South Korean vocalist Song Yi Jeon and Brazilian guitarist Vinicius Gomes naturally gravitated toward each other while living in Switzerland and instantly bonded musically and personally. Despite coming from very different cultural and backgrounds, there was so much in common aesthetically that the duo project happened naturally. It’s about interaction, storytelling, communication and exploration. Inspired by Brazilian music, contemporary jazz, and duos such as Luciana Souza / Romero Lumumba and Norma Winstone / John Taylor, Song Yi and Vinicius carve their own creative path.

It is a very particular duo because much of the repertoire doesn’t have lyrics, but often use wordless vocals. The compositions and improvisations become can very abstract, which is rare in this setting and demands a lot of trust from both musicians towards each other. The roles invert themselves all the time and the compositions themselves are in many cases not what you would expect to hear from a voice/guitar duo.

Their debut album, Home, features unique original compositions from both, as well as interpretations of works by a range of artists: Carlos Aguirre, Dominguinhos, Keith Jarrett, and Jimmy Rowles. Song Yi and Vinicius are both virtuosos on their instruments, but there’s a deep connection, a rich interaction in sound, intention, rhythm, harmony, and soul.

Home was released on November 18, 2022.

Song Yi Jeon
Hailing from South Korea, Song Yi Jeon is a singer and composer who deftly combines modern jazz harmony and odd time signatures with singable melodies that instantly catch the ear of the listener. Song Yi showed creative promise from an early age when she started with piano, Korean traditional singing, Korean traditional percussion, and drawing. She studied classical composition in Graz, Austria and voice in Switzerland and Boston, where she developed her unique sound.

Through her background in classical composition, she uses her understanding of harmonic structure to create incomparable improvisations. Song Yi’s music is heavily influenced by instrumental jazz, and her refined compositions have a clear musical direction with her signature ‘East meets West’ sound.

In 2018, Song YI released ‘Movement of Lives’ with her quintet before moved to Basel, Switzerland to participate in an emerging artist program. She has performed with Ambrose Akinmusire, Django Bates, John Hollenbeck, Julian Lage, Billy Childs, Guillermo Klein, Wolfgang Muthspiel, and many more.

Vinicius Gomes
São Paulo born and New York based guitarist/composer, Vinicius Gomes explores the dialogue between modern jazz and Brazilian music. His career includes recordings and tours with Grammy winner Edu Ribeiro, drummer Duduka da Fonseca, Mexican singer/composer Magos Herrera, as well as American artists including pianist Jon Cowherd, saxophonist Seamus Blake and many others.

He has released two albums as a leader – ‘Resiliência’ and ‘Changes’ – and has been performed extensively in Europe, Latin America and the US.