|
|
| Text: Estela Zatania
We can almost recite by memory the names of legendary winners… Fosforito, Paco de Lucía, Curro de Utrera, Fernanda y Bernarda de Utrera, José Menese, Paco Laberinto, Matilde Coral, Merche Esmeralda, Paquera, Serranito, Juan Peña “Lebrijano”, Manolo Sanlúcar, Juan Habichuela, Mario Maya, Paco Cepero, El Pele, José Mercé, José Antonio Rodríguez, Vicente Amigo, Javier Latorre, Antonio el Pipa… That’s only a partial list of artists who at one time won prizes at the Córdoba flamenco contest, along with many others who have been justly or unjustly forgotten. Bravely, in the throes of a brutal economic crisis, the venerable event is celebrating the final stretch of its nineteenth edition. Since 1956, with the almost ingenuous intent of cultivating, protecting and preserving traditional cante, and emulating the famous 1922 contest in Granada, dozens of artists have come to Córdoba to demonstrate their prowess and possibly go home with honors and cash. Many people nowadays question whether flamenco contests maintain their usefulness and relevance in a modern world where everyone has access to recorded music, whether commercial or amateur, and young hopefuls no longer depend on these events to become known. But it’s not just about winners and finalists. Nearly every day I see dedicated flamenco followers who are preparing for all types of contests, studying cantes which would otherwise be forgotten, and this enriches us all. In the last edition, which was 2007 since the contest is held every three years, fifteen prizes were handed out, 8 in cante, 6 in dance and one in guitar, with two that went unawarded. The contrast for 2010 speaks for itself: one guitar prize, which was for Antonio Rey, one cante prize that went to Antonio Mejías, and a dance prize that went unawarded. Hard times, no question about it, but Córdoba doesn’t throw in the towel. The two winners each take home 12,000 euros to brighten up their Christmas, but finalists don’t go home empty-handed. Each one receives two thousand euros, very welcome I’m sure. In dance, the four candidates were Inmaculada Aranda Espejo from Córdoba, Lakshmi Pekarek Basile “La Chimi” of the United States, David Romero Cardoso from Hospitalet de Llobregat (Barcelona) and Adrián Sánchez González from Granada. In guitar, competing in this final round were Salvador Gutiérrez Aguila from Écija (Seville), Severiano Jiménez Flores “Niño Seve” from Córdoba and Raúl Mannola from Finland. The cante finalists were Aroa Cala Luque from Puerto de Santa María (Cádiz), Sebastián Cruz Márquez from Beas (Huelva) and Pedro Garrido Fernández “Niño de la Fragua” from Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz). In the days preceding, two major shows were presented, by Javier Latorre and Manolo Sanlúcar respectively. A diversity of parallel activities complemented the cultural offering. Five “Flamenco Dialogues” were celebrated throughout the month on topics such as “Young People and Peñas Flamencas” and “Flamenco, Intangible World Heritage” among others, with speakers Antonio Murciano, José Antonio Rodríguez, Javier Latorre, Arcángel and Fosforito. A painting exhibit in the lovely Posada del Potro, Centro Flamenco Fosforito, and another of photography in the Sala Orive were the graphic support, and other activities included the presentation of Fernando Terremoto’s posthumous CD, the Official Catalogue of the Conest with the winners of the previous edition and the book “Carmen Amaya, La Biografía”. EL PELE, JOSÉ MERCÉ, Guest artist: Dorantes El Pele. Piano: Dorantes, Guitarra: Antonio Patrocinio, Niño Seve. Percusión: Paquito González. José Mercé. Guitarra: Moraíto Chico. Photos: EFE Two superstars from the same generation, previous winners at the Concurso de Córdoba, shared the recital on Wednesday night after this year’s winners were announced.
El Pele. Cult figure adored by his fans, unpredictable and inspired. After a piano piece by guest artist Dorantes, the unmistakable sound of the Córdoba singer invaded the space of the Gran Teatro, and the audience squealed with delight. Soleá to the malleable rhythm of bulería por soleá accepted everything and then some, from soleá apolá to bits and pieces of classic styles and original creations, all passed through the sieve of controlled quirkiness that characterizes Pele’s inspiration. Siguiriyas, Excellent sound quality, and excellent guitar-playing by Antonio Patrocinio to back up one of the few cantaores who always finds the road to flamenco, laying bare his soul with an impressive display of classic styles, updated and personalized, and such an outsized personality, it isn’t even diminished in his “Caracol moments”. Pele asks for a round of applause in honor of the recent naming of flamenco as a World Heritage, and moves on to alegrías cantiñas, a light-hearted form when interpreted by other singers, but which acquires mystery and unsettling beauty with Pele. He dedicates “Afonsina y el Mar” to “my great friend and soul-mate, Vicente Amigo”, accompanied by Dorantes. Bulerías to wind up, then intermission, and Jerez appears in the person of José Mercé with his sidekick Moraíto on guitar. Mercé’s format and repertoire of classic cante, never vary. Malagueña, soleá, siguiriyas, alegrías, bulerías y “Aire”. In fact, the big surprise is that even singing the same things over and over, he manages to keep the sparks flying, the high quality of his cante and his admirable faculties. As always, the siguiriyas, which he imbues with unbearable intensity, and the bulerías with winks to Paquera and Luis de la Pica, and a nod to Córdoba with “Córdoba es un laberinto para los ojos de un pintor”, are outstanding. A grand professional in every way, Mercé left the audience begging for more with his bulerías dance and bullfighter moves.
|
