When it seems that everything has already been invented in the flamencoAside from the deep, avant-garde movements of dance, someone comes along and slaps you in the face, telling you that the past can't be changed, that the present feeds on the past, and that the future is yet to be invented. And in between are those who peek out and, with a creative capacity that goes beyond mere ingenuity, offer a dose of musical reality that shakes the foundations and pillars of the cante to capture something that seems from the last century but is, in essence, a continuous present that does not live in the past but points to the most ancient future.
This is how the singer's new creation was experienced Antonio Campos at the Manuel de Falla Auditorium within the framework of the commemorative events of Day of FlamencoDeclared an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2010. Campos has created, on purposeA flamenco choir. Yes, a choir. The name might seem a bit overused in the cante Or perhaps it's not complex, but you only need to open your ears and close your eyes to understand what this flamenco offering consisted of. In short, it was a gathering of accomplished flamenco singers who, under Antonio's direction, gifted us with a form of flamenco diametrically opposed to the art of flamenco. cante Through the union of voices, all diverse, with divergent tones, but with the capacity to merge into a single line, fine, very fine. Four female singers with soft, high voices blended with those of four male singers, powerful, striking, with strong, harsh voices. Irene Molina y Fita Heredia, closely related in form on one side and on the other, Manuela's Star y Alba CamposThe young women in the group had early, temperate, but well-formed voices. On the male side, Abraham Campos, Juan Ángel Tirado, Sergio el Colorao and Antonio Campos, and a single guitar, the one of Jose Fermin Fernandez.
A flamenco choir is nothing more than a traditional flamenco repertoire in which all the voices come together harmoniously to create a high-end product of quality and personality. That's how it was experienced and how it happened. It was, in short, a great polyphony of cante jondo.
It all began with the group slowly entering from the side of the stage singing the dawn song Los cantes from my house, that Campos recorded on his album Late Antique. It served to unify the tones of them and them, which were pulling upwards and in which they won the battle, not the war.
In several voices, and with the repetitive "ayyy" of the sugarcane cutting, they passed the baton in the lyrical and melodic corpus. Fita Heredia took the floor and gave it to Irene Molina, a prodigious talent. The "ayyys" were choral. At times they reminded us of church chants and Gregorian chants, but flamencoby right. Alba Campos and Estrella de Manuela closed the cante, somewhat timid and nervous but effective while the choir cushioned their voices.
"They gave us a diametrically opposed form of the cante through the union of voices, all diverse, with divergent tones, but with the capacity to merge into a single line, fine, very fine. Four female singers with soft, high voices blended with those of four male singers, powerful, striking, with strong, harsh voices.
The men started off in soleá por bulerías: Antonio Campos and El Colorao, to finish off with soleá Tirado and Abraham. Granada can boast of heavy metals in the canteWhether it's choral or not, we are living through a generation of enormous voices in Nasrid lands that few can overshadow. There was joy and a round of announcements (Macandé), threshing, saetas, martinetes and Alba Campos's finale with a light toná that made room for another long set of seguiriyas in the voices of Abraham Campos, Juan Ángel and Sergio who threw the asauras, there is no one who can touch them.
But the best was yet to come. If you Henry the Twin It has always been said that the imprint of his malagueña came from having heard Gregorian chants at masses. Campos and his team were able to take us back to the last century so we could understand what El Mellizo might have heard and how he came to define his malagueña. Antonio sang supported by distant choirs, with a touch of guitar in the background, but cradled mainly by the choir, in several voices, in different tones, high and low, songs that wounded and scratched together. He finished with fandangos of Peppermint Bottle.
And there were tangos, many tangos. And Dying Watching from the sky, he gave his approval and top marks. Because over there, Graná is the captain.
The choir finished with bulerías, canasteras, camaroneras, and all sorts of other styles. As many styles as there were voices singing and embellishing them.
I've left the guitar for last. It deserves its own chapter. José Fermín is not just one of the best. He reaches unimaginable heights. The word genius is very delicate and sometimes gratuitous in its use and application, but the genius of his hands, his mind, his imprint, his ability to capture the canteThe accompanying guitar and its distinctive sound elevate it to the heights of flamenco guitar playing. There's no question about it. He faced eight other singers and won. They won, because in such a well-designed choir, we all win. The audience and the artists.
Credits
Flamenco choir of Granada
Manuel de Falla Auditorium, Granada
November 16th 2025
Concept and Musical Direction: Antonio Campos
Cante: Antonio Campos, Irene Molina, Juan Ángel Tirado, Alba Campos, Estrella de Manuela, Abraham Campos, Sergio el Colorao, Fita Heredia.
Guitar: Jose Fermin Fernandez
