Marlies -

musical upbringing
I started singing when I was only a little girl. During my youth I played in a couple of cover bands. This was fun at the time, but I was still searching for something that made me tick.
Then I heard my first Ojos the Brujo album. Bang! It didn't leave my CD-player for months! I had already developed some interest for Brazilian and Spanish music, but this simply was the perfect blend of traditional and modern styles.
I took singing lessons (Simin Tander) and did a flamenco course. I even took up Spanish and Portuguese lessons, and developed the language even more on a four-month trip to Central America. In 2005 I put together some songs I would really love to sing and gathered a couple of musicians to start playing them. That was actually the beginning of what is now Raffa.

I, musician
The greatest thing to watch is a musician performing music with his or her entire body. The passion and fun should simply burst from the stage. If that's the case, I can even enjoy music that I wouldn't normally listen to.
Now, I also look for music to put emotion into. Strangely enough, it works best in Spanish or Portuguese. But then again, the Spanish language is filled with fire, whereas Portuguese is much softer. Even when it is just being spoken, there's already a song in it. Combined, these two languages provide me with a broad range of sound colours, giving me the possibility to travel in many directions emotionally.

musical influences
Ojos de Brujo, Sara Tavares, Basily, Mayra Andrade, Richard Bona, Michel Camilo, Luzazul, Martírio, Lhasa, Miguel Angel Cortés, Teitur.