Gino Sitson is a Cameroonian who is considered a jazz singer, yet sings mostly in his native Bamileke language. His phrasing reminds one of Bobby McFerrin or Al Jarreau.
He is the only singer incorporating indigenous African polyphonic technique into the jazz vocal tradition, and not only that, his musical, as opposed to lyrical, compositions constantly plays with both traditions.
While living in France, major musical names like Manu Dibango, Jorge Ben, Papa Wemba, Ray Lema and John Williams all employed him to take a lead singing role in their projects.
Gino Sitson moved to New York City in 2001.
Discography
Vocal Deliria
Song Zin’… Vocadelic Tales (2000)
Bamisphere, with Ron Carter (Polyvocal Records, 2005).
Way to Go (Alessa Records, 2009)
Listen – Vocal Deliria II (Buda Musique, 2013)
VoiStrings (Buda Musique, 2013)
Body & Voice (Buda Musique, 2016)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
