Rita Payes

RITA PAYÈS

"Remembering this name should not require a big effort: it is already on everyone's lips, like good news we like to repeat... Rita Payés is a skilled trombonist with a frank and tender sound, and a singer whose musicality is nicely woven by a discreet hoarse veil." - La Terrasse

Rita Payés just turned 22, and she is gaining a reputation as both a fantastic trombone player and superb singer.

For her latest project, the young Catalan trombonist and singer Rita Payés joins forces with her mother Elisabeth Roma who is also an exceptional classical guitarist. Mother and daughter give their personal take on the music that has accompanied them all their lives, from traditional Catalan lullabies to bossa nova, fado, boleros…

This family project started when Rita booked a two-day studio session for Elisabeth as a birthday present in June 2018. Rehearsing and preparing for that session, they re-evaluated and strengthened their repertoire and arrangements. It was then when they decided to take the project further and release it as their debut album. “Imagina” was released in May 2019. This project is a meeting point between two generations, two points of view. It’s neither strictly jazz nor classical. It’s a highly personal interpretation of Rita’s and Elisabeth’s favourite music.

Rita was born in 1999 in Vilassar de Mar (Barcelona). She has lived music with intensity and proximity since she was a child as her parents are musicians, and began studying at the School of Music in Premia de Mar, initially playing the piano with Montse Massaguer. At the age of 8 years, at the School of Modern Music in Badalona, she added trombone to her studies with David Sanabria and then for about 6 years with Joan Palacio.

In 2017 she entered the well-known Sant Andreu Jazz Band and toured internationally and has performed in some of the most venerated stages and festivals in the country and abroad. She has played and recorded with musicians such as Jimmy Cobb, Louis Hayes, Scott Hamilton, Dick Oats, Scott Robinson, Toni Belenguer, Jo Krause...

April 2021 marks the release of "Como La Piel", an album recorded with Elisabeth Roma (guitar), Horacio Fumero (bass) and Juan Berlin (drums and percussions). Rita composed the 11 songs presented in this album, and the sound oscillates beautifully between jazz, bossa nova and classical guitar.