Ana Roxanne
Ana Roxanne Recto is an American experimental and ambient musician and singer. She is known for her blend of jazz, choral, electronic, and Hindustani sounds, and thematic exploration of self-concept and gender identity. She has released an EP titled "
Early life and education
Recto was born on April 1, 1987. She is of Filipino descent, and was raised Catholic in a predominantly Filipino community in Vallejo, a city in the San Francisco Bay Area. She was homeschooled until later attending a Catholic high school. Her parents both listened to music often; her father would listen to classical music and oldies, and her mother would listen to rhythm and blues. Recto developed singing ambitions after watching Alicia Keys perform "Fallin'" on MTV. She initially thought she wanted to be a jazz singer. In 2005, she moved to rural Iowa to study in a jazz and classical music program at a community college. While at school, she performed choral music across cathedrals in the Midwest. She eventually dropped out of the program, but finished college and moved to Minneapolis, where she played in a "spazzy prog/math rock" band for three years.In 2013, she had traveled to Uttarakhand, India to learn traditional Hindustani singing. The experience helped show her how the voice can be used as an instrument in ways that she did not learn in Western music education. After returning to the United States from India in 2013, Recto enrolled in Mills College in Oakland, California, a small university known for its electronic music programs and its queer community. While there, she began experimenting with analog synthesizers and electronic instruments, writing her own music through as a mix of jazz, choral, Hindustani, and experimental music.
Music
''~~~ '' (2015)
Recto compiled several of her songs for her debut EP, titled "The album was well-received by critics. Pitchfork called it "restful and restorative", and a culmination of Recto's wide variety of musical training and influences. Resident Advisor applauded her vocal work and use of electronic instrumentation. The Quietus commended it as "an ode to self-recognition and revelation that delves deep into personal and sonic depths".