Gaby Moreno

Interview with Lancaster Online

By JON FERGUSON, Special to the Sunday News
Gaby Moreno and her family traveled to New York City from their home in Guatemala during a vacation when she was 13 years old.

It wasn't the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building or Times Square that stopped the teenager in her tracks; it was a black woman singing on the street.

"I had never heard anything like it, and I was hypnotized by that sound," said Moreno, a singer-songwriter. "I waited until she finished her song and I asked her what that style was that she was singing.

"She replied, 'That's the blues, kid.'"

When she returned to her home in Guatemala City, Moreno made a trip to the record store and bought a bunch of blues compilations. She returned home, locked herself in her room and soaked up the sounds of B.B. King, Muddy Waters and Koko Taylor.

Up until that time, Moreno, who started singing when she was 7, had been listening to American and Latin pop, opera and Broadway musicals.

Though she didn't become a blues belter, Moreno did incorporate that distinctly American music into her array of musical influences.

And those blues records convinced Moreno to chart a path as a professional musician.

"Probably all those blues records that I was listening to constantly inspired me so greatly that I wanted to find a way to leave my country in Guatemala at some point, go to the U.S. and begin a musical career. They definitely inspired me to play the guitar and write some songs."

Moreno — who moved to Los Angeles in 2001, when she was 19 — will perform Wednesday night at York's Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center as the opening act for Ani DiFranco.

Joined on stage by Sebastian Aymanns on drums and Leslie Lowe on bass, Moreno will perform songs from her strong debut album, "Still the Unknown," which she independently released in 2008.

The album, on which she sings mostly in English but does slip in a couple of Spanish-language numbers, luxuriates in the depth of her musical influences, including pop, jazz, Latin, folk and, of course, the blues.

Vocally, she resembles Norah Jones, but there's more grit, a more rough-around-the-edges approach to her singing. Moreno, who counts Nina Simone, the Boswell Sisters, Harry Nilsson and Edith Piaf among her primary influences, has more of a jazz singer's sensibility.

Perhaps a byproduct of her fascination with the blues is a resolute attempt in many of her songs to get at the truth of relationships. She never flinches.

"I write about relationships, about feelings of love, of despair, of joy, of solitude," Moreno said. "About social and political matters. Not all my songs are autobiographical."

Moreno said she remembers writing songs when she was a child but didn't start to take it seriously until she was a teenager.

She knew she was starting to get good at it when people started reacting to her songs.

"I realize it with the compliments and kind words I receive," she said. "That's what fuels me and the reason why I'm doing this. I want to move people with my music."

She said she usually starts by fooling around with some chords on the guitar until she comes up with a melody. The lyrics, she said, always come last.

Though she doesn't keep a journal, Moreno said she does jot down English words and phrases she hears.

"English is not my first language, so I always like to learn new words that way," she said. "Write them down and then I may use them in a song."

At this point, Moreno is an independent artist who can't help but learn about the business of music from DiFranco, queen of the do-it-yourself ethic.

Without a record company backing her, Moreno has been able to release an album and tour with DiFranco this year and last, and with Tracy Chapman last summer. Her touring has been limited, but she hopes to get out on the road more this year.

"All I know is that without any label or booking agent, I put out a record on my own and opened for Tracy Chapman and Ani DiFranco last year," she said. "I'm proud to say I was able to do it completely independent. That's not to say that I would disregard a label offer. The support that a label can give you, if it's the right one, can be tremendous.

"I'm just happy to say that I'm able to make the music that I love, have the creative control and still manage to land some amazing opportunities."

Gaby Moreno will take the stage at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 3, ahead of Ani DiFranco at Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center, 50 N. George St.,