At Madrid's Casa Encendida, the magnificently appointed Caja Madrid cultural center where parallel activities for the upcoming Festival Flamenco Caja Madrid will be carried out, the awards ceremony for the Premios Amigo was celebrated. The big winners of the night, and practically of the year, Bebo Valdés and El Cigala with their fusion of the Cuban son and flamenco.
For yet another year the music industry met, this time with a certain
austerity “to conform to the times”, to award artists chosen
by a large number of representatives of the world of music.
The Amigo awards include the category of “Best Flamenco Album”
which year after year is usually awarded to the most important artists
of the previous year, usually from the multinational record companies,
paradoxically related more to pop, blues, hip hop, Cuban son, Latin music,
chill out and so on, than to flamenco. This year's nominees were the Málaga
group Chambao, Raimundo Amador with his last record 'Isla Menor', and
the winner, 'Lágrimas Negras' of Bebo Valdés and Diego El
Cigala.
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Without a doubt Bebo's and Diego's work was the most celebrated of 2003
as was proven by their carrying off another four Amigo prizes, to the
best Latin group, best new Latin group, best Latin male soloist for Bebo
and best new Latin artist for Diego El Cigala.
The singer is going through his best artistic moment thanks largely
to Fernando Trueba who was behind the 'Lágrimas Negras' project
which resulted in the celebrated recording and a double DVD of their concert.
There is also talk about a second part. Cigala expressed his thanks for
the prizes to his 'compadre' Bebo, his wife Amparo, Javier Colina, Fernando
Trueba and many others.
More información:
Vídeo
“Lágrimas negras” with Alicia Keys.