Evolution. The perpetual student

Walking a path of fusion, one that winds its way between flamenco and jazz, Jorge Pardo has developed continually as an artist. As to how this evolution came to pass and where it's all headed, the musician from Madrid is quick to offer some insight. "I think there's a constant evolution inside me. I was thinking about that not long ago because sometimes it's closed doors to me. It means a quest for learning; it's as if I were a perpetual student. And this brings me round to thinking I've reached a certain age and I still haven't moved on from the curious phase. Sometimes it can be detrimental, because it stops me from focusing on a specific aspect, perfecting and strengthening my abilities in a certain direction, but that's just the way I am. The thought often passes through my mind that I should cut down on the hassle and concentrate more on some things, but I guess I haven't matured enough."

And the result of this so-called 'immaturity' is that "I fall victim to my love of doing many things. I'm curious when a musician turns up and shows me a number I'm not familiar with or don't know how to play well, and I wonder how I could do that tune... or how I could draw on aspects of his music for my own musical style, for my way of seeing things. That's me. My projects are founded on that perpetual restlessness."

And as a result of this work, he has become a standard reference point in the use of sax and flute in flamenco music. "Imagine you want to search for the cause, start to untangle the web and look for the source, without drinking from it, that's how I find myself. A lot of people have got into flamenco and the instrument because of my work." And he takes the opportunity to offer his apologies: "I'm sorry, I'm really sorry, I won't do it again."

The fact that he has followers drives Jorge Pardo on, convinced that "there's room not for twenty, but for two hundred flautists, and without any need for them to observe each other too much - they can each go their own way. I think there's room for all". And he steps back to analyze himself: "Flamenco is so rich, there's so much wealth there to be discovered, that every detail recreates a whole universe if you stop to listen. As I discover all the nooks and crannies of this music, there's so much to be created, so much I could do, that there's nothing for it but to lie down and take a siesta. And hopefully the fever will pass me by."

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