenous culture in Merida, Mexico.
Before departing, I went home to work during the summer and save
some money. Then I met my husband, Donnie, became pregnant with my
first son and abandoned my academic plans. I was twenty three when
my son, Samuel was born. My second son, Jackson, was born three and
half years later. When Sammy was a baby, I enrolled in some dance
classes. One day, one of the conga players from the class told me
the salsa group he was playing with was seeking a vocalist. I tried
out and began signing with the band. I sang with the bandleader,
Furnell Lupez and his group for a number of years. He incorporated
me into a six-piece folkloric group called "Lo Nuestro," with
musicians from Mexico and Peru. Despite the fact that I had not
played the guitar he encouraged me to pick it up again and taught me
how to play Cuban son, bolero, joropo, son huasteco, son veracruzano,
cumbias, plenas, etc. We played at parties, festivals, clubs,
schools, parks, libraries and correctional facilities. The guys in
that band are like brothers to me.
Not long after I began singing with the salsa band (1996), I accompanied my father to Cuba to visit his boyhood home. He grew up in La Lisa, which used to be the countryside outside of Havana. It was a profound experience for me, seeing Cuba through my father's eyes. It felt deeply familiar. The gestures of the people, their attitude and sensibilities . . . Something resonated in me that I wanted to develop and express. After that, I knew I wanted to sing Cuban music.
TP: Your grandmother had a major influence
on you both musically and politically. In fact, you dedicated Sana
Locura to your grandmother . . .
My grandmother, Nani, and I were very close. My parents
would drop me off at her house on Friday evenings and the two of us
would spend quality time together. She was a tremendous cook, well
versed in Italian, Spanish and Cuban cuisine. She taught me how to
read Spanish and sew. She told me stories about her family's
"Speakeasy" in Brooklyn and how beautiful the Cuban countryside was.
There is a particular place in Cuba she called "her valley." She
said it was the most beautiful place she has ever seen. I pay homage
to my grandmother every day.
TP: Another individual who has a
significant influence on you is Angel Ervira Herrera, the musical
director and voice instructor with Conjunto Folklorico Nacional. I
found her description of your vocal style very humourous. She
described you as a "white woman who sings like a black girl . . ."
Obviously, she was making reference to the soulful quality of your voice . . . JM: Yes, maybe what she means is that I sing from my heart. Angela has been a wonderful teacher and Madrina (Godmother) to me. Furthermore, she has opened a lot of pathways for me.
TP: Let's discuss the making of Sana
Locura. One journalist described the recording as "the culmination
of your search for your cultural identity" and "the fullest
expression of whom you are and who you want to be." Would you say
that is an accurate assessment of why you chose to make this
recording?
JM: I think those are fairly accurate statements. However, the story doesn't end there. My cultural identity will probably continue to grow, change and deepen depending on the circumstances in my life. But, certainly this CD is an expression of a part of my cultural history and my own will to create myself.
TP: You traveled to Cuba in 2003 to
lay the groundwork for Sana Locura then returned to Oregon to raise
funds for travel expenses, the recording sessions, etc. You returned
to Cuba in 2004 to record the album. During your stay you interacted
with some of the finest musicians in Cuba. What are your most vivid
recollections of the recording sessions and/or your visit to Cuba?
JM: My most vivid memories are of the time we spent in the
studio drinking rum, eating pork fricase and congri, telling jokes,
the sound of La Charanga Habanera streaming in through the windows.
We worked long hours for over a month but we had good time.
TP: Judging from the results the
long hours payed off. The repertoire consists of twelve colorful
tracks that run the (Cuban) musical gamut: one guajira, five boleros
or bolero combinations, two guagancos, two trovas, one son-timba and
one salsa tune. Moreover, you composed "Dile Que Me Voy" and "La
Muchacha Bailadora." The album has a beautiful flow. Who selected
the material and arranged the material?
JM: I selected the songs and Juan Carlos Marin arranged all
the music. Juan Carlos, David Alfaro and Julito Padrun produced the
music. I naively thought a label would be interested in doing all
the mixing, mastering, artwork, licensing, etc. However, I soon
found out that things don't work that way. So, I did it all myself.
As things turned out I am glad it worked out that way. I learned a
lot in the process.
TP: What recording and/or recordings are you listening to as we speak?
JM: Let's see, there's Maraca, Celeste Mendoza, Billie
Holiday, Isaac Delgado, Merceditas Valdes . . .
TP: Who are some of your favorite
musical artists - past and present?
JM: In no particular order: those I mentioned previously
and Benny More, Elena Burke, Ella Fitzgerald, Maria Teresa Vera,
Marvin Gaye, Sierra Maestra, Jill Scott, Celia Cruz, Celina
Gonzales, Omara Portuondo, Etta James, Armando Garzun, Gonzalo
Rubalcaba, Jacqueline Castellanos, Issac Delgado, Olga Guillot, La
Sonora Matanzera, La Sonora Poncena, Robert Johnson, La Lupe, Haila,
Cubanismo, Stevie Wonder, Pablo Milanes, Ruben Blades, Aretha
Franklin and Charles Mingus.among many others!
TP: It has been a pleasure speaking
with you. Best of luck with Sana Locura.
For additional information on Jessie
Marquez and Sana Locura visit:
www.sanalocura.com
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