Afra Kane Dreaming of Being Whole
Pianist and vocalist Afra Kane celebrates her arrival at Warner Music Germany with the release of a new album, “Could We Be Whole”. With musical roots in gospel, classical music, jazz and Italian as well as Francophone pop music, she has plenty of influences to draw from – and she does so to stunningly original and category-defying effect. It was produced by Kane herself, together with her long-time creative partner Christophe Farine.
Born to Nigerian parents in Vicenza, Afra Kane found herself captivated by the music of Chopin long before she became a teenager. Whilst studying at the conservatory of her home town, she also discovered Etta James, Marvin Gaye and Aretha Franklin. “In classical music, the focus was on faultless interpretation,” she says. “With soul music, I was able to express my feelings without in any way having to think of technique.” After an unfortunate detour to Cardiff where her fellow students showed zero interest in her ideas, a move to Neuchatel liberated her talents. Winning the solo category at the “Montreux Jazz Talent Award” (with Stanley Clarke, Chilly Gonzales and Chucho Valdés in the jury), gave her the confidence, at last, to follow her muse without compromise.
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