XVI Festival Flamenco Caja Madrid 2008. Capullo de Jerez, Lebrijano, El Torta

Text: Manuel Moraga
Photos: Rafael Manjavacas

YESTERDAY AND TODAY

The program of the Cajamadrid Festival is turning out to be very varied and entertaining.  Last night the spotlight was on Lebrija, Santiago and the Plazuela, epicenter of the basic cantes that continue to be custodians of duende.  One thing for sure, some manage it better than others.

Capullo didn’t even let the organization welcome the audience or announce the program.  Before the curtain went up, Miguel Flores was already making his presence felt on stage.  Part of the act?  Not very likely.  But that’s how Capullo is, he got the ball rolling in the blink of an eye with his bulerías por soleá, and continued with the same force of personality with his fandangos and bulerías, making art out of compás.  Capullo is over the top in almost everything he does, but with rare exceptions he tends to serve up his art with a certain coherence and equilibrium between interpretation, backup, voice, forms and taste.  The fact is, he was quite good, perhaps with less shine in his voice than on other occasions, but it’s not that important in a strong performance.  Nevertheless, the anarchic personality is one of Capullo’s trademarks, and it shows.  For example, the verses of his own creation aren’t exactly of a high poetic level, and the bulerías sets sometimes seem never-ending.  What people say about “too much of a good thing” is perfectly applicable here.

Capullo took his leave and was replaced by El Lebrijano: the contrast was total, not so much because of “roots” – both singers have them – but the way in which they bring their art to the stage.  Juan Peña “El Lebrijano” envelops everything he does in a special kind of poetry, whether singing standard soleá or interpreting his most recent creation.  There is elaboration behind his discourse that is a long way from primitivism, despite having a direct line to the heart of flamenco.  That said, you also have to take into account that it wasn’t one of his best nights. In fact, from the start, he seemed to have a cold or some kind of problem with his voice, because he couldn’t quite get it to obey.  The crucial moment came when he announced he was going to sing granaína por tangos, and asked the audience to keep rhythm with their palmas…in Madrid!…  You could have cut the air with a knife.  Miraculously, a voice from the audience shouted out “sing soleá, Juan!”  And Juan changed his mind, granting that request, which was when we began to see and hear the true Lebrijano.  What a great idea that audience-member had, thank you whoever you are!  Much to our delight, Juan Peña managed to get into it and find his voice.  That was when we were able to enjoy the greatness of this gypsy maestro from the glorious family full of music, feeling and art.  We enjoyed Lebrijano’s compás as much in soleá as in bulerías.  And in siguiriyas, he also managed some fine moments.  And all the while below physical par.  He had a hard time making the high notes, but was still able to manage the deep sounds so important in flamenco.  In the end, Lebrijano knew how to communicate his concepts.  And all while, Pedro María Peña was a hit with the audience thanks to his fine guitar-playing which created suggestive atmospheres. 

For the home stretch it was Juan El Torta.  Free-flowing cante, in big doses, holding nothing back.  Alegrías full of strength, big siguiriyas, tangos full of depth, moving bulerías, impressive soleá.  In these cantes, and with a sense of commitment, everything was perfect, but I have to defend my perspective.  Equilibrium is a fundamental aspect of art, and El Torta has the defect of extremism.  The malagueña of Mellizo was moving in the strong moments, but where was the subtlety, the pulling in that cante requires?  Well, in that cante and in all of them, really.  There’s a lot to be said for the no-holds-barred approach, but to build an entire expressive structure on just that, gives poor results.  Plenty of compás however.

In any case, seeing and comparing these three basic artists, I’m still glad we’ve got Lebrijano, who is capable of reflection and presenting well-considered conclusions based on a primitive and essential discourse.  Juan Peña, for example, doesn’t use compás as an end in itself, but as a vehicle to interact with others in harmony, in equilibrium, to create his own aesthetic.  Lebrijano has poetry, his cante is lyrical, while the purely intuitive art, without reflection, can be manipulated: flamenco has suffered, and continues to suffer the eternal figure of the “señorito”, which used to be a person, and now takes the form of “purity”.  There is a certain egotism and injustice in crowning singers because of their primitivism: primitivism which in the times we live, can no longer have the same relevance.

P.S.:  Regards to Arcángel.

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