Interview with Raúl Rodríguez and Pepe Torres 'Son de la Frontera'

Interview
with

RAUL RODRÍGUEZ
and PEPE TORRES

«Son de
la Frontera»

SON DE LA FRONTERA WRAPS UP THEIR SECOND RECORDING

The group’s latest work is scheduled
to debut on October 7th at the Bienal de Flamenco de
Sevilla

Text: Sonia Martínez Pariente
Photos: Rafael Manjavacas

Son de la Frontera performed Sunday June 4th at the
Círculo de Bellas Artes within Madrid’s
festival called Suma Flamenca. As is customary, the
group was a resounding success with an audience that
nearly filled the concert hall. At the end of the show,
two of the group’s members, Raúl Rodríguez
who plays the Cuban tres and dancer Pepe Torres gave
us a preview of what their second record, “El
Sonido de la Cal” is like.

The chosen title is very significant as Raúl
explains: “We decided to call it ‘El
Sonido de la Cal’ because much of the lime that
white-washed Andalusia in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries,
just when flamenco was in its formative stage, came
from the mountains of Morón. In those days music
didn’t change hands on CD or Mp3, it traveled
with people, and all the people involved in the whitewash
business were in and out of Morón. It’s
nice to think of the lime as mute witness to that formative
period of flamenco, it played an important role. Whitewash
is a liquid that purifies and decorates surfaces. My
feeling is it’s like flamenco, painting over paint
and at the same time somehow purifying”.

«We’ve continued
delving into the sources and into ourselves»

The record will be presented at the Bienal de Sevilla
“October seventh if all goes well”
says Raúl. Guitarist Diego del Gastor continues
to be the group’s main reference and source of
inspiration, but there are some new twists as Pepe explains:
“I think it’s a record that opens new paths
in the sense that there is music of Diego del Gastor,
but also some original material by Raúl and Paco
de Amparo, new things”. “We’ve continued
delving into the sources and into ourselves, it’s
a two-tiered approach, being able to do new things that
sound familiar and give a fresh sound to things we’ve
grown up with and which have always been with us”
adds Raúl. The guitarist mentions some of the
sources for this recording: “We do a take
on things from Sabicas and Montoya, things Diego del
Gastor also filtered and included in his playing. We’ve
even renovated some things from Diego’s brother
‘el Mellizo’ who was a brilliant guitarist,
very little-known outside the immediate area of Morón
but a genius with the Morón sound”.

The record contains classic flamenco forms and some
rich traditional details as Raúl explains: “There’s
a falseta of Trianilla de Ronda in the alegrías,
very old. Trianilla died in 1933 and that variation
has been handed down, never before recorded. Pepe knew
it and now we’ve been able to reproduce it, it
might be at least 70 or 80 years old”.

“It’s
music we’ve always lived with joyfully and innocently
ever since childhood”

In the course of their performance at the Círculo
de Bellas Artes, Son de la Frontera already sang some
material from the new recording, one of them, a bolero
done to bulerías rhythm: “It’s
something Bernarda and Fernanda de Utrera always did
a lot…they make it flamenco and it sounds great”
says Pepe. “It’s music we’ve always
lived with joyfully and innocently ever since childhood
and now, funny how things come out sometimes, bolero
por bulería has become fashionable. I might do
it with my mother, or Diego el Cigala does it or Mayte.
Moi has a special touch for it, he really feels what
he sings and that gives it a special edge”
says Raúl.

It’s clear the group’s first record was
a success, and they hope the new release will represent
a further maturing of their ongoing musical project:
“Each one of us has his moment, and what’s
very important is to keep including dance, guitar, voice
and instrumentals. It’s one of the secrets that
makes people react favorably to what we do”
says Pepe when asked about the key to the group’s
ascent, and Raúl adds: “There’s
a collective force, it’s really great and it’s
what gives the strength to mutually support one another…in
the music, in the artistic endeavor and in personal
growth”.

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