While searching for misplaced documents, I came across a telegram dated January 13, 1990, addressed to Emilia Robles Cano due to the death of her husband, the friend and teacher Manuel Cano, who had said goodbye to this world on the morning of the previous day, at his home in Granada, Colonia Cervantes (Stella Maris).
That morning, a concert of bells from the Granada minaret announced the tragic outcome. After almost two months of agony, the ever-respected and admired Manuel Cano He ceased to be a missionary on earth to serve as an apostle in heaven.
Manuel Cano Tamayo had been the first professor of flamenco guitar in recorded history, but he wanted to emulate, along with his partner Emilia, Jorge Luis Borges"I want to be remembered less as a concert performer than as a friend." And that won us all over.
This was the greatness of an illustrious Andalusian, whose centenary we will celebrate next Monday, the 23rd, while also remembering that he possessed such a unique virtue that, even when his opinions were widely interpreted, he would always avoid any confrontation with a smile. And this despite our informal discussions, where we would engage in conversations under his varied, essential, and sometimes fleeting guidance. "I always wanted to project flamenco guitar to the world," he would declare, as if to conclude our talks. "Mission accomplished," I would reply.
The explosion of this height of kindness –Saint Manolo Cano I called him Francisco Vallecillo Pecino– it cannot be understood without the blossoming of affection for others, as we analyzed in our time in Diary 16without the conflict that comes from having the treasure of lived experience deep inside and overflowing it like a wound of generous love.
The fruit of a slow maturation, he tirelessly analyzed and refined all the vibrant sounds of tradition in order to share them with the world. Thanks to this altruism, Manolo Cano—as his friends called him—forged a significant trend in aesthetic beauty, a field of learning, and a wellspring for delving into the past or for approaching the distant depths of commitment. In short, he had become a historical reference point and the starting point that everyone should strive to reach.
As the years went by, while we spoke here with borrowed voices, Andalusia found its own voice across the seas through him. The explosion of his enduring sensitivity led him to lay the world at his feet. flamencoI would even add that, as a unifying and integrating element, he was our ideal propagandist, the ambassador of Andalusian culture. And I'll explain.
"Rescuing the original voices and elevating the schools that were left behind along the way, along with their teaching methods, occupied the purpose of a lifetime. No one until Manuel Cano had offered such an ambitious program with the inexplicable effectiveness of being fiercely current, or of being continually present in the spirit of contemporaries."
The same encompassed the entire stylistic landscape, revealing the virtuosic secret of Don Ramón MontoyaFor example, he unearthed the valuable contributions of Andalusian folk music or offered variations that defied all analysis. All in all, he stood out as the most important anthologist in history, capable of forging new paths along the infinite trails of the guitar, that kind, hollowed-out woman with a wooden body.
In this sense, and because researchers in his time failed to fully appreciate his work of such importance, Manuel Cano always had the great merit of wanting to express everything. Supported by his inexhaustible wisdom and vast knowledge, he imbued the guitar's past with a gentle touch. Any attempt at external aggression or exasperation died within the strings. Every sound, every falseta or strum, carried within it the history from which it arose and the contexts in which it had resonated. But always in a pleasing way.
Rescuing original voices and elevating schools that had fallen by the wayside, along with their pedagogy, occupied the purpose of a lifetime. No one until Manuel Cano had offered such an ambitious program with the inexplicable effectiveness of being fiercely relevant, or of being constantly present in the minds of contemporaries.
We are thus approaching a teaching artist to whom we must return every time we try to navigate the violet waters of the tuning fork. There is always, even in the vigil of the night, a voice almost muted, silenced by the heartbeat of the malagueña of lecuona, to extract the dignity of someone who possessed a serious vocation and dedicated care.
The influence he exerted on other concert artists is undoubtedly due to the example of a life deeply devoted to flamenco guitar. At first, he went unnoticed by anyone who wasn't a specialist. But from the moment he garnered his first international acclaim, he captivated young people, rose to prominence, and with incredible humility transcended the boundaries of all the flamenco circles.
His great lesson – a work within great works – lay in the benevolent treatment he granted us all, always generous with his fellow man, so much so that he dedicated all his years to sharing the latest research data, to contrasting opinions and enriching himself with knowledge to enrich us.
This, dear readers, was the magnitude of an illustrious Andalusian and a dear friend and teacher, for whom next Monday, the 23rd, we will raise a toast to celebrate the centenary of his birth—a salute we send to someone who, despite being subject to all sorts of interpretations, always avoided any confrontation with a smile. ♦
