Carmen Gomes is born in a small village at the seashore and raised in Amsterdam, Holland. Bigcity life of Amsterdam left its mark on her musical development as well as on her attitude: go for it, noone else will do it for you.
Music has been playing a major role in her life ever since she was a small girl: "I grew up with the record collection of my parents. They had all kinds of things: Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, J.S. Bach, The Beatles, Miles Davis, Billie Holiday and Thelonius Monk. You could say that I am the product of a multimusical flow. This is where I come from, my legacy so to speak and my input to create my own music."
Carmen finished her studies at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam in 1994. In this very same year she won the first prize at the Dutch Jazz Vocalist Competition. Bert Vuijsje (jazz-critic) headed in a national newspaper the following way: "Gomes wins vocal competition rightly" In 1993 she already won, with her group "Carmen Gomes Inc.", the competition of the Breda Jazz Festival. The Jury also acknowledged the "Singer of the Year Award" to her at the occasion.
About her music she says: "In our music you can hear some r&b influences and the blues but also the fragile approach in the Miles Davis tradition of the fifties. And how about some gospel and folk influences? they don't scare us away"
Carmen has a broad experience as a singer. She performs with her own group but also with others. She has worked with The Metropole Orchestra,Louis van Dijk, Eric Vloeimans and Rob Agerbeek. She also recorded a duet with a famous Dutch singer called Rob de Nijs.
Carmen Gomes Inc. has performed at the Yokohama jazz festival in Japan, Copenhagen Jazz festival, the Arhus jazz festival, and the Langeland festival in Denmark and they have performed in small jazzclubs in a.o Belgium, Germany and the U.K. She has recorded 12 albums.She' lives inAmsterdam, as a performing artist and a singingteacher.
Jazz music is the key centre of her life: "jazz is never the same way twice. Every piece gets like new if you play it again(...) You could say jazz is like a big box containing different kinds of music. You can make so many combinations, it's like one big mix. That's why I like it so much."
‘Her style is bluesy and intimate with a sexy voice that's sweet as dark tupelo honey, and her interpretations are unerring. The musicians play to her and to each other and the ensemble is so tight that the four musicians breathe and move as one. it'll cast a spell over you’ – (Rad Bennet, SoundStage! Magazine (V.S.)
Gomes Sings "You better come on into my kitchen, 'cause it's going to be raining outdoors" and what a wondrous musical kitchen she possesses.
The utensils are the thoughtfully played musical notes. The chef is Carmen herself, serving a dream-like melodic delicacy. Guy Zinger - All About Jazz (V.S.)
She's in the same league as for instance Canadian Diane Krall...... Haagse Post
Gomes has a bluesy voice, which balances gracefully between sensual surrender and control.
E. van den Berg - De Volkskrant
When she sings the blues, she sounds as if plucked from the cotton fields. In a gospel-typed tune, one has to restrain oneself from shouting hallelujah.
Jeroen de Valk - Het Parool
….On her own field, she is untouchable. H.Invernizzi
…Billed as a jazzsinger, but she is much more than that With het terrific, sensual voice she can turn you world around. T.van Bemmel
... She knows how to give her own compositions a magnificent expression.
Bert Vuijsje - HP/De Tijd
...The most important thing is that she’s got the blues. I don’t mean she sings blues-songs - which also happens occasionally - but more importantly, in her phrasing you can hear everything that the blues stands for. That is quite an achievement.
Kees Polling -Trouw
Pure and accesible jazz with a bluesy feel, that makes you tingle.
Peter Nørgaard - Ekstra bladet (Denmark)
The big voice from Holland.
BT (Denmark)
