Digital Dive is an extension of our Deep Dive program, which invites our audience to take a more in-depth exploration of our artists.
Over the course of our 40 year history of programming the performing arts in Scottsdale, Flamenco has become one of the staples that we love bringing back year after year. Since the ’90s, the Center has programmed an element of Flamenco in almost every season, across all of its forms. A few of the legendary Flamenco artists to grace our stage over the years have included Paco Peña, Tomatito, and Arizona’s very own Julia Chacón. It’s clear to us that our audience loves Flamenco just as much as we do so we thought we would explore the different ways Flamenco takes shape.
Flamenco originated in Andalusia, Spain over the course of many centuries. First beginning as the cante, or song, and then introducing the guitar, then the dance, and on and on through the growth and evolution over the years. If you’re interested in learning more about the evolution and various forms of Flamenco see the TEDx video below featuring Julia Chacón and Flamenco Intimo guitarist, Kristofer Hill.
Chacón has graced our stages over the years with various productions that she creates herself along with her team of collaborators. Beginning in the 2018–19 season at the Center; the partnership evolved and we began to produce Flamenco Intimo, a series that runs every fall presenting unique Flamenco shows weekly.
Over a 15 year period around the turn of the millennium, the Center presented Flamenco legend Paco Peña five times. In the late ’90s and early aughts, Peña was already considered one of the most prominent traditional Flamenco musicians. Over the course of the years that Peña performed on our stage he would receive the Oficial de la Cruz de la Orden del Mérito Civil (Order of Civil Merit) and the gold medal in the arts from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Both of these awards were given for Peña’s contributions to the world in the form of art and preservation of a classic Spanish art form. Below, is one of Peña’s most recent filmed performances with acclaimed guitarist, Eliot Fisk.
On March 20, 2020 the Center had plans to present Spanish Brass with Chano Domínguez and José Moreno. This collaboration has been dubbed Puro de Oliva by the participating musicians and began in 2015 after Spanish Brass invited Domínguez to collaborate. Domínguez is one of the most notable pianists in the jazz and Flamenco world having a successful and decorated four decade long career. Spanish Brass is a dynamic and vibrant brass group that is admired across the world. Spanish Brass have released 21 albums, but this collaboration is their first foray into the world of Flamenco. Luckily for us, Spanish Brass has a compilation of video showing this unique collaboration. Please note that in this video the featured percussionist is Jose Domínguez and not José Moreno as it would have been presented at the Center.
Have you made any memories at the Center relating to Flamenco? We would love to hear about them at [email protected]
Bonus Video!
Below is an archival video of Julia Chacón’s Flamenco Theatre Concert as it was presented in 2016 on the stage of the Virginia G. Piper Theater.
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