PACO DE LUCÍA. LAS VENTAS BULLRING IN MADRID

Historic work in the ring

S.C. Madrid, September 22nd, 2005

‘Cositas buenas’ (‘Good Little Things’). Paco de Lucía: guitar. Duquende, Montse Cortés, La Tana: cante. Niño Josele: second guitar. Piraña: percussion. Antonio Serrano: harmonica, keyboard. Alain Pérez: bass. Las Ventas Bullring. Madrid, September 22nd, 2005. 10 p.m.

Paco de Lucía (Photo: Daniel Muñoz)

He came into the world four months ago and he's already been to one of the best concerts in his life. Rafael, Diego el Cigala's little boy, was one of the ten thousand spectators on the night of Thursday, September 22nd, 2005 who packed Madrid's Las Ventas, the world's foremost ring for matadors... and now for flamencos, too. Although he has been filling venues of such magnitude for decades, Paco de Lucía once again made history precisely thirty years after playing for the first time at the Royal Theater in the Spanish capital, a stage which opened up to a kind of music hitherto banned on the ‘cultured’ Spanish circuit (but not the world one). Historic concerts.

From the boxes, a fantastic view. The ring covered with a red carpet and turned into rows of seats; the lower tiers quickly filling up; the grandstands, brimming over as soon as the doors were opened; vendors selling soft drinks, potato chips, seat cushions. The Goya-style decoration framing the stage is best not mentioned. And the luxuriant plants, as always, being the only stage design. When the spotlights, which nearly turn night into day, are switched off, there is an ovation, fences are jumped and there is ‘squatting’ in the lowest tiers. The thing is that, as one enthusiast put it, “some of the ones in the first rows don't even know who's playing and others in the highest rows can play what's going to be heard”. Even so, nobody discriminates this musician.

Everything goes silent. Paco de Lucía and his guitar are alone. Rondeña. The utmost delicacy. Olés for the first tune. The giant screens reveal the concentration on his face, his divine hands. The trance begins. A chilling ovation. Ten thousand olés in unison. They praise the maestro and welcome the group while they're at it. Strumming through bulerías. The tiers are raging. Vibrancy isn't incompatible with elegance. Rhythm, power... and finesse. The summit of guitar history. This is his world and he shares it. The cante, more than present. There are three voices in this new band. La Tana, his discovery, sings. Montse Cortés, ineludible, sings. Duquende sings... and the crowd goes wild.

	Las Ventas Bullring (Photo: Daniel Muñoz)

In these six strings, the ways to the bulería are infinite. Piraña kicks things off. Great rhythm. Guitar and percussion, bare and simple. The sonanta soars. A round of marvels. He takes risks. The audience is fascinated. “You really are a bullfighter!”, they shout to him from high up. And he welcomes the bull again with a pass. The freedom of the fandango gives free rein to his genius. Sensational sound. Vast beauty. Next, the rapture feeds on Atlantic airs. Alegrías. The group clusters to multiply the compás. Light. The music grows, driving the crowd to fever pitch.

Time is ripe in the intermission for the audience to enjoy their idols. “Cigaaaala, Cigaaaaaala!”, they shout from the fence. A cell phone photo together with Antonio Carmona. Long live the digital age. But the party lasts ten minutes. At the eleventh, the whole group was already on the attack. Tanguillos. The cante, exhausting the highest notes. The rhythm, full speed ahead. Just for a little while. It's not clear how, but the music is suddenly cradling the cante of Duquende. There's no other cantaor with so much drama. Spine-tingling. “Dawn bells ring”. And Camarón, who is always in his place. Back to the celebration. Tangos. A summary of three decades of flamenco, which leads to his latest installment: ‘Cositas buenas’. The bulería ‘Volar’, with its vocal frenzy, its cuts, its tension. What bullfighting by the maestro. And always with a regard to the repertoire behind him. There comes ‘La tumbona’. A harmonica really is hardly flamenco at all!

The circular sky sports three stars and an airplane, just when the guitarist intones that impressive start of the main track on his latest album. It leads into an extensive piece through tangos in which he is brimming with energy, feeling, freshness, art, art, art. A happy smile comes across everyone's face. Las Ventas Bullring is on its feet. And Paco de Lucía lets his voice be heard to give thanks and to make it known that the gods also feel human things: “It's a real pleasure, though we're really afraid here”. He drives the fear away with ‘Ziryab’, that great work. Room for solos and to miss his sextet. The sonanta imposes its voice with the song's main theme... and even with a sigh from ‘El amor brujo’. The Madrid ‘Coliseum’ explodes. Ten thousand cries. There has to be an encore. He has to be carried out the front gate to the beat of ‘Entre dos aguas’. He kicks off like a rock band; everything on the table, nothing's left in the cupboard. Senses have been satisfied; ears, at peace; souls, full of those exceptional ‘good little things’ only geniuses can give birth to.

Photo: Daniel Muñoz

Paco de Lucía's upcoming concerts
2005 ‘Cositas Buenas’ Tour

September 30th
Palacio de Congresos (Convention Center)
Castellón (Spain)

October 3rd
Munich (Germany)

October 4th
The Barbican
London (United Kingdom)

October 5th
Usher Hall
Edinburgh (United Kingdom)

October 8th
BOZAR Centre for Fine Arts
Brussels (Belgium)

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