MÁLAGA EN FLAMENCO 2007. ENCARNA
ANILLO, ‘BARCAS DE PLATA’
Veteran début
Silvia Calado. Málaga, August 31st, 2007
‘Barcas de plata’. Encarna
Anillo: cante. Juan Diego, José Manuel
León, Eduardo Pacheco: guitars. Juan Peña
‘Chispa’: percussion. Marcelino Fernández,
El Canastero: choruses, clapping. Carmelilla Montoya:
guest artist (cante, baile). José Anillo: guest
artist (cante). Málaga en Flamenco 2007. Castillo
de Gibralfaro (Málaga), August 31st, 2007. 11 p.m.
The castle walls enclose the scene. A
hundred-year-old rubber plant does the grounding. And
the night mist, sticky and fragrant, providing ambience.
Another magical stage offered by Málaga en Flamenco
to savor the jondo, nearly late night, in a section of
the city without its noise or its rough weather. It was
inaugurated the night before by the tribute to La Repompa.
And today, opening the series ‘Siete discos nuevos’
(‘Seven New Albums’), it’s visited by
Encarna
Anillo. The Cádiz-born cantaora, who belongs
to a fruitful post-eighties generation, gave a live preview
of the contents of her début album, ‘Barcas
de plata’, whose release she promises before the
end of the year finishing in seven. And she felt the occasion
was like a dream come true.
Encarna Anillo and Juan Diego
(Photo Daniel Muñoz)
But like a dream, not like a gift. Nothing
in this concert was free; quite the contrary. The artist
gave a forceful lesson in maturity, know-how and presence.
To kick things off, she faithfully performed the repertoire
off her album, song by song. All ten of them. Moreover,
she surrounded herself with two of the best guitarists
on today’s flamenco scene, Juan
Diego and José
Manuel León. And without skimping on accompaniment
(percussion, choruses, clapping, a third guitar), including
none other than Carmelilla Montoya as guest artist. She
added to it all a brilliant exercise in cante show design:
simple, varied, dynamic. And of course, the quality and
beauty of her cante, among those of the greatest substance
in this era.
Of course, she attacked with a look at
La Caleta, the beach in Cádiz inspiring the album
and the artist. Por alegrías, she expressed herself
impressively in both the sweet tessitura and the swell.
And La
Perla, guiding her. From Cádiz to Málaga.
Pampered by Juan Diego’s toque, she sang malagueñas
uttered with extreme delicacy, growing in the verdiales,
without skimping on a single detail on vocals. The entire
group closes in around her for the song por bulerías
‘No hay tiempo’, a tune with an updated formula
but with a clean style.
Next the group is minimized, with the
two main guitars in the foreground. Those who knew how
to listen realized a surprising fact for jondo music,
of how these two guitars grow together in the dialogue,
stimulate one another, creating a previously unknown sound.
Juan Diego and José Manuel León (Jerez and
Algeciras, by the way) have a disturbing something which
mustn’t be lost track of. They shaped up a zambra,
‘La Salvaora’, which Encarnita stood up to
sing, coming out to meet her brother, who came up to second
her. Cantaor pas de deux with its little sentimental touch.
That emotional aftertaste remained with the cantaora,
who, fed by León’s toque, sang the milonga.
The taste and feeling, between Chacón and Marchena.
And she now wished to stay in the essence of flamencura,
bringing forward Eduardo Pacheco, who went from being
her second guitar to first in a soleá with old-time
tessitura.
Carmelilla Montoya and Encarna
Anillo (Photo Daniel Muñoz)
But the recital doesn’t let up.
And the intensity curve bends once more with the alegrías
the album is named after, a score by guitarist Juan Requena.
The cantaora hoists her sails again. Time for the bulería,
with everyone working on it, with lyrics sung by Marcelino
Fernández, El Canastero and José Anillo.
And the guitars understand one another and vibrate. The
climax arrives, with her explanation: “When I was
a little girl I used to be amazed watching the videos
of the Montoya
family; I wanted to belong to that family, to their
parties. And I wanted to pay tribute to them on my album
with some tangos by Carmen Montoya”. Amidst applause,
her daughter Carmelilla comes up on stage, sitting beside
the hostess. Together, they display the sensuality of
Triana sound, perfumed here by the scent of pine trees
and the sea. And what mad guitars. And what clapping by
Carmelilla. The audience was beside itself with enjoyment.
It says olés and pays compliments and applauds
truly. And the company thanks it by gathering around a
table, everyone’s knuckles marking the beat, celebrating
por bulerías a veteran’s début. Encarna
Anillo is now in the foreground.
