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INTERVIEW WITH PEDRO SIERRA. GUITARIST
Alberto García Reyes
Since that which is "the best" is incompatible with what's "good",
the guitarist is cautious. But after a simple "Decisión", the
conclusion is swift: Pedro Sierra has just released his most important work to
date. There's an old saying in Spanish that the person who dresses with another's
clothes will quickly be stripped in the street. And this musician who knows the
ropes decided to sidestep possible criticism by putting aside the legacy of his
maestros and decking himself out in his own clothes. Throughout his record, with
each listening, you get this joyous fashion show.
Pedro, the main suit in your wardrobe is made of melody with choruses. Why?
Because music is for sharing, not for storing away in a treasure-chest or for
being heard by a select few.
But nowadays flamenco guitar is into the virtuoso runs. Do you reject that
strong barroque harmonic current, or is this record a parenthesis?
There are some people who are trying for death-defying stunts, and like Manolo
Sanlúcar's father used to say, the hardest thing in the world is shitting
in a bottle, but what good is it? It's very difficult to make a record of guitar
playing. In this work all I've done is sum up my whole career of playing for dancers
and in studios.
Nevertheless you also seem to be in touch with the latest harmonic novelties.
In the rumba "Azul, añil" for example, there's a simple melodic
section, but there are also contrasts. I begin in the key of soleá and
then work into other chords, like from minera, without anything sounding odd.
That's all combined with percussion, sax... It's an interracial melting-pot.
Is "Danza de Guinea" which you recorded a result of your taste
for the ethnic?
That was a zapateado made over into a tanguillo that I did a long time ago.
I once played it for a Senegalese friend and he started to dance. It's that when
you get right down to it, I think all music comes from Africa and the Near East.
In addition to tribal sounds, you've also sought out some very flamenco
collaborators like El Barrio, El Potito...
They're not "sought-after collaborators", they're my friends. If
not it would be very cold. I don't believe in calling in a musician you don't
know at all.
Is that why your wife La Tobala is on the record?
Of course, I've got the greatest communication with her.
But you've stuck her in a "Laberinto", haven't you?
Yes, that's the title of the soleá, and I mounted it for her because
it's a little complicated. The cante my wife does is exactly what Fosforito recorded,
but Juana always adds her own touch, she doesn't like to be a carbon copy.
Pedro, I'm going to ask you an awkward question: who are your favorite guitarists?
The order is easy. First of all Paco Cepero, who broke the mold in Jerez. Then
Paco de Lucía, Serranito and Manolo Sanlúcar, to whom I owe a great
deal.
Another trite but obligatory question: is flamenco getting lost?
I don't think it's going to disappear because there's so much recorded material,
but it is true that certain cantes are becoming lost, perhaps due to the demands
of fashion. All the same, purists can rest easy. Something else that I do see
is that people ought to take more risks and invent cantes, and that cantaores
are lacking in personality.
What makes you so convinced of what you say?
I started out when I was 8 years old, and at 9 I was on stage. I'm young, but
I've seen a lot, and that's how you learn.
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