Franca Masu

Born into an artistic family in Alghero, Sardinia, an island off the Mediterranean coast of Italy, Franca Masu knew from an early age that she was meant to sing. In the mid-'90s she met a group of fellow Sardi jazz musicians, with whom she performed, practicing her chops and getting exposure. Masu also took a strong interest in the traditional music of Alghero, a place where a dialect of Catalan is spoken and is influenced by not only Spain but also Portugal and Italy, and in 1998 she recorded her first record, "Més a Prop," with help from arranger/musician Mark Harris. That s...