There are many different ways to create. One of them is to recreate and rework what already exists, giving even more value to established historical masterpieces without making them seem decades or centuries old. It's a wise move to step outside the boundaries that define time and the paths of creation. In the 21st century, perhaps we suffer precisely from a lack of (re)creators. For some decades now, the narrative threads of modern discography have been marked by (re)creating and drawing on well-known repertoires to solidify apparent novelties. But beyond the simplistic analysis of mere copying, the true novelty of these recreations lies in crafting a discographic work that is innovative and transports us not to the past, but to the future.
Alicia MoralesThe renowned flamenco singer from Granada has just released her second album, which is nothing less than a tribute to the Sevillian flamenco singer. Antonio Pozo The Owl.
To work and delve into the work of the person who has recorded the most in the history of flamenco It's no easy task. It's a long-term exercise in responsibility, at least as long as it takes to have access to his work, dedicate hundreds of hours to getting to know it, internalizing it, discarding what doesn't pass the filter, deciding on what does, and, most difficult of all, on what raises doubts about whether it has the true value, always subjective, to be included in the selection.
That's why Alicia has dedicated years to this study. First, we must ask her why El Mochuelo and not someone else. Second, there's the added difficulty that he wasn't, and still isn't, a flamenco singer truly appreciated beyond being considered a flat, shallow singer. But his value isn't just in his voice, though that's important too. It's in his work, his legacy, and how he has become a fundamental pillar in the transmission of flamenco singing from primitive styles to the current, robust ones. Therein lies his value. And the value of this tribute lies in the wise choice of how to round out an album, selecting from over three hundred recordings to create a repertoire that reflects the quality of his legacy.
In the laboratory, analysis and selection, see, Alicia's research process, have participated Carlos Martín Ballester, Faustino Núñez, Manuel Martín Martín and a server.
But thick Alicia and her indispensable collaborator, the guitarist, have ruined the job Jose Quevedo Bolita.
Among the many virtues of the CD, the choice of cantes. The scalpel has gone to dissect with a microscope in each cante a set of styles that come entirely from the primitivism of what Mochuelo did at the end of the 19th century and which he recorded on both cylinders and single-sided slate discs.
Thus, the album begins with guajiras My lifewhere it faithfully carries on the tradition of this primitive form in the version that was sung in that century. It is a true rescue and journey into the past, a novelty that no one has paid attention to beyond singing it live in some dance performances. I remember a premiere of Javier Baron at the Teatro Villamarta back in 2006 under the musical direction of Faustino Núñez, hence the musicologist's essential collaboration on this album. Alicia incorporates several of the versions coined by Mochuelo, bringing a powerful and engaging personality to the album's protagonist.
Although the Little Owl played all the palosThe songs chosen by Alicia and Bolita are not only due to the uniqueness of the classic repertoire inherited by new generations, but also to a leit motif It's a very well-researched piece that goes beyond simply highlighting the study and revival of old flamenco singing styles, which, were it not for the Sevillian and the Granadan, would remain in obscurity in their discographies, accessible only to a select few. That's why I understand that the singer and guitarist must have immersed themselves in the character and transported themselves to the era to understand and decide what to do.
"Although Mochuelo played all the palosThe songs chosen by Alicia and Bolita are not only chosen for their uniqueness in the classical repertoire inherited by new generations, but also for a carefully considered leitmotif that goes beyond the simple act of studying and rescuing old singing styles that, were it not for the Sevillian and the Granadan singers, would remain in the oblivion of their discography, accessible to only a few.
The tientos that follow are the classic ones, adorned with melismatic turns that Alicia adds, dressing them in modernity, along with the tangos that cover the final part of the theme.
The taranta is a tribute to memory, to the heritage of a flamenco tradition that consolidated forms and styles as personal as those of Pedro el Morato o Fernando de TrianaAmong so many others. Therefore, the most important aspect of the entire work analyzed as a whole is the maintenance of a calm and accurate balance between the past and the present, while sounding towards the future.
In the bulería, modern to the extreme, it picks up the baton of Bernardo de los Lobitos, from the cante A short film from Jerez, featuring an open-ended proposal with original choruses and lyrics, paying homage to El Mochuelo and even a nod to Mama Lala (For those who didn't know her, she was the main advocate for Alicia becoming a flamenco singer).
I especially like the seguiriya, in which Alicia takes a highly personal approach with tonal shifts and quarter tones that set it apart from any other style, another of the Granada native's signature moves. The styles are classic, addressing what Mochuelo recorded on the guitar. Manuel Lópezmimicking the cante and transforming the old into the new. A few weeks ago, in a review published on this website, I analyzed a live performance of this album and titled it, I believe humbly and aptly, Renewal of cante old ageAnd I maintain that feeling with every listen to the album.
Just like the seguiriya, the soleá is a blatant rescue of 19th-century singing forms without filters or asymptomatic embellishments.
I also want to highlight the old Sevillanas that they have chosen from the extensive repertoire of the original discography with a magnificent selection of lyrics, very careful in their concordance and in their poetic and literary sense.
The album closes with an old petenera, adorned with musicality and originality, updated, and refined through the voice and careful study of each verse. It's worth listening to on repeat to understand its origins. cante.
And it ends with a saeta, that of Caiaphas, with the feel of the toná of Christ very much in the forms in which they were conceived in the flamenco of that time.
I've left the guitar playing for last. While the old recordings haven't allowed José Quevedo Bolita to delve deeply into the falsetas, he hasn't needed to because he has been able, superbly in my opinion, to incorporate the cante Alicia's old and modern flamenco singing style, with its own creative flair, is abundant here. The careful choice of silences, of lyrical endings, of the gathering of the canteThe personal contributions, sounding fresh, lead us to believe that an album of this magnitude wouldn't be complete without a guitar playing so perfectly suited to the legacy and the archaeological and stylistic repertoire conceived for a guitar as unique as Bolita's. Therefore, this collaboration could become a benchmark in the future, not only for understanding how singing was done in the 19th century but also for understanding its interpretation. cante through the filter of 21st-century mindset, knowledge, and study. The rest of the album features other musicians of equal importance to those mentioned: paquito gonzalez in the percussion and castanets of Eva Ruiz Verdejo in Sevillanas. ♦
