XLII Gazpacho Andaluz José Menese, Carmen Linares, Cancanilla de Marbella, Marina Heredia, Luis el Zambo. Juana Amaya

XLII Gazpacho Andaluz
“Diego en el Recuerdo” Tribute to Diego del Gastor
on the centennial of his birth
Friday and Saturday, July 25th and 26th, 2008. 10:30pm. Morón de la Frontera (Seville)

Text & photos: Estela Zatania

GAZPACHO ANDALUZ: Cante: José Menese, Carmen Linares, Cancanilla de Marbella, Marina Heredia, Luis el Zambo. Dance: Juana Amaya and her group. Guitar: Luis Mariano, Antonio Carrión, Antonio Moya, Paco del Gastor.

This year the town of Morón de la Frontera is celebrating the centennial of the birth of their most representative flamenco figure, Diego del Gastor. There have been activities in El Arahal, Arriate, and most recently, Ronda, to remember this artist who became a cult figure among American flamenco fans long before he was known in Spain, and decades before the group Son de la Frontera would come along to pay tribute to the person who was the source of their musical inspiration.

Throughout the week in Morón there has been a variety of activities, with both local and guest artists, and Friday was the day set aside for the official tribute.  In the late sixties and early seventies, American Don Pohren wrote about Morón flamenco in general, and Diego del Gastor in particular, inspiring numerous foreigners, mostly from the United States, to make the pilgrimage to this sleepy town in the northeast of Seville province.  A considerable number of alumni from the era, now white-haired and wrinkled, were in the Morón bull-ring to reminisce about those heady days and re-establish contact with old friends.

Friday evening began with the young grandchildren of Paco del Gastor, Diego’s nephew; the continuation and updating of a style thanks to Paco’s good taste and knowledge.  The local honor was also defended in singing with Antonio Ruiz “El Carpintero” and Paco Camacho among others.

The evening ended with Morón dancer Pepe Torres who now belongs to the world.  His collaboration with the popular group Son de la Frontera has earned him followers in many countries thanks to the extreme elegance of his dancing, and an intensely flamenco style.

Carmen Linares y Salvador Gutiérrez	Juana Amaya
Paco del Gastor	Luis el Zambo & José Ignacio Franco

The venerable Gazpacho Andaluz held on Saturday, one of the longest-running festivals, is up to its forty-second edition.  Keeping with the tradition of beginning with a guitar solo, Paco del Gastor demonstrated his mastery, playing soleá with bulería ending, combining the characteristic phrasing and attack of the Morón style, with current harmonies and musical concepts.  At one point a young voice shouted out “0lé abuelo!”…one of the boys who had played on the previous night.

Cancanilla de Marbella is a veteran to be discovered.  Nowadays, when traditional singers are harder than ever to find, Cancanilla, who is no Terremoto or Antonio Mairena, still manages to efficiently fill the vacuum thanks to his knowledge of cante, and long years in the profession.  Accompanied by the fine guitarist Antonio Moya, he sang soleá, siguiriya, tientos tangos and bulerías with the dance bit he always uses to close.

Thanks to her work in investigation and conservation of various styles of cante, Carmen Linares has won the respect of flamenco fans, even though she offers a kind of singing not usually appreciated in these parts.  She is highly professional, encyclopedic, methodical in everything she does, and intelligent.  But it’s in the free-form styles, especially mining cante, where her musical sense is best appreciated.  On this occasion she is ably accompanied by Salvador Gutiérrez on guitar.

In this varied high-quality program, we then had the pleasure of enjoying the warm sound of Jerez singer Luis el Zambo with José Ignacio Franco on guitar.  So authentic and natural is Luis’ approach – he sings as if he were at your kitchen table – that some of his performances occasionally lack luster, that permanent spark that polished professionals turn on and off at will, and which allows them to maintain a certain level at all times.  And it’s precisely his naturalness that makes el Zambo’s singing all the more interesting.  On this night he was at ease and inspired for siguiriyas, fandangos, soleá and bulería to close out the first part.  

Cancanilla de Marbella & Antonio Moya	José Menese
Marina Heredia & Luis Mariano	Pepe Torres

After our dose of gazpacho, the edible kind that is, lovely Granada singer Marina Heredia arrived on stage accompanied by Luis Mariano on guitar.  This is an artist who cultivates classic cante, always through the prism of her personality and youth.  Dressed in an evening gown with giant polkadots, she sang cantiñas with a chorus of voices, soleá de Triana, siguiriya, tangos with all the flavor you’d expect of someone from Granada, and bulerías.
 
José Menese from the neighboring town of Puebla de Cazalla recalls how in the Gazpacho of 1964 Diego del Gastor offered to accompany him, a performance that is documented in many photographs.  He tells us that earlier in the day a grandson was born to him, that his name will be “Mariano”, and then he proceeds to sing marianas, a nearly extinct form he has always cultivated.  The old child prodigy continues to be faithful to his classic line, and as often happens in flamenco, his struggle with diminished faculties adds wonderful poignancy.  Antonio Carrión accompanies him knowledgeably for tientos, soleá and siguiriyas, “for all the gypsies and those who aren’t gypsy” says Menese.

The definitive closing to the evening is provided by dancer Juana Amaya, another local artist who is internationally known.  In a beautiful copper-colored dress, and with the cante of Miguel Lavis, David el Galli and Enrique el Extremeño, one single long soleá dance gets the audience to their feet and ends this edition of the Gazpacho Andaluz, not with a whimper, but a bang.