A surprising number of my Spanish students don't like Flamenco and call it a bunch of "wailing" for tourists. So when I do find students with a love-on for it, I always ask them who their favorite Flamenco artists are. A few months ago one of my female students recommended Estrella Morente to me. When I had asked her for her suggestions her list was all male and consisted of the usual suspects, Camaroñ de la Isla, Paco de Lucia, Diego "El Cigala". Realizing this, she quickly added Estrella to the list. Morente is the daughter of a cantaor (male singer) and a bailaora (female dancer) and belongs to a family of Flamenco artists.
Montse Cortés is another famous cantaora. According to ImNin'alu.net, she is considered one of the best contemporary Flamenco voices around. Born in Barcelona from Andalusian Gypsy family, she began performing in tablaos in her early youth.
Here's a taste:
I'm not a Flamenco nut but sometimes I'm in the mood for this brand of emotional, primal, and guttural wailing and if that makes me a tourist then no pasa nada.
Olé!
see also:
Cajónes and Zapateado
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