The Rough Guide to Flamenco Guitar (World Music Network, 2014)
Dipping into the heady world of flamenco guitar can be a little daunting for those new to the scene, as well as those in the know as new guitarists come on the scene, but there’s a remedy and that is World Music Network’s The Rough Guide to Flamenco Guitar. This Rough Guide immerses the listener with the full force of the flamenco guitar, showcasing the range of flamenco from the elegantly rich melodies to the sheer dynamic power of the guitar. Fans get a taste of the richness of classically structured pieces, as well as those of a more modern bent and a dash of the experimental flair of the new directions flamenco guitarists are taking the art.
The real treat of The Rough Guide to Flamenco Guitar is of course the guitarists. Featuring some of the best guitarists on the flamenco scene today, and a track with the recently deceased Paco de Lucia, this Rough Guide flashes fancy with opening track “Sierra Magica” by Pepe Justicia, before launching into the buleria “Sor Buleria” by Moraito.
There’s the ferocious “Al Aire” by Pepe Habichuela and the brilliant tango “Caminillo Viejo” by the extraordinary Tomatito, as well as the lush “Cerro Negro” by child prodigy Amos Lora and the experimentally quirky “Dicen De Mi” by Carles Benavent with Paco de Lucia.
Miguel Angel Cortes offers up “La Luna Creciente” while Juan Manuel Canizares soothes listeners with the lazy sweetness of “Lejana Cancion.” Other notable tracks include “Retrato” by Agustin Carbonell ‘Bola’ and “Templanza” by Carlos Pinana, both with some spectacular vocals and “Y Enamorarse” by Rafael Riqueni.
The Rough Guide to Flamenco Guitar pulls out all the vibrant colors of flamenco for the blindingly bright to the deepest hued. Deliciously extravagant and sharply masterful, this guide is sure to please flamenco fans and those who only know flamenco music from movie soundtracks.
Buy The Rough Guide to Flamenco Guitar in North America
Buy The Rough Guide to Flamenco Guitar in Europe
Author: TJ Nelson
TJ Nelson is a regular CD reviewer and editor at World Music Central. She is also a fiction writer. Check out her latest book, Chasing Athena’s Shadow.
Set in Pineboro, North Carolina, Chasing Athena’s Shadow follows the adventures of Grace, an adult literacy teacher, as she seeks to solve a long forgotten family mystery. Her charmingly dysfunctional family is of little help in her quest. Along with her best friends, an attractive Mexican teacher and an amiable gay chef, Grace must find the one fading memory that holds the key to why Grace’s great-grandmother, Athena, shot her husband on the courthouse steps in 1931.
Traversing the line between the Old South and New South, Grace will have to dig into the past to uncover Athena’s true crime.
