Over the past year, the London Lucumi Choir have been preparing their third album dedicated to the Orishas Oshun and Obatala. Recording is a learning experience and working with different engineers and in different locations and studios has also been very enlightening. One of the difficulties in recording has always been the fact that many engineers panic when it comes to the addition of drums. Being a Choir also that does not stick to a click track, where the build up of energy is vital and where the songs we sing comes from a living spiritual tradition, it has been very difficult to find engineers who truly understand the genre.
This was until I took the London Lucumi Choir who came with me to Nottingham to join with the Axis Orisha Singers and the Axis Percussion Trio. Richard Kensington introduced me to an amazing space in Nottingham. It is a recording studio in an old cinema called Paper Stone Studios. Paper Stone Studios in Nottingham
There, a very laid back Sound Engineer, Huw Jones set us up, spent an hour with the Percussion, adding screens so the percussion did not spill over. We recorded two numbers, completely live. No overdubs. The experience was incredibly simple and uncomplicated. This was in comparison to our experience in London, where the engineer panicked at the thought of recording us live. We recording Semi-live in London, and it was a long drawn out process and there was significantly more mixing and tweeking to be done. The tracks in comparison recorded in Nottingham did not need much mixing. Moral of the story. Find a good venue to record in, big enough to accommodate the whole choir and the drums. An engineer who can work with the set up and lots and lots of enthusiasm, which we had in abundance!
Very happy with the Experience, photo credit Hugh Miller!
I am a London based Iyalosha, ( Priest in the Lucumi tradition) crowned with Ochun; who is passionate about the arts
I Grew up in London, mixed background, third generation musician. I went to study music in Cuba in 1986, since then I have done many things. I was one of the first Salsa Dance Teachers in London in 1989, before it became the sport of a million suburban housewives; formed Orchestra Salsa Y Ache in late 80's, toured and did many gigs for seven years; then formed Salsasonica which recorded with Buena Vista's Guajiro Mirabal. I have taught Cuban Music to children. I have also organised five musical trips to Cuba. I Have written about Latin Music, and I am passionate about singing and encouraging everyone to sing. I formally ran "singing for the terrified" at the Mary Ward Centre, in addition to a world music choir.
I formed the London Lucumi Choir in 2006 which has performed all over the UK, in major theatres such as the Barbican, the Southbank and Union Chapel, Rich Mix, The British Museum and the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall. In addition, we have performed at festivals such as La Linea and Bestival. We have performed on Radio and Television and have
consistently been nominated in the Lukas awards, where we were second in our category in 2018 ( for contribution to Latin Music and Arts).
I Have been a practitioner of Santeria, also known as Lucumi since 1986. Between the years 1991 and 2005 I received My Elekes, Warriors and Olokun. In 2005 I
received my Ikofafun ( Ifa) and on February 9 2006 I became initiated as a Priestess of Ochun in Luyano, Havana. My Branch of the religion is La Pimienta. I was born from Obatala and Yemaya. My Iyatobi Oshainle passed this year and Omi Laibo is my Ojubona. I received Pinardo with Baba Funke and Omi Saide in Havana in July 2018. I run an active Ile (religious house/Orisha temple)
In addition to running the Choir and guiding Godchildren in the Lucumi faith. I am also a diviner of the Dilogun. I enjoy spending time with my family. I have a passion for art and nature, good music, genealogy and travel. I enjoy writing, beading and embroidery, when I have the time!
PS I also have adhd which predicts that I will decorate the entire house with different colours every few years!
