This, in broad strokes, is the trajectory of one of the leading figures of flamenco whom I have had the pleasure of meeting and with whom I have shared unconfessed experiences, louis soler, whom I had the honor of requesting be included as an illustrious member of the Antonio Mairena Foundation and not so much for his impressive service record or for having come to define, alongside my admired Ramon Soler, Antonio Mairena like the classic model of cante not only for being a Mairena supporter who harbored no suspicion, but also for being a true Mairena supporter.
That final phrase echoed in the Plenary Hall of the Mairena del Alcor Town Hall as if it were a sentence. Even a high-ranking official of the Foundation, someone with considerable influence, told me after the session: “What I like most about your presentations is that you always have three discourses: one conciliatory, another technical—because calling a researcher a ‘jondologist’ is something I’ve never heard before—and the other forceful, which brooks no argument. Congratulations, because the Soler family has entered as they deserve, through the front door.”
The character in question, a native of Malaga and now in the incinerated heavens of the memory of the land of the trinityHe was not unaware of the "scoundrel ignorance" that existed—and still persists, because fools are few and far between—about him.
Nor were he unaware of the attacks launched against him from the trenches of infamy, such as his Gypsy-philia, his passionate and shared love with a servant of no one towards Fernanda from Utrera or excluding him from cultural circuits simply because he knows about flamenco more than those who, appointing themselves advisors out of nowhere, reproach us for the damage we critics do to the hive, damage we do to the queen. And I say no. And not because there isn't some truth to it, but because in the hive of flamenco There are no bees left, only sheep.
But without detracting from the honors I bestow upon him today, I must insist that Luis Soler was a different breed. Luis was one of those who never remained silent when it came to demanding a reform manual for flamenco vulgarity. Luis didn't hesitate to say, without mincing words, that there is no sense of moral rebellion in Spanish society, a society that has produced monsters everywhere and whose social role model is buffoons everywhere. Luis wasn't one of those who would shake hands with the boss of all bosses because that would be like the village idiot who finally gets a photo with the bigwig. Luis was and is one of those who threw the stone of necessary debate without any intention of backing down.
Luis, who in the face of injustice is as he said SocratesHe believed that committing wrongdoing is much worse than suffering it because it is more dishonorable. He also suffered at the hands of those who inoculated Flemish society with the worst poison, stupidity. That is, he admitted that there are opinions for all tastes, but there are too many Torquemadas and ignorant people.
For Luis, participation, knowledge, and reflection have been the enduring keys to integrating youth into the system. flamencoLuis criticizes –it's hard to write in the past tense, if you'll pardon the expression– the abuse of commercial mechanisms and competitions. cante prefabricated. And Luis is one of those who discredit media outlets that favor media spectacle and measure culture by audience ratings rather than quality.
"Without departing from the honors I bestow upon him today, I must insist that Luis Soler was made of different stuff. Luis was one of those who never remained silent when it came to demanding a manual for reforming flamenco vulgarity. Luis did not hide his disarming statement that there is no sense of moral rebellion in Spanish society, which has produced monsters everywhere and whose social model is buffoons everywhere."
In this sense, public officials missed a unique opportunity: to appoint him director of the Andalusian Center of FlamencoSo, while Andalusians are spared because what they see on Canal Sur TV is what's on the shoulders of the flamenco dancers, but not what's inside, predicting when the flamenco Having a good manager will be like guessing what day we're going to die.
Meanwhile, while television provides a platform for thinkers to share their reflections with the public, I cannot forget to mention that Luis has also been a devoted husband, as his wife can attest. María Isabel AguilarAn exemplary father, and there are his daughters, Marisa y Eva, and a grandfather as annoying as all grandfathers.
But he was also a decent man to his friends because his ideas went beyond the propaganda that can be used to justify anything. Luis abhorred demagoguery and deceit because he understood that the most sacred gift of humankind is the freedom to speak.
My brother Luis, finally, lived in Algeciras and, as I have hinted, suffered until the day of his retirement what I am not authorized to relate, but his last corner for memory was in Malaga.
Algeciras awarded him its highest distinction on November 20, 2009, the XVIII Silver Palm City of Algeciras, which I had the immense honor of presenting alongside my friend in remembrance Onofre Lopez, a prestigious trophy that for the first time was awarded to a writer and analyst who, to the glory of flamenco, had dedicated the best years of his life to exploring what jondo and in thinking useful for its preservation and dissemination.
But let no one forget that Luis has given more to Algeciras than he has received. And one thing's for sure: I will never ask for the title of Favorite Son of Málaga for my friend Luis Soler. Because how can someone who was the father of research in Málaga be a son?
MIL palmas to the Malaga sky, however, because, apart from the fact that it will be memory that heals the wounds of the soul that our protagonist accumulated, recognizing the merits of one of the highest authorities in flamenco should be an invaluable gesture and an exercise in courage towards someone who has just left us at 81 years of age.
And I say this because if Luis Soler never wanted to be an example or role model for anyone, “I only want to be a voice, my own, never anyone else’s,” because “it helps me not to win what I cannot, that is, the war against Mr. Parkinson, but it does help me win quite a few battles,” as he told me when the disease first appeared, from ExpoFlamenco I pay homage to a brother and great man of Andalusian culture not for what others say about him, but for his constructive contribution to Cante.
Finally, I honor Luis Soler for having instilled his thoughts and beliefs in more than one generation, and, above all, for having created an identity, that of the ideal fan, that is, one who shuns empty praise and who, instead of seeking goals for applause, delved into the principles to find where and when the path went astray. ♦
→ See here the second installment of this series from Manuel Martín Martín to Luis Soler Guevara.
→ See the first installment of this series here.
