La biennial of Flamenco from Cadiz, Jerez and Los Puertos raised the curtain on its fourth edition on Friday, October 3, with an opening day in which the singer Maria Vargas, to whom this edition is dedicated, was already a major player.
The program started in the morning in the Jerez hall The Angel's Lair with a prologue in the form of a lecture by the flamencologist Jose Maria CastanoEntitled María Vargas, voice of chamomile in branchThrough audiovisual material, Castaño explored the Sanlúcar-born artist's career while attendees sampled Manzanilla de Sanlúcar, a wine closely linked to her artistic personality.
In the afternoon, the focus shifted to the Centro Flamenco The mercy, in Cadiz, where the photography exhibition was inaugurated María Vargas, the golden singer, Servando Repetto, a visual exploration of the singer's artistic life. The exhibition, which will remain open to the public until November 30, served as a prelude to a main event that combined visual art, music, and dance in a single space.
«The programming started in the morning in the Jerez hall The Angel's Lair with a prologue in the form of a lecture by flamencologist José María Castaño, entitled 'María Vargas, voice of manzanilla en rama'
Thus, the dancer Macarena Ramirez, accompanied on guitar by Javier Ibanez, offered a performance around the seguiriya, the palo flamenco most associated with María Vargas. The proposal evoked the figure of the singer's father, a blacksmith by profession, through a symbolic element of his trade, the anvil, to underline the connection between Vargas's family roots and the strength of her cante.
The event was attended by Mario González, director of the Biennial, who outlined the program for this fourth edition and reviewed some milestones in María Vargas's career. The artist herself participated in the event, sharing memories and anecdotes and answering questions from the audience in a warm and intimate setting.
With this opening day, almost two months of activities around the world of flamenco, in eight locations in the province. The next major event will be a recital by the artist Anabel Rivera, this Saturday, October 4, at 20 p.m., at the Center Flamenco La Merced, from Cadiz.
