Enrique Morente died in 2010. Good friends and lovers of flamenco, Camarón de la Isla and Morente represent a generation of flamenco sigers that changed the things. In a broad sense Morente and Camarón represents a counterpoint: Morente was payo (no gipsy). Camaron was cale (gipsy). Camaron had the heritage of flamenco in the blood of his family (his parents were singers), Morente was a self-taugh. Camaron was from Cadiz and Morente from Granada. Camaron was a wild being in his music and Morente was methodical.
They represent two different views of flamenco, but ironically both points of view were twins. Ironically the two singers represent two outstanding flamenco personalities, two outstanding musicians which carried out with their careers in a parallel ways. Camaron had to fight against reactionary sectors of flamenco from the core of flamenco community. Morente had to demonstrate that he was so good than other were. The majestic and unruly but traditional flamenco of Camaron were complementary to the brainy, quiet and innovative shapes of Morente.
Do not look for bulerias in Morente’s work. Even the Morente’s alegrías has a melancholic. His work has an incredible mixture of depth and academic seriousness. His flamenco is like a complex but tidy Arabesque where compás was not the most important thing (he declared it in interviews). That could be an heritage from the East flamenco, quite different to the Western Flamenco of Cádiz and Seville. One very important thing for foreign amateurs is that Morente enunciated clearly. All the people can understand what he is singing.
What is my description of Morente music? I always think that he created a view through a kaleidoscope of clear and cold colors.
Morente learnt his flamenco listening to the flamencos singers of his neiborghood, in Albaicin quarter of granada. He could met Aurelio de Cádiz (Aurelio Selles), a pupil of Antonio Chacón, and the family of 'Los Habichuela', a family thats maintained the musical roots of the flamenco guitarist José Patiño among others great masters, one of the fathers of flamenco guitar playing. Then he moves to Madrid and contacted with great Masters and university circles too.
From interviews and declarations, Morente has a vision by which the feeling of flamenco is assumed in the familiar and friends circles. But after this first stage, the professionalization required long years of experience and learning. Only professionals are the persons that can do experiments with the heritage of flamenco, from knowledge and technique.
In this sense their first works were strictly traditional. He recorded with the most important master for modern guitarists: Niño Ricardo and left a kind of anthology in a tribute disc to Antonio Chacón, teacher of his teacher Aurelio de Cádiz. The disc was broadly awarded. In the disc the guitarist was Pepe Habichuela. Pepe Habichuela was probably his guitarist with the better singer-guitarist dialog.
Morente learnt his flamenco listening to the flamencos singers of his neiborghood, in Albaicin quarter of granada. He could met Aurelio de Cádiz (Aurelio Selles), a pupil of Antonio Chacón, and the family of 'Los Habichuela', a family thats maintained the musical roots of the flamenco guitarist José Patiño among others great masters, one of the fathers of flamenco guitar playing. Then he moves to Madrid and contacted with great Masters and university circles too.
From interviews and declarations, Morente has a vision by which the feeling of flamenco is assumed in the familiar and friends circles. But after this first stage, the professionalization required long years of experience and learning. Only professionals are the persons that can do experiments with the heritage of flamenco, from knowledge and technique.
In this sense their first works were strictly traditional. He recorded with the most important master for modern guitarists: Niño Ricardo and left a kind of anthology in a tribute disc to Antonio Chacón, teacher of his teacher Aurelio de Cádiz. The disc was broadly awarded. In the disc the guitarist was Pepe Habichuela. Pepe Habichuela was probably his guitarist with the better singer-guitarist dialog.
Once his first milestone was reached, Morente explodes in a disc called Despegando (taking off). The record is innovative even in the tittle (a title that could be usual in rock but not then in flamenco). Morente developed his personal ways to performing flamenco. From this record to his death Morente started including other instruments, music styles, chors in other records. But at the same time he dug in the tradition or even in styles(palos) that was believed lost. The supernova explosion of this work was 'Omega' an experimental record mixing rock and flamenco. Other records like 'Lorca' or 'Pequeño Reloj' were full of his musical philosophy.
But in my favorite, the real jewel of Morente was the record 'Sabicas-morente'. The disc with the great flamenco guitar master was recorded in a very short time. Pure flameco of two masters playing at the same time, improvising. Morente, a 'cantaor largo' (he dominates a large amount of styles), sang the most important styles (palos) with Sabicas.
Morente was a very special singer. As he said ... a good amateur!
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