Erika 'Sissy' Fortuin is from Oudtshoorn in the Westen Cape of South Africa. She works as the Administrator and Choir Mistress of the Independent Church, the largest in Oudtshoorn, seating 8,000 people. Barry 'Doc' McGurk a retired Brit living in South Africa has a small recording studio at his home and in 2009 offered to make CDs without charge for members of the local community. Sissy met Barry when The Independent Church Choir made a CD. It was clear to Barry that Sissy was a prodigious talent but Sissy had only ever sung Gospel Music and had not been exposed to other musical genres. She had not heard of jazz singers such as Ella Fitzgerald but loved the music that Barry played her. So she recorded a CD of Jazz Standards, 'At Last.... Sissy sings Jazz', which was launched to an exstatic audience at a concert in Oudtshoorn in April 2011. Not only had she not heard any of the songs before recording them she is Afrikaans speaking and has little english. So she sang in a language not her own! Here's a video of the title track -
At last
The video was shot at three locations, Barry's studio, Sissy's home - at the front door and in the back garden - and at a concert in the township to launch the CD. Sissy is divorced and lives with her family in a small house in the coloured township in Oudshoorn called Bridgeton. People of mixed race call themselves coloured and make up 80% of the population of Oudtshoorn. The people are poor and consider themselves lucky if they have employment. Sissy makes about £200 a month. Her ambition domestically is to have a ceiling in her living room to conceal the corrugated iron roof.........
And here's another sample track from the CD -
Can't help lovin that man
Promotion and Management
In 2011 Sissy's promotion and management was taken on by Barry, and his wife Theresa, McGurk. Barry provides the musical compositions, arrangements and recordings and Theresa is responsible for lyrics and the design of the CD covers. Both have experience in business and management. The Drs McGurk's aim is to bring Sissy firstly to the notice of South Africans then the World!
Chrismas CD - Under the Christmas Tree
2011 also saw a well received Chrismas CD 'Under the Chrismas tree'. The title track which you can listen to below was written for Sissy. There is also a video of a live performance in the Pics Section of the site. Click 'Pics' at the very top left of the page
