PRESENTATION OF THE 47th FESTIVAL INTERNACIONAL DEL CANTE DE LAS MINAS .

By DeFlamenco
18 años Ago

August 2-11, 2007

Text: Manuel Moraga

“My good friend Castelar speaks very well, but I can only say, well, we’ll try have a good time…thank you”. Thus spoke Chano Lobato when his turn came. Chano is to receive the tribute of the XLVII Festival Internacional del Cante de las Minas.Don’t rack your brains…all those letters add up to 47. And 47 editions is quite a chunk of flamenco history. This year, in addition, the festival coincides with the centennial of Antonio Grau Mora “Rojo el Alpargatero”, as well as one hundred years since La Unión’s old Public Market was opened, the place which has become the venue for the festival and which is known in the world of flamenco as the “Cathedral of Cante”.

As is customary, the program was officially presented in Madrid. Dignitaries from the town of La Unión revealed the contents of this year’s edition to the specialized press. Maestro Chano Lobato is to be this year’s honored celebrity.A well-deserved tribute for the man from Cádiz who at 80, lives and breathes flamenco from every pore. Chano continues to demonstrate that the secret of flamenco is that first you have to be flamenco, and then do it. Bibiana Aído of the Agencia Andaluza para el Desarrollo del Flamenco underlined the agency’s desire to support this type of initiative.

The keynote speech will be given by journalist Ramón Lucas, and writer José Manuel Gamboa will receive the Castillete de Oro.

In addition to the festival and the contest, the program includes workshops in guitar and dance with Eduardo Rebollar, Carlos Piñana, Milagros Mengíbar, Adela Campallo, Carmen Ledesma, Yolanda Lorenzo, Maribel Ramos and Antonio Molina “El Choro”.

Meantime, up throuh the 14th of July, candidates are being selected for the respective contests.