Far from the denial of cultural differences, vocalist Marisol Echegoyen revels in them. A daughter of Mexico was has embraced the music of her own country and those within Latin America as well as genres like Jazz and Rap from the United States, pointing out the differences and the characteristics of each is what enabled Marisol to become such a diverse musical artist. Anyone in the “business” of the arts these days will tell you that keeping your international game strong means longevity and higher dividends, not that this motivates someone like Ms. Echegoyen.
Still, singers whose stylings span authentic Peruvian music to Big Band Jazz and modern R&B are a rare find. You’ll find Marisol singing on a ProgRock album (Herd of Bison), fronting the band Balam for which she sings in indigenous languages like Nahuatl (Balam’s debut record was produced by Alex Leiva who has worked with multiple Grammy Winning artists like Wynton Marsalis), and performing children’s music to a capacity crowd of more than a thousand; because the unexpected is what ignites her superb creative engine.
Watching Marisol perform is akin to witnessing a history lesson of female vocalists. The vocal technique of Sarah Vaughan, the emotion of Aretha Franklin, the exciting performative style of Beyoncé, the creativity of Ella Fitzgerald, the authenticity of Consuelo Velazquez, the eloquence of Magos Herrera; all these influences have taken root in Echegoyen’s own style. Of course, this powerful combination of traits is distilled through the presence of this modest sized Mexican woman who projects a larger than life charisma on the stage.
Being true to herself while accepting the positive contributions of the great female vocalists who have come before her is part of what makes Marisol such an intriguing performer. She knows who she is and can respect the contributions of other artists and genres, using them as a means to offer her own style.
Echegoyen communicates, “I’d say that as an artist from a Latin country, I am very appreciative of music from my culture. I take great pride in calling myself a Latin woman, and this is reflected in my music. I’ve found that Americans are quite appreciative of traditional music from other countries as they are with their own music which makes it easier getting across to American audiences. This makes me want to showcase myself and my culture as a proud Latin woman.
I am honored to have been raised in a country with such a rich culture and heritage as Mexico. Latin music has definitely been a critical component of my growth as a singer and has had a huge impact on my style as a vocalist. I am hugely influenced by Latin artists and while I enjoy multiple genres of music, I never forget my roots and my heritage.”
The sharing of musical influences and ideas between the United States and Latin American/South American countries has been a source of focus for Marisol. Musicians have long shared this borderless kinship and Ms. Echegoyen is happy to be recognized as this generation’s proponent.
In highly regarded concerts like Diva Latinas in Boston where she sang and rapped in a celebration of female Latin singers, her US performances as the singer for multiple Grammy Winner Oscar Stagnaro’s group Peru Mestizo, or her work with saxophonist Justo Almario performing at the Auditorio Blas Galindo in Mexico City, Marisol is acclaimed for her originality and simultaneous ability to blur the lines of demarcation musically while also possessing an authenticity.
At a memorable live recording concert event in the renowned city of Boston for Can’t Stop Singing that Song! Celebrating the music of Aline Shader, Marisol sang the music of this beloved composer to a capacity crowd of approximately 1,200. Echegoyen recalls, “The audience was great and it was very engaging! It was definitely a big performance and there was a lot of joy in the songs.
The audience would sing along and for those who were new to the music of Aline Shader there were the full lyrics of a song in the program.” It’s a joyous vision to think of a world in which thousands could gather to sing songs together and witness talent from other countries perform. It’s a world we all hope to see again soon, none more so than such prominent artists such as Marisol Echegoyen.
Writer: Arlen Gann