2009 NÎMES FLAMENCO FESTIVAL.
JUAN JOSÉ AMADOR • FERNANDO TERREMOTO •
CHIQUETETE
3 truths
Silvia Calado. Nîmes, January 22nd, 2009
‘Trois voix pour l’histoire’.
Juan José Amador (cante) with Eugenio Iglesias (guitar)/
Fernando Terremoto (cante) with Alfredo Lagos (guitar),
José Carrasco (box drum), Carlos Grilo and Luis Cantarote
(clapping)/ Chiquetete (cante) with Eugenio Iglesias (guitar).
19th Nîmes Flamenco Festival. Thèâtre.
Nîmes (France), January 21st, 2009, 8 p.m.
THE ATYPICAL. The time
came. Juan
José Amador sang without anyone in front, without
batas de cola or heel tapping in the foreground. The Sevillian
cantaor finally let his atypical echo ring out freely. At
first, it took the shape of a murciana, a warm-up cante
which he connected to the buzz of the verdial. He showed
the soleá to La Alameda and he offered it to “the
lineage of Los Pavones”. He sang it with just the
right pace, filling it with air, controlling the tempo to
a tee but invisibly. And he lifted it up in the final stretch,
incited by Fernanda’s memory. The metalized voice
then opted for fandangos, dedicated to a José Valencia
whose olés went beyond the streets. He did them unhurriedly,
emphasizing the expression and striking up a conversation
with the guitar of Eugenio Iglesias, another reliable veteran
of the trade. But to him he is even something more than
“a great guitarist; I love him as if he were something
of my own”. With his hand on his chest, he attacked
the cantiñas. Light. Sweet. A brilliant ‘le-le-le’
announces the bulerías, which he applies his original
vocals to, sketching it out nicely, dropping the verses
along. The crowd didn’t settle for that, as if aware
that they were witnessing something extraordinary. And Juan
José Amador, who has every resource and then some,
responded with a chilling ‘trintrin’. He nails
the lyrics of the madman in the time, in the audience and
in the history of this festival made by and for people who
like to listen.
THE SURE THING. Fernando
Terremoto came to Nîmes true to himself. He drew
on his usual repertoire, perhaps changing some lyrics around,
and he opted for the sure thing. Nothing appeared from that
long-awaited album, produced - they say - by an alternative
musician. And that, despite having the guitar of Alfredo
Lagos, capable of any somersault, and clapping and percussions
accompanying him from the very start. That voice of his,
seismic, impressive, suddenly gushed forth to the sound
of bulerías por soleá. Each onslaught, a trail
of olés. He contrasted the rushes with the velvety
malagueña, a real exercise in mastery. And with an
‘Alfredian’ introduction, the seguiriya came
in. With his “hospitalito de Cai”. With his
“Porverita”. By then, it was impossible for
him to conceal from the audience his vexation with the sound
system. He decided to take drastic action, leaving behind
the microphone - as if he needed one - and standing firm
at the edge of the stage. He reeled off a couple of fandangos
which shook the Roman foundations of this illustrious city.
In the same way, he worked out the final bulería,
which he illustrated with the grace of his little dance.
It wasn’t the right time for encores.
WHAT HE WAS. Chiquetete,
cantaor. Chiquetete, on stage. The former wasn’t the
same time ago as the latter, but both things broke the norm.
This festival, in its longing to have its own events, has
remembered none other than the origins of he who would later
become a successful romantic singer in Latin America and
a prisoner of the media. But here, that entire context was
unnecessary and he was welcomed with the reverence for a
veteran. “May the magic spring up in my throat”,
he invoked. And the thing is that the Triana-born artist
knows he isn’t what he used to be nor does he have
his faculties in shape, but he’s an old dog on stage
and he doesn’t know how to surrender. And if his instrument
doesn’t reach the place aimed at, he always has an
expressive resource handy. He thus traced his career as
a cantaor, which he marked with a strong Triana style, from
the martinete to the soleares, with unhurried, heartfelt
tientos as well as rhythmic tangos in between. The audience
was on his side at every moment. And his devotion deserved
it to be so. He stuck in “los días señalaítos”
por fandangos, before taking a glance at Huelva with a ‘toronjera’
style. He went to Cádiz por alegrías. He went
to Jerez por bulerías. And he finished the job in
the encore with ‘Sólo quiero caminar’.
As if he wanted to say something.
Daniel Muñoz’s
photographs are exhibited on the
Roman temple Maison Carrée
Five hundred
snapshots of baile, cante and flamenco toque
are being exhibited upon the millennial façade
during the 2009 Nîmes Flamenco Festival.
Manuela Carrasco, Paco de Lucía, Estrella
Morente, Eva Yerbabuena, Moraíto, José
Mercé… are just some of the stars
of his personal exhibit. The work by the Madrilenian
artist, photo director of Flamenco-world.com,
has already visited other international venues
such as the Barclay Theatre in Irvine (California)
and the Bimhuis in Amsterdam. In March, the
exhibit ‘Bailaora’ is scheduled
at L’Escorxador Contemporary Culture Center
in the Alicante-area town of Elche.
Visit
the 2008 Flamenco Photo Yearbook, by Daniel
Muñoz
More information
www.danielmpantiga.com
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