Martín Guijarro, August 2005

The meager list of flamenco figure biographies is fed a new title; the one devoted to Sordera de Jerez. The book, illustrated with two appendices of black and white photos, includes first-hand testimony from the cantaor, selected from personal interviews carried out by the author, Jerez-born critic José María Castaño. The artist's words dot the narration, which is divided into four periods in chronological order: his childhood in the Jerez countryside, the period working in sales, that of the tablaos in Seville and Madrid, and the final phase as a recognized professional in festivals and peñas.

But before getting down to business, the author does a study of the Sordera family tree, with the aid of data compiled by researcher José Manuel Martín Barbadillo, investigating back to the latter half of the 18th century. Surnames as flamenco as Soto, Vargas and Peña mark their family tree in which there are relatives such as Tío José de Paula. Next, the author brings up the “human, social and geographical” context in which Sordera de Jerez evolves, taking a glance back over the history of flamenco and of Andalusia, stressing Jerez de la Frontera and even the ‘microhabitat’ of the Santiago quarter.

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The biography itself contains juicy words uttered by the cantaor, the father of Vicente and Enrique Soto, Sorderita and El Bo. He talks about subjects like the hard life of festivals, his first professional experiences in flamenco and other occupations, important occasions such as his wedding, his favorite cantaores, his exam before La Niña de los Peines, Manuel Vallejo and Pepe Pinto... He comments on his references that “the echo I liked most was Fernando Terremoto's; echoes as flamenco as that are very hard to give, are privileged”. And from the period at the Sevillian tablaos he recalls that “I had a special thing with Farruco, artistically speaking. He always used to ask for me, because he liked me and he found it inspiring that I'd sing things for him about my people, especially through bulerías”. About the parties that used to be thrown at his house in Madrid, he says that “once there were tons of good artists jammed in there; imagine Manolo Sanlúcar, Paco de Lucía, El Beni, Camarón, who was very fond of me... imagine what a rumpus there was with all those people”.

And at the end are the appendices detailing Sordera de Jerez's entire discography, as well as his appearances on television programs. In the middle of the book's 249 pages, two sets of black and white photos are inserted, dozens of anecdotes and occasions depicted in pictures such as his début together with Beni de Cádiz, El Guajiro's group, at the beach with his family, that of Manolo Caracol with El Bo, the inauguration of the peña bearing his name, the picture together with his son Vicente and his nephew José Mercé... This graphic material completes a book which pays homage to he who is already one of the top cantaores in flamenco history.

More information:

Sordera. Jerez Cante Families (I). Special Feature