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SEVILLE'S BIENAL DE FLAMENCO
2002. 'MASS FLAMENCO/CAL Y SAL'
'Encá los Miño'
Silvia Calado Olivo. Seville. September 15th, 2002
Photos: Javier Hurtado
'Mass Flamenco'. Piano: Pedro Ricardo Miño.
Cante: Enrique Soto Sordera, Pepe de Pura, Emilio Cabello. Bass: Manuel Nieto.Palmas
and dance: Bobote and Eléctrico. Percussion: Cepillo. Percussion and effects:
Luis Castillo. 'Cal y Sal'. Dance: Pepa Montes. Guitar: Ricardo Miño, Juan
María Real, Cristian Cabello. Cante: Enrique Soto Sordera, Pepe de Pura,
Emilio Cabello. Palmas and dance: Bobote and Eléctrico. Percussion: Cepillo.
Percussion and effects: Luis Castillo, Paco Vega. Teatro Lope de Vega. Seville,
September 15th, 2002. 9:00 p.m.
Flamenco morning, noon and night… In the Miño household, ‘Encá
los Miño’, flamenco is a member of the family. The Miño
boy, Pedro Ricardo, likes to play with a grand piano. And although he loses track
of time, and his hands get away from him, he never
loses his point of reference. And being a boy, he pays attention to his elders.
A Hindu gentleman called Ravi Shankar, who also likes to play with music, not
long ago in the United States where he sometimes tours, asked him to play “Mass
flamenco”.
And the obedient boy created a concert for piano which displays flamenco of all
ages. Pedro Ricardo likes to get into himself when he’s alone in front of
the keyboard granaínas, with echoes of fandango taking the cante
as basis, or farruca, a style which, like all brave bulls, inspires as much respect
as those who dare to accept the challenge…which is why it’s dedicated
to Antonio Gades.
The pianist also wants to share his games and calls others to the stage, each
one armed with his own particular sound toy, they all arrive to have some fun.
As if to recall the wise Indian, he tells Cepillo to bring the ‘tabla’
and playing flamenco at that to hold some soleares together…and
the team of Bobote and Eléctrico take care of providing the framework with
just their palmas. And their host warbles, cuts, caresses, passes judgement,
silences. And the word gets ‘round…a bass and some more percussive gewgaws,
including pad. Alegrías, bulerías, tanguillos, tangos, rumba. And
a golden trio of singers just arrived from Alosno, Huelva.
When the Miño boy feels like a break, his parents come along, raring
to go. They bring the blinding light of whitewash to refresh the midnight blue
with bata de cola, with a dance por caña. Pepa Montes, the old hand, straight
from a Sevillian watercolor painting. Ricardo Miño, her husband, and the
father of the child at the piano, is camouflaged amongst the string of guests.
The newcomers agree to stay,and they fill the space with heavenly cante, silence
is for those who seek it. While the lady puts the carnations that rained upon
her in water, father calls to his boy...and 'anda jaleo, jaleo', memories of Ronda.
I speak, you answer...replies, give and take. And when the lady returns, the mountains
taste of salt spray, Pepa with her gift for communication and a
user-friendly 'bata de cola' offers an alegrías. Her dancing is aged and
mellowed, with butterfly hands, then noiselessly sweeping, going beyond the limit
if necessary. And now well into the dance, the ambience heats up and the fiesta
at the Miño house gets under way with tangos and bulerías. The father
dances, the couple, the mother and even the son who is growing up and it's time
he enlarged the family...with a first record.
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The other side of the story
Wisdom and experience encourage clear thinking. Pepa Montes gave voice to her
thoughts: "The Bienal is a great melting pot, and each one chooses the color
they like best". Her choice was white. And some people enjoyed the added
lighting. The festival has hardly arrived at the half-way point and already there
has been blue, orange, red, black and even grey. And almost everyone likes it
all. That's the thing about variegated color...the lack of criteria.
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