The world of flamenco hadn’t had to absorb this kind of shock since José Monge “Camarón de la Isla” left us more than fifteen years ago. A good friend of the latter, Enrique Morente Cotelo was one of the greatest exponents of creative flamenco of the current scene. Possibly the highest peak.
Creative in the broadest sense of the word, this man from Granada came to the world like the Messiah. Post-war Christmas. The big picture cannot be understood except with a very powerful magnifying glass. In the beginning, he was a thoroughly orthodox singer no one could find any fault with. After hanging out with Aurelio Sellés and Pepe de la Matrona, his prodigious ear could only hear the code language that would give him so much flamenco wisdom. Encyclopedic, comparable to the greatest flamenco singer of all history. And now we have important audio material that shows who was the true creator.
Diehard defender of Chacón’s line, a singer scandalously sidelined, Morente rediscovered him as Mendelssohn did with Bach. It all happened while he was delving into the old masters of cante and guitar to put an end to dubious inquisitors.
He was truly enthralled with a sort of open but orthodox approach which he never turned his back on, longing for Montoya and Manolo de Huelva as a way of attacking current human misery.
Impossible to summarize so much essential knowledge, going out on a limb without pulling down the whole flamenco tree.
Breaking ground from the beginning, right until his final hours, as many new paths as records. The word “concept” was the key. And freedom, the finishing touch on each piece of work.
Because he was so free that he allowed himself to sing all the known verses about virgins and saints to aetheists, and the next day stand up to the authorities and spend the night in jail with all the dignity in the world.
Master of liberties, yes, and he understood independence as his only friend. The genius of Enrique Morente always irritated the chancellors of purity and the newest followers as well. He gave them all plenty of reason to fight.
We hadn’t even assimilated records of his from a decade ago, and it remains to be seen if he caught us off-guard even in death.
1The definitive prism, that of his true place in flamenco. Despite more or less sweetened up re-releases, Enrique Morente’s contribution was unmatched because no one could even come close in his concept of vigorous leadership. Number one is gone.
Cante had no more modernization than that which he wanted every step of the way. A good dose of glitter no one denies. He managed to perfectly combine a London premiere with a night of flamenco alongside his good friend Miguel at the Candela in a gathering of flamencos playing cards. And his hegemony remained intact.
Enrique’s guitarists
Except for his equivalent in guitar, Paco de Lucía, the singer from Albaycín was accompanied by each and every one of the best guitarists of each generation that passed through his life. One cannot recall another flamenco voice more devoted to the guitar.
From Niño Ricardo and Sabicas, to the youngest Carmona, grandson Juan, no guitarist half-known failed to play alongside him, learning as much or more than him about the masters of flamenco guitar.
He honored all of us with his art, and found qualities with each guitarist that automatically raised their careers. Manolo Sanlúcar, the Habichuela family, Cañizares, Tomate, Gerardo Núñez, Vicente Amigo, Juan Carlos Romero, Josele, Paquete, Cerreduela…if anyone doubts this singer’s love of guitar, just look over his discography and take note. Case in point: Enrique Morente recuperated Rafael Riqueni for his last tour which took place in recent months. Insiders again spoke of another genius thanks to his friend’s sensitivity. He was on top of everything.
The guitar and guitarists are grateful for a singer who knew guitar-playing like few others. Today’s young people were still dreaming of being called upon by him some day…
After Enrique Morente
They say that when Manolo Caracol had only recently died, someone unabashedly shouted out to “Camarón de la Isla” that he was the heir to that singing heritage. Now we face the prospect of having to endure decades without Morente, and with the reworking of flamenco orphaned just when the genre has been declared a World Heritage.
The empty space is so pronounced that we are overcome with pessimism, and it’s not a question of foreboding. We’ll see what happens now… It is absurd to point to other artists as followers of a path which we knew was unique. A motor that now, in the year 2010, caused us to have the same faith in this singer as our elders during the political Transition.
Uncommonly lucid, and with faculties far greater than those of artists twenty years younger, the only recordings we knew would come loaded with fresh information were his, and being sensible sorts, we looked to no one else. It was clear who offered the greatest guarantee.
Nothing to do now but search and search, and surely there will be someone else, but no flamenco fan in his right mind would venture a guess as to finding a substitute with such a clear need, capacity, wisdom and flamenco qualities as his, in this his second youth, the maestro. We are talking about renovation.
We are talking about intuition, risk-taking and a taste for building new languages, new settings, nothing less than the attraction of other great artists to flamenco.
We know what we have in the present, which is a great deal and of high quality, but without a doubt, if we talk about flamenco what dominates is the reedition and reiteration of known models, understandable and digestible by all, with the risk of not having anything to say.
It’s not for lack of material, because it’s there. The sorrow stems from the philosophy that reigns among the young. What most want in order to become artists. They may be young, but now they have to mature faster than ever. For this reason, among many others, Enrique Morente has taken his leave when he was still youthful.
