José María Roldán, Pepe de Sevilla. José María Roldán, III

Transcription

1 José María Roldán, Pepe de Sevilla José María Roldán, Pepe de Sevilla was born in Seville, Spain. Pepe was first introduced to Flamenco at a very young age during his baptismal celebration in Seville where the singer El Niño de Jerez sang among others. El Niño de Jerez later known as Manuel Torre was one of the greatest Flamenco singers of all time. Pepe arrived in Mexico City in 1949 where he sang at La Gran Tasca, El Colmao, La Bodega, Rincón de Goya, Venta de los Titeres, Rio Rosa and Plaza de Toros. He traveled throughout Mexico on tour with his Flamenco group Los Majaretas de Triana and in Ciudad Juarez was contracted for 4 years at the famous restaurant-bar El Alcazar where he was accompanied by great guitarists such as: Roberto Rojas Barrales, Manolo Parra, Gustavo Reza El Buzo. From 1957 to 1971 he owned the famous Bar Sevilla in El Paso, Texas, which was the meeting place of many great intellectuals and Flamencos of the time including: Agustín Castellón Sabicas, Antonio Triana, Luisa Triana, Maestro Manolo Matos, Miguel Galvez El Niño de las Cabezas, Juan Perrín, bullfighter John Fulton Short, Nobel Prize winner Pearl Buck and Flamenco Dance Company of Jimenez-Vargas to name a few. In the 1970 s, he moved to Las Vegas, NV where he lived up until 2007, prior to moving to Austin with his family. Pepe is accompanied by his son-flamenco Guitarist José María Roldán, III. José María Roldán, III José María was born in El Paso, Texas. Flamenco has been an integral part of his life since his early childhood, especially during the years he lived in Seville, Spain. He moved to Las Vegas, NV in the 1970 s and began studying the Flamenco guitar during his late teens with guitarists such as the virtuoso Lionel James, Pepe Marco, and his cousin Manuel Antonio Roldán from Seville. In recent years, his main focus has been the accompaniment of singers and dancers. He has worked with many great flamenco artists such as: Flamenco singer José María Roldán, Pepe de Sevilla (his father); guitarists Lionel James, R.J. Fox, and Lewie Booth; Flamenco dancers Sonia Santamaría, Coral Citron, Andrea Del Conte, Vanessa Alvarado, and Margo Torea. He has performed in theater productions, hotel and casino venues, corporate events, and on television. Additionally, he and his group performed at the 2005 American Folk Festival in Bangor, Maine, and at the famous Feria de Abril, in Seville, Spain. He was a member of the faculty of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Dance Department as a Flamenco accompanist. Besides performing and accompanying dance classes, José María also teaches Flamenco guitar to a limited number of students. José María collaborated with his father and a wide array of Flamenco artists to form The Spirit of Flamenco to present a traditional tablao style interpretation of pure Flamenco. He moved to Austin with his family in 2007.

2 José María Roldán, IV José María Roldán, IV Joey was born in Las Vegas, NV. He began to study Flamenco dance at age three with Margo Torea. He danced in many shows with The Spirit of Flamenco before deciding to retire at age six! Now thirteen years old, he recently showed interest in the cajón, a Peruvian percussion instrument widely used in Flamenco since the early 1970 s. He is now regularly performing with The Spirit of Flamenco as the group s percussionist/palmero, where he can put his understanding of Flamenco rhythms to use to help drive the group s beat. Chloe Brevelle Chloe Brevelle began studying Flamenco dance while attending Loyola University in New Orleans in After graduating, she moved to New York City, where she studied with Jose Molina, Victorio, and La Meira at Fazil's Studio. In 2001, Chloe returned to New Orleans and joined the Flamenco community there. She began performing with Micaela y Fiesta Flamenca, with Michelle Paule as the director. The group performed regularly in the French Quarter, and annually at the New Orleans Jazz Festival. During this time, Chloe joined the group Alianza Flamenca, directed by Solangel Calix and guitarist John Lawrence. They performed weekly in the French Quarter, and in numerous venues and festivals around the city. Chloe studied and performed with legendary dancers who came to New Orleans, such as Antonio Hidalgo, Gloria de Jerez and Antonio Vargas. She joined the group Ole Flamenco Ole with Teresa Torkanowski before leaving New Orleans in Living in Paige Texas, outside of Austin, Chloe has continued teaching and performing. In 2007, she traveled to Sevilla, Spain where she studied with Manuela Reyes, Lola Jaramillo, and Alejandro Granados.

3 Nora Deveny-Valiela Nora has been a student of Flamenco for 5 years, and has trained with Olivia Chacon and performed with her group Jaleo Flamenco on several occasions. Additionally, she has taken supplementary classes with Omayra Amaya, Leandra la Greca, Gloria de Jerez and has attended the University of New Mexico s Festival Flamenco and taken classes with Joaquin Encinias, Inmaculada Ortega, and Maria Laura Manzella. Nora is currently studying Flamenco with Chloe Brevelle in Austin, Texas Delilah Montemayor Delilah first discovered her love of Flamenco while attending the Universidad de Cadiz in Spain and traveling throughout Andalucía in She studied Flamenco under Maestra Lidia Dianez Sanchez while living in Cadiz. Delilah resumed her Flamenco studies in Austin in 2003 under the direction of Sheila Mcpherson and later with Olivia Chacon. Delilah performed with Olivia's group, Jaleo Flamenco, at several venues and festivals in Austin and San Antonio. Delilah continued studying under Masako Numasaki and is currently being taught and directed by Chloe Brevelle. Flamenco song, music and dance The Spirit of Flamenco performs intense and passionate Flamenco that developed in the region of Andalucía in southern Spain. This is a musical tradition with stories of love, death, suffering, poverty, and persecution all experiences endured by the Gypsies, the first Flamenco artists. The Spirit of Flamenco is a collaboration of Flamenco artists from the greater Austin area. We perform pure, unadulterated Flamenco, authentic in every sense. Our performances incorporate all the main elements of Flamenco, cante (singing), toque (guitar playing), baile (dancing) and palmas (hand clapping).

4 A Brief History of Flamenco Gypsies came to Europe from India in a series of migrations starting around the 12th century. After wandering through central Europe, a group of them arrived in Spain early in the 15th century (around 1423 they were described as reaching Barcelona). Others appear to have reached southern Spain from North Africa later in the same century. They brought with them their own language, and an oriental-based music. To this day, Flamenco clearly shows signs of its oriental origins in the use of non-western harmonies and rhythms. The roots of Flamenco can be traced back for centuries born from the expression of a persecuted people, most notably, the Gypsies of Andalucía. Flamenco s unique blend of influences and musical complexity can be attributed to the consequences of the decree made in Spain 1492 by Catholic Spanish King Ferdinand V and Queen Isabella, that everyone living under their domain convert to Catholicism. This proclamation was issued under the threat of varying degrees of punishment, the most severe being the death penalty, by fire. Gypsies, Muslims, Jews and anyone living in Spain at the time were ordered to convert. It is believed that because of this decree, these different ethnic groups came together to help each other, and within this melding of cultures Flamenco was born. Flamenco, in general, consists of three artistic elements: song (cante), dance (baile), and guitar (toque). In addition, there are often members of a Flamenco group playing "palmas" (hand clapping), and castañuelas or palillos (castanets). The relationship between the artists is similar to that of Jazz-there is a basic structure that one must follow, but at its heart, it is an improvised form. The singing is the center of the Flamenco group. The dancer physically interprets the words and emotion of the singer through his or her movements, which include percussive footwork and intricate hand, arm and body movements. The guitarist provides the accompaniment to the singer and dancer, accentuating the singer s vocal lines and melodies, and following the dancer s complex footwork.

5