Amsterdam-based award winning singer Raquel Kurpershoek Jaldón (born in 1998) is still relatively new to the international music scene. But this will soon change.

 

Raquel pursued studies in Cuban, Brazilian, and Indian music at Codarts (University of the Arts in Rotterdam) and, through studied flamenco singing at the Rafael Orozco Conservatory of Music in Córdoba (Spain). Additionally, she has dedicated herself to studying sign language. Her autobiographical documentary, "Traslasierra," released in 2020, explores the relationship of deaf people to (flamenco) music and the fusion of these two worlds, earning numerous awards in Spain.

 

Following the 2021 EP "Mil Cosas" (named after the Cuban bolero performed by Alberto Beltrán in 1957), Raquel Kurpershoek's first collection of original compositions, "Nizami," was released in the autumn of 2022. Produced with support from Rotterdam foundation Droom en Daad and Nijmegen’s Music Meeting, the album is a tribute full of autobiographical symbolism inspired by the work "The 7 wise princesses" of Persian author and philosopher Nizami Ganjavi. The songs are a collaboration between Raquel, Spanish guitarist Alejandro Hurtado, and Dutch percussionist Danny Rombouts. 

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On stage, Raquel narrates these stories through various musical styles - with a flamenco touch. She celebrates the diverse ways of experiencing love, encompassing

aspects of fragility, exploration, friendship, desire, joy, and sorrow.