The Tres Culturas Foundation, in collaboration with the Andalusian Studies Centre, is organising three concerts featuring the musical heritage from the vinyl records in Blas Infante's library.
The Casa de la Alegría, Blas Infante's family home in Coria del Río, houses 46 slate records. Its bibliographic and musical collections related to flamenco, the range of music from North Africa, some songs from Hispanic folklore, Latin American music, classical music and what is considered "exotic music", allow us to approach and delve deeper into the memory of the Father of the Andalusian Homeland.
To continue studying his legacy, and coinciding with the birth of Blas Infante (Casares, 5 July 1885), the Andalusia Studies Centre Foundation (CENTRA) is organising the Blas Infante and His Music Concert Series. Flamenco, Classical and Andalusian. Comprising three events, which will be held on 13, 14 and 15 July at the Three Cultures of the Mediterranean Foundation (Calle Max Planck 2, Isla de La Cartuja, Seville), the series revives the musical collection from Blas Infante's record library, which is kept in his personal library.
This initiative complements the research work "Phonographic Fund and Musical Legacy of Blas Infante in the Casa de la Alegría in Coria del Río," carried out at the request of the CENTRA Foundation by Dr. Manuela Cortés García, a retired titular professor in the Department of History and Music Science at the University of Granada, and a full member of the Andalusian Academy of History since 2017.
The author underlines the importance of her musical legacy “upon observing the vast array of musics of oral tradition within the plurality it encompasses” and highlights the “surprising work of selection and their variety (classical, popular, ethnic, religious, and Sufi), considering the scarce information available in her time.” For Cortés, this legacy “offers us insight into her tastes, her musical and bibliographical curiosities and concerns, facets that denote the restless character typical of a humanist and an intellectual eager for new knowledge.”.
Free admission with prior registration at THIS LINK.
Concert Calendar
The concert series ‘Blas Infante and his music. Flamenco, classical and Andalusian’ has the collaboration of the Three Cultures of the Mediterranean Foundation, as well as the El Legado Andalusí Foundation, the Barenboim-Said Foundation and the Andalusian Institute of Flamenco.
Admission to the three concerts is free, although capacity is limited. Those interested in attending must register in advance on the website of the Centre for Andalusian Studies or the Museum of Andalusian Autonomy to reserve their place. The concerts will begin at 9:00 PM, and access to the facilities will be open from one hour prior, starting at 8:00 PM.
Furthermore, the concerts will be streamed live. Those interested in watching the broadcast have the option to register online and will receive an email with the link at the start of the event.
Wednesday, 13th July. Classical music concert
The first of the concerts is dedicated to classical music and has been organised in collaboration with the Barenboim-Said Foundation, as two of their students, Olga García Rodríguez and Luis del Ojo Sánchez, will be offering a piano recital.
Among the pieces to be performed are Glinka's «Alouette» and «Elegy», along with other musical pieces by composers contemporary to the Father of the Andalusian Homeland, such as Isaac Albéniz's Suite Iberia «El Albaicín», Spanish pieces by Manuel de Falla, Enrique Granados's Goyescas, and preludes by George Gershwin and Claude Debussy, among others.
Thursday, 14 July. Flamenco concert
At this concert, organised in collaboration with the Andalusian Institute of Flamenco, featuring the singer Jeromo Segura, accompanied by guitarist Álvaro Mora, the musical pieces of this genre contained in Blas Infante's shellac records will be performed.
Themes such as the fandangos «Las lágrimas del querer», performed by José Cepero, and «Y lo llevo a mucha gala», by Niño de la Rosa Fina. Also mining and mountain fandangos by Antonio Grau, the peteneras «Soy como aquel fiel peregrino», by Canario de Colmenar, and rondeñas and javeras by El Mochuelo, among others.
Friday, 15 July. Andalusian music concert
This Andalusian music concert will be led by the group Al Angham, comprising Fathi Ben Yakoub (violin), Youssef Mezgueldi (kanun), Mouhssine Koraichi (oud), Khalid Ahaboune Khali (percussion), Habiba Chaouf (vocals), and Pilar Alonso (guitar).
Several musical pieces from this genre, contained on Blas Infante's gramophone records, will be performed, featuring composers and performers such as Mahlen Abel Errahmane Zouiten, Laho Seror «Neklabat», Si Hassen Ben Amran, Mohamed El Kamouri – K`Sida D`Aicha, Mansour Ben Mohamed – Kass El Mahna, and Cheloumou Souiri – Moulat El Ghana, among others.
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