Gaby Moreno
María Gabriela Moreno Bonilla, professionally known as Gaby Moreno, is a Guatemalan singer-songwriter and guitarist. Her music ranges from blues, jazz, soul, to R&B. Moreno sings in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese.
She became known to broader audiences in Latin America after recording a song with Ricardo Arjona in 2011, called "Fuiste Tú". In 2013, she recorded covers of the popular songs "Kiss of Fire" and "The Weed Smoker's Dream" with Hugh Laurie for his album, Didn't It Rain. On numerous occasions beginning in October 2016, she performed with Chris Thile on Live From Here giving her greater recognition among American listeners. Some of her popular covers include "Amapola" and "No Soy El Aire".
Biography
María Gabriela Moreno Bonilla was born in Guatemala City on 16 December 1981.She has a Chihuahua-mix named Pepper, with whom she appeared in a PETA ad campaign, advocating for adoption rather than purchase of pets.
Moreno is a vegan.
Critical praise
's Ariana Morgernstern, producer of Morning Becomes Eclectic, featured Moreno in an October 2008 podcast and bestowed "Today's Top Tune" status on her song "Song of You." She said she was "caught by surprise with its organic and understated feel. She sings beautifully both in English and Spanish.NPR reviewed Moreno's debut record Still the Unknown and said: "Whether Moreno decides to stick with pop, soul or Latin for future releases, Still the Unknown is a promising debut that indicates she won't go unnoticed for much longer."
In 2006, she won the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest with her song "Escondidos," first in the Latin category, then overall.
In July 2010, Moreno was nominated with her co-writer Vincent Jones for an Emmy in the category of "Outstanding Main Title Theme Music" for their theme song to NBC's
Parks and Recreation.
In 2010, Moreno was awarded "Favorite American Latino Indie Artist" at the American Latino Awards.
2011:
- "Gaby Moreno's soulful vocals and ability to switch languages and genres have made her a rising star." – NPR All Things Considered
- "The Guatemalan songwriter Gaby Moreno plucked ragtimey syncopations on a well-worn acoustic guitar, and let loose a tangy, bluesy voice with the feistiness of Édith Piaf." – The New York Times
- "Moreno's breathtaking voice is passionate and stylistically malleable, as she glides back and forth easily between bossa nova and bluesy rock." – NPR Tiny Desk Concerts
- "This Guatemalan American singer-songwriter alternates fluidly between languages, whether spoken or musical, easing in and out of everything from folksy alt country to retro blues rock …Plucky, quirky and insightful, Moreno has the grace and the skill to make it big." – Rhapsody: No. 3 in Top 10 Latin Alt Albums of Spring 2011
- "Our little secret is neither little nor secret any more... Illustrated Songs, influences of soul and Spanish ballads explode in a synergy of musical pieces that impeccably represent a young artist with a rich, old soul" – Al Borde
- "I really fell in love with this record, because there is so much to her voice …her voice really stands out – very sweet and soulful … adapting to different genres of music … she can go from a dreamy/folksy, very laid back feel, to a tougher edge blast of R&B, to a song that reminds me of something from the 1920s...to a Brazilian bossa nova song that she sings in English and Spanish." – Felix Contreras, NPR's "Alt. Latino"
- "The Best Latin Music... Meet your next favorite from the Spanish-speaking world: Gaby Moreno, Old-School, soulful pop... Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone and Ella Fitzgerald are hard acts to follow, but Gaby Moreno takes her idols' signature bluesiness and marries it with a little Latin flare" – Latina
- "5 Latinos to Look Out for in 2012" – "Joan Smalls, Gaby Moreno, Jorge Garcia, Thomas Suarez and Mayra Alvarez will probably become household names in the months to come. Her new album, Illustrated Songs, was listed one of "The Best Latin Music Albums of 2011" by About.com, and she will be busy touring Europe, Latin America and the U.S. in 2012." – NBC Latino
- "The more a thing is stereotyped to death, the more refreshing it is to encounter the skilled reaffirmation of its ideal. With Guatemala-born, L.A.-based Gaby Moreno, it's the female singer-songwriter form that she has rescued from the abyss of cliché. She doesn't radically change its rules or anything – she just does it with a little more flavor and a lot more skill. And that's what separates her from typical coffeehouse fare. With an exceptionally rich and assured voice, and a palette that spans Latin, blues, folk, jazz and pop, she's a marquee talent. Her singing is effortlessly bright with purpose and not just a display of ostentatious acrobatics. In fact, there's something very classic about her expression. In her voice, the flame of the female greats is alive." – Orlando Weekly
Career
2009/2010
- In August 2009 Moreno toured with established singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman.
- Later in November 2009, Moreno toured as direct support for Ani Difranco, on an east coast tour. Difranco invited Moreno back out on tour January/February 2010.
- July 2010: Tour in Germany and France
2011
- In early 2011 Moreno and her band played their first headlining tour. They toured through the Netherlands and Belgium performing as part of the "World Sessions" tour. In addition, Moreno and her band opened as direct support for Nouvelle Vague for three shows in Germany.
- In late 2011 Gaby toured the U.S. East coast as direct support for The Milk Carton Kids.
2012
- February 2012: Concerts in France
- Spring 2012: Concerts together with Ricardo Arjona during his "Metamorfosis World Tour"
- June 2012: Performance on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" to commemorate 50 years of Amnesty International, together with Kris Kristofferson and others.
- May/June 2012: Concerts in Ireland, Germany, France and London
- July 2012: Concerts in France, including Le Havre, Verdun and Paris.
2013
- Toured with Hugh Laurie and The Copper Bottom Band through Europe.
2014
- March 2014: She toured with Hugh Laurie and The Copper Bottom Band through South America, namely Argentina, Brazil and Mexico.
2015
- 28 February: The first day of the festival included performances of Óscar Isaac, Sara Watkins, and Ishto Juevez.
- 1 March: Gaby Moreno gave her second concert of the festival. After her performance of the songs Ave que Migra and Blues de Mar, she introduced her guest Devorah Rahel with whom she played the song Y Tu Sombra. Her next guest was El Gordo, followed by Ishto Juevez. Gaby also played a song called Maldición, Bendición, which is part of her new production. The festival also included musical appearances of Alex Ferreira, Mexican singer Ximena Sariñana, and Natalia Lafurcade.
- 19 March 2015: Theater Akzent – Vienna, Austria
- 20 March 2015: Casino Kulturraum – Friedrichshafen, Germany
- 21 March 2015: La Spirale – Fribourg, Switzerland
- 24 March 2015: Cankar Centre – Ljubljana, Slovenia
- 24 July 2015: Lincoln Center – Out of Doors
2016
2018
Gaby Moreno released a cover of Trinidadian artist David Rudder's 1998 song "The Immigrants," made with arranger and producer Van Dyke Parks, ahead of the 4 July holiday, with proceeds going to benefit CARECEN.2019
¡Spangled!, a collaboration between Gaby Moreno and Van Dyke Parks, was released on Metamorfosis & Nonesuch Records. The album includes a bolero from Panama, a bossa nova from Brazil, a song by Moreno, David Rudder's "The Immigrants," and Ry Cooder, John Hiatt, and Jim Dickinson's song "Across the Borderline," performed with Cooder and Jackson Browne.Discography
Albums
- 2009: Still the Unknown
- 2010: A Good Old Christmastime EP
- 2011: European release of Still the Unknown
- 2011: Illustrated Songs
- 2012: European release of Illustrated Songs
- 2012: Postales
- 2014: Posada
- 2016: Illusion
- 2019: ¡Spangled!
Singles
- 2009: Smile – The Cove – sang the song "Smile" in the Academy Award-winning documentary
- 2010: Quizas – cover song
- 2017: He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother – cover song in collaboration with Mike Garson
- 2018: The Immigrants – in collaboration with Van Dyke Parks
Filmography