Sings

When a West African singer meets a Luxembourg orchestra, you get some *real* world music. Angélique Kidjo reimagines songs from all across her discography here, blending her strong-but-supple pipes with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg’s artful arrangements. Her voice shifts seamlessly from sweet to guttural on “Malaika,” the Tanzanian love song made famous by Miriam Makeba; bridges Benin and Mexico on Carlos Santana’s “Samba Pa Ti”; and dips into a French chanson feel on “Petite Fleur,” with the orchestra elegantly entwining itself around her at every turn.

Sings finds the great Beninese vocalist Angélique Kidjo fronting the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, conducted by Gast Waltzing.