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FESTIVAL DE JEREZ 2007. PASTORA GALVÁN
· DANIEL MÉNDEZ · JORGE PARDO
Carmen learns a lesson
Silvia Calado. Jerez, March 1st, 2007
‘La Francesa’. Baile:
Pastora Galván. Guitars: Pedro
Sierra (musical director), Miguel Iglesias. Cante: David
Lagos, Juan José Amador. Accordion and hurdy-gurdy:
José Manuel Vaquero ‘El Pájaro’.
Contrabass: Álvaro Ramos. Box drum: José
Carrasco. Xylophone and percussions: Manuel Vergne. Choreography
director: Israel Galván. Artistic director: Pedro
G. Romero. Stage director: Belén Candil. 11th Festival
de Jerez. Sala Compañía (Jerez, Spain),
March 1st, 2007. 9 p.m.
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Pastora Galván
(Photo: Daniel Muñoz) |
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Myths fall. And if they don’t fall
by themselves, they’re given a little push. It must
be that ‘Carmen’ deserved to be taught a lesson,
that the flamenco women of the twenty-first century weren’t
willing to let themselves be tyrannized by the character.
The first one to rebel was Pastora
Galván, of course with the help of avant-garde
leader Israel Galván. His attachment to distorting
and destructuring makes up ‘La francesa’,
a show which turns around the pretty bailaora who was
seen last year at the Teatro de Guadalcacín, so
classical, so lovely, so Sevillian. And it does so to
the point of absurdity, ugliness, vulgarity. With no fear
of ridicule. Shameless. Pastora Galván experiences
a metamorphosis which is not only her own, but that of
a generation which can dance wearing high boots or stiletto
heels, following a short distance behind the footsteps
of the inciting Belén Maya and Rafaela Carrasco.
Despite the technical and spatial limitations
of the Sala Compañía, the Sevillian knew
how to uphold the complexity of the show and her multi-dimensional
character. And her performance had an impact. Even more
convincing than at the premiere in the last Bienal de
Sevilla, she reached the heart of the matter in each piece,
shaking up the audience when she suffered, when she showed
off, when she fought, when she mocked, when she parodied...
and all the while, dancing. The level of dancing is superior,
since it goes beyond the limits of anything seen so far
in a woman. It isn’t that she gives up her hips,
her lowered arm, the language of her hands... her old-time
flamencura. Au contraire, she increases their possibilities.
But at the same time, she enriches her expression with
the abstract, the fractured, the free.
And the result is a time bomb which has
a group of musicians as accomplices who in the live show
and at the ‘studio’ are led by guitarist Pedro
Sierra. The eight of them have the task of performing
a hilarious score made up by sticking together a thousand
and one fragments of flamenco, classical Spanish, classical
French, folklore, ‘chanson’, flamenquito,
‘Nikelao’, Basque song... Which not only affects
the instruments, but also the voices, especially that
of David Lagos, who bends over backwards. And anyone who
didn’t understand it, anyone who had to leave, who
couldn’t digest it, shouldn’t worry since,
as they rightly pointed out while singing to Manuel Machado,
“it all depends”.
Los conciertos de Palacio Series.
Daniel Méndez
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Daniel Méndez
(Photo: Daniel Muñoz)
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He felt like putting the
ideas going around his guitar to the test.
And he did so at the Palacio de Villavicencio
without amplifiers, without wires. At the
same setting where the previous day he had
accompanied Ángeles Fernández’s
cante, Daniel
Méndez offered a sneak preview
of what is going to be his solo discourse.
And upon the base of tradition, experience
and the looseness of composition and performance
which provides the work in dance companies,
he weaves together pieces which might make
up his first album. Steamed toque, encircling,
loose, in search of. That’s how he appeared
alone to go on, next sharing with José
Carrasco on box drum (which due to the acoustic
conditions could easily have been an earthen
vat) and with Bernardo Parrilla on violin,
focusing on the rhythmic. Special mention
goes to the piece which was borrowed from
Carles
Benavent, with the utmost taste and respect.
Unlike Santiago Lara, with a show now so polished,
so well-rounded, the Morón-born artist
left an aftertaste of ‘work in progress’
and the sensation of something yet to come.
Long live the guitar.
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| Flamenco por un tubo Series. Jorge
Pardo
‘Vientos flamencos’. Jorge
Pardo: sax, flute. Juan Diego: guitar.
Tomasito: guest artist. El Chispa: percussion.
El Macano, El Lúa: clapping. Bodega
Los Apóstoles (midnight)
Jorge Pardo
(Photo: Daniel Muñoz) |
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“Long live the air!”.
Only an enthusiast who was feeling it could
synthesize it so perfectly. And the thing
is that what happened at the concert by Jorge
Pardo at Bodega de Los Apóstoles
was out of this world. The Madrilenian saxophonist
was surrounded by two tremendous musicians
from Jerez, guitarist Juan
Diego and cantaor-bailaor Tomasito, to
give free rein to ‘Vientos flamencos’.
The adjective isn’t
empty; no. What difference is there between
Terremoto and Jorge Pardo? Just the channel.
In this concert, the musician takes on the
role of old, know-it-all, encyclopedic cantaor.
He might just as easily sing por La Perla
as por Camarón, as por soleares, as
por alegrías. And his presence... as
a patriarch. Generous and cordial, he gave
each one his own space. Juan Diego was thus
able to look at us from his planet por seguiriyas.
Extreme feeling. Sound of the spirit.
And it was the same for the
guitar to accompany the cante-flute, as for
the flute to arrange the guitar tunes. The
understanding between them is special. Next
comes Tomasito
to turn the show upside down. Singing softly,
rapping, talking, walking, dancing... A whole
artist, a complete flamenco. The percussion
discreet, just enough. And next, clapping.
The fiesta is served. With no tricks, natural,
enjoying it. And the audience from the whole
wide world enjoying themselves, asking for
more from this flamenco who has soul and truth.
CD:
Jorge Pardo. Vientos flamencos
Download
Jorge Pardo’s music at Flamencodigital.com
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| And tomorrow... María Pagés
· Edu Lozano · Esperanza Fernández
Edu Lozano, ‘El instante del sentido’.
Sala Compañía (7 p.m.)
María Pagés, ‘Sevilla’.
Teatro Villamarta (9 p.m.)
Further
information
Esperanza Fernández. Bodega Los Apóstoles
(midnight)
Read
interview
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