El Niño

Description

Rocío Márquez has achieved an incredible tour de force: bringing everyone into agreement. Beginners, whom she immediately opens up to a world, Flamenco, often seen as harsh and hermetic, through the purity and softness of her voice; demanding aficionados (knowledgeable enthusiasts), won over by her talent and mastery of the most rhythmic palos (styles, forms); and the most orthodox flamenco purists. The intensity of her interpretation, subtle melismas, exceptional vocal clarity, sobriety and precision in singing: far from the seductive effects that are so easy to overuse, Rocío Márquez has chosen the path of a pure, stripped-down and sincere art. The young Andalusian, born in 1985 in Huelva, defies clichés: a Paya (non-Gypsy) with light hair and green eyes, she has been singing flamenco since the age of nine without paying heed to the snide remarks about her appearance, which does not conform to the supposed canons of a cantaora. Turning away from the tortured expression often associated with cante jondo, her clear voice rises more readily toward the azure than it reflects the darkness of the abyss. In 2012, the release of her first album, Claridad, propelled her, alongside Paco de Lucia, Enrique Morente and Miguel Poveda, into the very exclusive club of non-Gypsies who have managed to establish themselves in the world of Flamenco while opening it up to the general public. By choosing to place her new album, El Niño - to be released on February 2, 2015 - under the star of Pepe Marchena (1903-1976), Rocío Márquez clearly positions herself in the family of flamenco renovators, while affirming a noble and popular vision of this art.