Israel Galván “Edad de Oro”
Benavent-Pardo-Di Geraldo Trío
Sunday, November 12th, 2006. Amsterdam.

Complete Program

Text: Estela Zatania

“Edad de Oro”. Dance: Israel Galván. Cante: Fernando Terremoto. Guitar: Alfredo Lagos.

Long before putting together the program for the Dutch Flamenco Biennial, the organization had it clear that Israel Galván had to be a part of it somehow. His avant-garde aesthetic, his extraordinary creativity and his clear vision represent, not only the objectives, but the very spirit of the newborn festival. The work chosen for this purpose was “Edad de Oro”, the most hermetically perfect of the Seville dancer. Three men – dancer, singer and guitarist – in wonderful communion guide us through a flamenco excursion for an hour and a half. “Excursion”, because it’s not anything like the usual set-up. In fact, nothing is ever “usual” when it comes to Israel Galván except his capacity to surprise.

If just two days ago on this same stage the qawwali group from Pakistan used an unaccustomed format for Westerners with pieces that lasted upwards of a half-hour, in “Edad de Oro” Galván goes to the opposite extreme: his dances in this work last less than a lot of bulerías bits. Nevertheless, the inspired dancer manages to fill each moment with his unexpected, insolent postures and pranks. Sometimes the cante is isolated from the dance, first you get one thing, and then the other. From the country cante of trillas Fernando Terremoto opens with, to the siguiriyas, soleá, bulería por soleá, malagueñas, tientos or bulerías, everything is taken on with the utmost artistic innocence – flamenco as a malleable vehicle, without any hang-ups. Israel Galván’s sensitivity, intelligence and preparation make it all work. Other special beings hear voices. Israel hears music within the music. He slices and dices time into minuscule portions which he then fills with more dancing per instant – not movement, but dance, there’s a slight difference – than any of his peers. It’s not possible to separate the highpoints from the fill-in because it’s one continuous highpoint.

Everything is taken on with the utmost artistic innocence

In Galván’s shows, observers are never allowed to be passive, we’re obligated to work through each dance with him, receiving and organizing a flow of visual signals we’re never seen before at every step of the way. It’s a stimulating experience, even when we’re unable to figure out a couple of things here and there. The dancer turns out to be an understanding guru who awards our hard work with a few minutes of conventional bulerías, within his unconventionality of course, and this is when everything that went before seems justified.

Needless to say, Fernando Terremoto and Alfredo Lagos are both exceptional artists who are not only up to the unusual needs of the show, but provide real substance with their capacity and good taste. The fiesta finale where Fernando plays the guitar, Israel sings and Alfredo dances never ceases to be a delight, no matter how many times we see it.

Israel Galván, Fernando Terremoto, Alfredo Lagos (photo: Estela Zatania)

The show in the café cantante which closed out this inaugural flamenco biennial in Holland was the first letdown of the week. It’s not that Jorge Pardo, Carles Benavent or Tino di Geraldo are deficient in any way. On the contrary, they are exceptional musicians in their respective specialties. What’s not so clear is whether their presence at a flamenco festival, however contemporary it might be, is justifiable. These three names appear on endless recordings as collaborators with the best flamenco artists, but from there, to being self-sufficient enough to represent flamenco and pull off an entire recital, requires a leap of faith not every flamenco fan is prepared to make, beginning with the undersigned.

Turning the night flamenco with a little bit of cante and a lot of compás

This was my first trip to the jazz underbelly of flamenco and the main stars already have wrinkles and grey hair. The first impression, speaking, lest we forget, as a raw beginner, is that this music sounds little different from the jazz I remember being so popular in the nineteen-fifties. I actively grope for a flamenco, Andalusian or at least Spanish feeling in order to send home the news to a certain sector of flamenco followers who, like myself, may not know this group, but the flamencometer shows not a blip. Like all music we hear for the first time, it seems as repetitive and monotonous as a recital of the best flamenco singing might seem to a neophyte. The music lacks apparent form, is rhythmically obvious compared to flamenco and the melodies seem not to have any beginning or end or drama. The absence of a human voice further complicates the ennui I am unable to ward off, and like others in the audience, my gaze begins to linger around stage right awaiting the arrival at any moment of Diego Carrasco who was added to the program just a few days before the festival.

Finally flamenco arrives with Carrasco. Just like the other three, he’s an old avant-garde flamenco warrior. But an avant-garde purist, and it’s no oxymoron because his instincts keep him on the straight and narrow road to Santiago of Jerez. Given the forced sensory deprivation until now, he goes down with all the flamenco weight of Manuel Torre, and you just want to run over and hug him for having come from so far to turn the night flamenco with a little bit of cante and a lot of compás.

And so it goes, all good things must come to an end, but 2008 is just around the corner and all that’s left for now is to congratulate the people in charge for the success of this historic initiative.

More information:

Jorge Pardo, Carles Benavent, Tino di Geraldo, Diego Carrasco

El Concierto de Sevilla -Carles Benavent, Tino di Geraldo, Jorge Pardo