Esperanza Fernández Vargas was born in Sevilla in 1966. She has gypsy blood in her veins. Her family has long included guitarists, dancers and singers who have imbued her with the great heritage of Andalusian culture. She always wanted to be part of the flamenco world, and began her career at the age 16 as singer soloist with Mario Maya Amargo. She found success in 1994 when she played with Enrique Morente in A Oscuras, a show that was very successful in the 7th Bienal de Arte Flamenco at the Maestranza Theatre in Sevilla .
The following year, Esperanza immersed herself in the works of Manuel de Falla which have become associated with her career over the years. She has recorded all the works of this Spanish composer under the direction of Juan Udaeta (these recordings won the Premio Andalucia Joven de Flamenco awarded by the Culture Council of Andalucia).
In particular she is known for her performances of Manuel de Falla’s principal work, El Amor Brujo, with the Symphony Orchestras of Valencia, Galicia, the City of Granada, the National Orchestra of Brazil and the Spanish National Orchestra (directed by Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos). In 2004 she chose to sing El Sombrero de Tres Picos from Manuel de Falla’s repertoire on the occasion of the anniversary of the birth of Salvador Dali. Esperanza Fernández has also made recordings; for example in 2001 she released her first solo album (Esperanza Fernández) which remains to this day one of the most successful flamenco albums.
The versatility of her voice along with her delight in discovering other cultures and types of music combine to allow her to go beyond pure flamenco: in 1997 she was chosen to represent Spain at Pop Komm 97 in Cologne. That same year she was invited by Yehudi Menuhin to take part in the Voices for Peace concerts alongside stars from various countries (Noa, Miriam Makeba).
In 2003 Esperanza Fernández took part in several projects that fused flamenco with jazz, in particular with Jean-Marc Padovani. Recently she has premiered her show Almadia (in collaboration with Moroccan musicians) at the Cirque d’Hiver for the Ile de France Festival.
Her third album Mi Voz En Tu Palabra wads direceted by David Peña Dorantes.
In 2009 she received the Al Ándalus and XII Gitano Andaluz awards.
Discography:
Esperanza Fernández (BMG Ariola España, 2001)
Recuerdos (2007)
Mi Voz En Tu Palabra – Canta A Saramago (DiscMedi Blau, 2013)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.