We are not going to deny that, as much as the flamenco Although it is international, it is still strange to see a Chinese playing. And if he also does it so well, even more so. Not in vain is he the first guitarist of his nationality to obtain an official degree in flamenco guitar in Spain. But the flamencoThey have that: they are born wherever they want.
Can Wang o 'The Gypsy of Beijing' –which is his stage name, even though his little eyes betray that the nickname wears out his age– possesses flamenco even in his gait. He has blended into the Sevillian culture and the ways of flamenco as if he had gone to the university of The Compadres. And he has eagerly drunk from the masters, being one of the last disciples of the very same Manolo Sanlucar.
Brimming with respect, humility and passion for the six strings, he gave a recital on a par with renowned soloists with Andalusian pedigree. So I'm forgetting his surname to get down to business in the critique, without acidity or condescension because that would be unfair to the artist and to myself.
Can Wang has flamenco right down to his steps. He has blended into the Sevillian culture and the ways of flamenco as if he had gone to the university of Los Compadres. And he has eagerly taken inspiration from the masters, being one of the last disciples of Manolo Sanlúcar himself.
He opened it by returning to his Childhood in the introduction, with a mention of solidarity to the victims of the storm in Valencia. It was his first composition and a string of vibrant touches was predicted in the repertoire. The soleá Memory of the Jewish Quarter He dedicated it to Manuel Macias "for having made me be here." The Granada native paid tribute to the guitarist Antonio Raya Pardo, who died in 2022 at about Echoes of the Alhambra. Then he detuned the bass and put the first note in B flat to play a bulería that he had thought up "by chance." Blessed are the ideas of the SunsetIn Ronda he paid tribute to the genius of SanlucarHe composed it at the maestro's house in his last years, inspired by the walks he took around the Caballo Negro. He trilled in the tangos My air with winks to Dani de Moron o Moraito. The taranta lost light for his neighbors, for taking such good care of him. And the encore after the applause was a End of party by string bulerías, getting lost in the corners of Morón with Diego del Gastor in memory. This is how he formed his Journey to the senses, in continuous gratitude.
Can has a refined technique. He masters it. Clean trembles and single or double arpeggios have no secrets for him. And his touch is powerful when the intensity requires it, soft if the playing requires it, giving each passage its due. In his playing he alternates melodic moments with falsetas anchored in classicism. flamenco, dotted with defined alzapúas, drones jondoand precise picados. He likes tiraíllos, he doesn't lose himself in harmony to demonstrate virtuosity nor is he ostentatious in filigrees. Nor does he prolong the touches. He embellishes but without straying from the beat - he is more than enough - which he recalls with the strumming and markings on the pickguard. His guitar is digestible, understandable and easy to follow. It is fresh in execution and stale in concept. And the imprecisions or dirty moments that come to him - very few - seem to be due to haste and even to composing with high demands. Or perhaps to the nerves that responsibility imposes on him.
«The Gypsy from Beijing stated in Seville without complexes that he knows what he plays and that his guitar has enough quality to compete with the others on the festival stage, peñas and theaters. That the flamencoThey are because of how they feel and what they do without looking at origins or births.
He was solemn and with poise in soleá, sweet in granaína, very original in bulería, which deserves a separate mention for the variation in tempos, the beat and the strange tuning that gave it a different and tasty sound. Here he mentioned what Manolo used to say: "Guitarists spend half their lives tuning the guitar and the other half playing it out of tune." The rondeña tasted like old gold, in the tangos he doubled the strumming, showing that not everything is picking and running along the ebony of the neck to show off. The ovation sat him down again to pay tribute to the essential and pure cadences of Gastoreña where less is more, changing from guitar to one of Alberto Pantoja, with a tuning fork and a spectacular sound with which he closed the recital.
The Gypsy from Beijing stated in Seville without complexes that he knows what he plays and that his guitar has enough quality to compete with the others on the festival stage, peñas and theaters. That the flamencoThey are because of how they feel and what they do, without looking at origins or births. Ole!
Credits
Journey to the senses, by Can Wang 'The Gypsy of Beijing'
15th Seville Guitar Festival
Silvio Room, Turina Space, Seville
31th October 2024
Flamenco guitar: Can Wang 'The Gypsy from Beijing'
