She has feline eyes, almost oriental, but it was
her voice that opened the eyes, and above all, the ears of
Paco de Lucía. The cante of this gypsy girl from East
Seville captivated the maestro from Algeciras. “Tú,
ven a mí” is the result of that seduction starring
María Victoria Santiago Borja, known in the world of
flamenco as La Tana.
Why “La Tana”?
When I was a little girl my father said that María
Victoria Santiago was too long a name for me since I was so
small. I had an aunt called Juana, and they decided to call
me Tana.
How did you come to meet Paco de Lucía?
I met him when we recorded “Cositas buenas”.
I was in Madrid working with Joaquín Cortés,
he’d heard about me and had me go see him. When I got
there I was a bundle of nerves, I couldn’t even sing.
He told me to calm down and return the next day. The following
day I recorded and then he asked me to go on tour with him.
Your cante seduced a “prince”…a
“Príncipe de Asturias”…what the secret?
Did he say what it was?
Paco’s not a man to give compliments. He says you give
them when you have to give them, but I think he saw there
was a lot of feeling. He says I have lots of rhythm, and that
I’m on the ball singing.
What
concept did you have about Paco before meeting him?
The same one I have now. He didn’t disappoint me in
the least. Every passing day I’m happier to have met
him and to know he’s a as wonderful a person as he is
an artist. For being a genius, he’s very humble and
sensitive.
How did the idea for the record get started?
First I met Javier Limón and he put me in contact
with Lidia from V2, so the three of us signed a contract.
Then Paco proposed the tour. I think he went specially to
meet me, and that’s when he told me he wanted to produce
the record.
“The more you listen to the record, the more little
things you notice”
Taking part in Paco’s latest
record and being with him on stage has been a giant step forward
in your career. Making a record is another great leap. Do
you feel the responsibility of moving to the forefront?
Right now I really feel overloaded, you can’t imagine,
but still, I’m proud all the same. Aside from my own
responsibility, there’s his name and his production
background. That makes it weigh all the heavier.
“Tú, ven a mí”.
There’s a diversity of composers: Greg Carmona, Farruquito,
Capullo de Jerez, Serrano Salazar… How did you decide on
what to include?
The maestro made most of the decisions. That’s why
he’s a maestro. They sent him the compositions, he’d
listen to them and the ones he thought were good he sent to
me. He always listened to my opinion, but the final decision
was his.
How did you go about putting the record
together? There are some things that were already done and
even recorded, like Capullo’s tangos.
As far as the tangos of Capullo, he’d recorded half
the lyrics, but he hadn’t sung the whole thing complete
with new lyrics. And Paco said: “well, even though Capullo
already recorded it, it doesn’t matter”. Then
there’s the soleá por bulerías which is
from la Niña de los Peines, a recording Paco had stashed
away.
And in the recording studio, were the
pieces finished, or did you define them as you went along?
There was a lot of improvisation. For example, we’d
planned on singing some verses, and I’d say to the maestro,
“look, I’m going to sing two other ones and see
how you like them”, as happened with the first bulerías.
The first bulería has some difficult
passages in voices other than yours.
It comes naturally to me. In live performance as well. I’ve
done four or five live shows and I like to improvise, things
come together. Very often it’s not prepared or rehearsed,
it’s just singing it however it comes out, straight
through.
“Tú, ven a mí”
is the first single, as well as the opening number of the
record – a rumba with a salsa feel.
I love salsa. I really like ‘black’ music a lot.
In my opinion, one of the best songs
is “Mis consejos”. I think it’s admirable
how it develops from the initial drama of the siguiriya, to
the celebration of the ending verses of alegrías sung
as bulerías, and passing through cabales, or La Perla’s
material. How did you manage to make it all come together
so well, so coherently, everything in its place?
With plenty of patience and the maestro’s wisdom, because
it’s incredible what that man knows and what he has
in the way of music. It was completely his idea. He wanted
to find something different, not just do the typical siguiriya.
Is “La causa de todos mi males”
going to be the next single?
That’s what we’re working on…it’s between
that, and Capullo’s tangos, because “La causa
de todos mis males” is also going over with. It talks
about love, a very sensitive piece.
There’s more to it than meets the
eye. It all sounds so sweet and simple, but you have to hear
it more than once to appreciate what it’s got.
Naturally. That’s what Paco said and I told him: “it’s
a record you have to hear over and over. The more you hear,
the more little things you notice, there’s more musical
richness than what you hear the first time round.
“Enamórame” is por
bulería, but it’s a song.
Of the most modern things on the record, it’s what
I like most, and it really communicates to audiences.
“It’s you they have
to hear”
The soleá is like a duo with the
guitar. And the instrument just gives you a little back-up.
The cante is the absolute center of attention, with very strong
compás.
On this point, it’s not that we argued about it, but
there was a lot of discussion. I’d say “maestro,
it needs more chorus, more percussion…more something”.
But he’d say “no, no, no. It doesn’t need
anything, because it’s a record of cante and it’s
you they have to hear, I want them to listen to you”.
And precisely on the soleá you
sound great, and since there’s minimal back-up, it’s
easier to appreciate what a fine flamenco singer you are.
That’s how it was…not afraid exactly, but it’s
where I felt the most butterflies, because I was more alone.
But he said “you can do it, it’s a piece of cake
for you”. Paco really had a lot of faith in me and I
tried to give it my best shot.
“It just so happens
you’re not a “camaronera”
Paco has a lot of experience in
these things.
He said “don’t you worry about anything, leave
it all to me, I know how it goes. You’re used to listening
to records loaded with choruses, music, drums…but sometimes
you don’t need all that. Sometimes with less, you get
more”.
“La bombonera” is a very
gypsy tangos, written by several composers, your father for
one, and which ends with a wistful memory of Camarón
with the feel of “Rosa María”…that’s
all Paco’s, isn’t it?
That’s Paco’s. Andrés Carmona sent us
a chorus based on “Rosa María”, because
I asked him to do something that would remind us of Camarón,
because it was one of my dreams, to sing something for him.
And then Paco said “I’m going to change this little
chorus so you have something, but that’s it”,
because he didn’t want people to say he wanted to compare
me to Camarón. And Paco said “I’m not comparing
you in any way, because you don’t even do Camarón,
it just so happens you’re not a “camaronera”;
everyone has their little thing, but you don’t do Camarón”.
As it stands, it doesn’t come across
like wanting to do something of Camarón’s, but
like a tribute or memory.
Exactly, that’s want I was aiming for. And Paco put
that little verse together in the studio in five minutes.
There are many compositions by a variety
of composers, how was that?
Well for example, two verses of one, two of another…with
music and lyrics each from someone different. Paco wanted
to use things from a lot of people, not just one.
What kind of composer is Farruquito?
Oh, that kid can really write songs. He gave me some random
verses, precisely because that’s what Paco wanted, especially
in the bulerías.
You close the record out with bulerías…you
seem to feel very comfortable in this form.
It’s actually my strongest suit…where I feel the
most freedom.
And it’s a bulería that
closes out the record on an optimistic note, uplifting, leaving
a good taste.
Thank you.
Of the nine songs, two are serious flamenco,
the siguiriya and the soleá. Do you think there’s
some fear of including genuine flamenco on records these days?
Yes, I think so. I’ve seen lots of people listening
to a record and they fast-forward to the next song. They by-pass
the siguiriya and anything which is a little “earthy”
like that. Not me, because I like that stuff, but people want
to hear bulerías, tanguitos, rumba. That’s why
Paco wanted to do something different for the siguiriya, “so
they don’t fast forward” he said.
As far as Diego de Morao…imagine having
to add guitar to a record made by Paco.
Imagine!…And with Paco right there watching and fine-tuning.
It was a huge responsibility for him and to tell the truth,
he really pulled it off. He played his heart out, a real talent.
What was it like working with him?
A real pleasure. He’s a guitarist you feel completely
at ease singing with. And he has lots of rhythm too…it’s
in his blood, a chip off the old block.
“Paco really had a
lot of faith in me and I tried to give it my best shot.”
I can’t believe Paco didn’t
dip his fingers into the guitar at any point.
Me either.
So, did he stick anything in of his own?
Well, there are odds and ends here and there, but he didn’t
really play anything because he said he didn’t feel
it, that it wasn’t his moment to play.
Sort of like a second guitar?
I’m not at liberty to say, they’d be on my back…there
are odds and ends here and there.
How is Paco as a musical director? Is
he tough to work with? Demanding? Did he make adjustments?
I really enjoyed it, and he was very nice to me…I really
felt at ease with him. He was very patient with me, because
you do get nervous around him. The whole time I was like “Maestro,
is this okay?” “Maestro, is this on tune?”,
and he’d say “settle down, you sing just fine
and what you’re doing is fine…I’m just pointing
out small things at certain points that you probably don’t
see, but later on you’ll realize”. And he was
right, it was all done with lots of tender, loving care.
Is there material left over for another
record?
He recorded two records [she laughs]…he took a lot of material.
For example, just of bulerias he made me record forty verses!…in
order to pick out which ones he liked best.
After the recording was finished, did
the maestro give you any advice about how to present it?
He told me to just be me. Not to change anything. And he
told me that in live performance it would sound even better,
because live I tend to give more. The studio is colder. Being
in front of an audience gives me freedom and more things come
out.
What has cante meant for you in your
life?
My family’s always been involved in this. My mother
is also a flamenco singer, my father used to be a guitarist
and composer. My brother plays the piano and my uncle too,
my family’s always been living the life. Ever since
I was small I was listening to flamenco singing and music.
My mother said I was going to be a performer. And in the patio
she used to say “dance a little bulerías for
me”.
Did the daughter of Emilia and Melchor
ever imagine she would one day be on radio and television
presenting a record sponsored by Paco de Lucía?
No way. It was a life-long dream ever since I was seven or
eight, but I could never have imagined I’d win the lottery
this big.
What’s the group of Curro Puya?
It’s a group of people who’ve always been very
supportive. I live in East Seville and the whole gang is over
there, and it’s my circle of friends, the ones I have
beers with, I can’t leave them out. They’ve been
part of my life and have been with me every step of the way.
They’d call up and say “hey, how’s that
going?”, and when I’m happy, they’re happy.
