Doña Mencía: the harvest of years of passion and respect

If the key to a good harvest is based on rigorous control of grape ripening, adequate planning or careful harvesting techniques to avoid spoiling it, at the 53rd edition of the Doña Mencía Flamenco Harvest, Córdoba, has many more years of tasting with good taste, passion and respect for the flamenco.

This town of good people and people with good taste has welcomed in the Old Church Auditorium Another top-notch lineup for a festival considered one of the longest-running in the province of Córdoba. A flamenco evening that has hosted the most important figures from across the country since 1970.

The stature and authority of Esther Merino, the solvency of José Valencia, and the development of El Perrete are all very helpful, but beyond the artistic aspect, it's also worth highlighting the immeasurable effort of an entire town and government team in the care and attention to detail throughout the entire development.

A festival that still preserves groups of friends gathered around the fridge stocked with good wine (from Doña Mencía, of course), ham, and friends, whether amateur or not, is lived with nostalgia. It takes us back to our childhood, spent evenings surrounded by good food and good wine. cante: That is, in absolute silence.

dog started with cantethreshing machines and peteneras of The Girl with the Combs. He did it with the confidence of someone who knows what he's singing and what audience he wants to reach. The National Prize winner from Córdoba is clear about the path he wants to take, although the chosen repertoire leaves us fans without that compass with which we could better understand and accompany him. He has an impressive capacity, he's learned a lot, and he's grown in all aspects, but, like his last work, he needs to follow that 'guiding light' to mature and emerge as a real artist. Knowing what and who he wants to be, but that's a matter of time. He has more than enough talent, and Extremadura, of course, should be proud of an artist who moves fans, followers, and makes a name for himself at the best festivals. With the generous guitar of Rubén Levaniego that shone only for himself cante, Perrete took us through the cantes from the east. He reminded us how elegant the light and mountain women are and finished off with the macho María Borrico: There, he nailed it. He said goodbye to a fan of music to be commemorated with fandangos of Marchena, Porrina…, leaving you wanting more.

"Esther Merino's performance at the Vendimia was a show of class and power. The siguiriyas of the woman from Badajoz are out of this world. A cante that runs down the spine and shakes the listener, how can one sing so well! Humble, in his place, and with his heart and ours in his fist, he sang cantiñas and closed with bulerías.

Esther Merino. 23rd Doña Mencía Flamenco Harvest Festival. Old Church Auditorium, Doña Mencía, Córdoba. August 2025, XNUMX. Photo: Tres Jotas Studio

Jose Valencia, with the superb guitar of John Requena, made it clear who he was and that he had come for soleá. A soleá without fuss, with the weight of the past and Lebrija in his throat. Malagueña and verdiales from Lucena de Cayetano Muriel, a little relief from the festivities, to finish with a siguiriya that convinced him where he stood, and reminded the fans who they were facing. Silence and a support from Doña Mencía, who has plenty of class to spare.

The dance of Belén Ariza Baena's performance, correct and supported by Granada artists. Good intentions, good manners, and applause for this chemistry graduate, who searches for the formula on stage between theory and practice. Sincere and affectionate applause from the audience.

and then it came Esther Merino, which he honored to start by saying that it should have been maestro José Valencia who closed the festival. Then the audience forgot all that, because the Lámpara Minera offered us a lesson in solvency, class, humility and cante in capital letters, so after listening to it, the least we could do was figure out who should or shouldn't have closed it, because she was the closing touch.

He remembered his land, Extremadura, with Perez de Guzman, The Marelu by tangos, accompanied by the guitar of Seve child and palmas de Richard Gutierrez y Alberto Parraguillas. Esther, wonderful, because she has Badajoz in her throat, but the touch and the palmas, as is often the case with canteThe native Extremaduran tangos that don't support those of the land accelerate. This time, we did so if we didn't want to make the Triana tangos meaningless. Esther Merino's performance at the Vendimia was a cluster of class and power. The Badajoz native's siguiriyas are out of this world. cante that runs down the spine and shakes the listener, how can one sing so well! Humble, in his place, and with his heart and ours in his fist, he sang cantiñas and closed with bulerías.

Another edition for Doña Mencía, Córdoba, and a lesson for anyone who wants to learn how to handle a date of this magnitude. Perhaps the formula was no more and no less. the love of a people for its roots, and the absolute respect for that art so hackneyed, and sometimes so mistreated, as is the flamenco. Congratulations.