Aruban vocalist Osdelly Lacroes has been selected to represent Aruba at the 2026 Euro-Venezuelan Jazz Festival in Caracas, according to a September 16 report by 24ora.
The festival committee in Venezuela confirmed the selection after Carlos Bislip, director of the Scol di Musica Rufo Wever, recommended Lacroes. The recommendation followed a request from the Netherlands Embassy in Caracas for a female jazz vocalist.
An Aruban voice on an international stage
Lacroes began singing with her siblings at age four. Her musical background includes theatre, salsa groups, Surinamese folkloric ensembles and gospel music. She has focused on jazz since 2007 and has studied with vocalists Tica Giel, Lenora Helm and Ruth Silva.
She also studied music theory and piano with Franklin Granadillo, as well as rhythm and percussion with Bislip. Her planned festival repertoire combines Aruban rhythms, Latin influences, Caribbean arrangements and material from the Great American Songbook.
Local trio sought for Caracas performance
Although the festival offered to provide a Venezuelan rhythm section, organizers in Aruba want Lacroes to perform with musicians familiar with the island-based repertoire. Bislip has therefore launched a fundraising effort to help an Aruban trio travel with her to Caracas.
An intimate fundraising concert is scheduled for Sunday, September 27, at 6 p.m. in the Expo Zaal at Cas di Cultura in Oranjestad. Lacroes is expected to perform with Kyle Winklaar, Ivan Quandus and Carlos Bislip. Admission is listed at 35 Aruban florins, with the proceeds intended to support the musicians’ travel costs.
More details are available in the original 24ora report.
