Various Artists - Masters of Flamenco Guitar

Many subtly varied kinds of music fall under the rubric of flamenco, which is a style of singing, dancing, and even living, as well as playing the guitar. This collection presents a good guitar selection, highlighted by the polished technique of Sabicas, the profundity of Manolo de Huelva, and the sheer brilliance of Melchor de Marchena. There is a drastic change of atmosphere in the transition from track 10 (a zapateado played by Nino Ricardo) to track 11: Manolo de Huelva accompanying the voice of Manuel Vallejo. Suddenly we are in a cuadro, the natural environment of flamenco, with a group of participants clapping, stamping their feet, and shouting encouragement to the musicians. No longer is it just a man sitting alone on a stage or in a studio, playing the guitar fluently and flawlessly; this is cante hondo, the heart of flamenco, intense and astringent, and the best of this disc's many flavors. --Joe McLellan Amazon.com

Masters of Flamenco

Masters of Flamenco Guitar

This is a remarkable CD. The musicians are truly gifted, the music beautiful. Makes me want to dance along. March 11, 2008

Excellent price, good performances, some track labeling issues

For the price, great for those interested in classic flamenco guitar. Sabicas, Nino Ricardo, and the others were true flamenco maestros.

Something I noticed, though, (which is not Amazon's fault, I think) but must be the record company's, is that the Sabicas tracks are probably mislabeled. Based on my understanding of the flamenco forms, the 'compases', the tracks are probably shown out of order. Listening to the pieces, the first track is an alegria, the second a buleria, the third a farruca, the fourth a zapateado (and I have a DVD where Sabicas is playing this and it is labeled as being a zapateado), and the fifth a taranta, so actual ordering of the tracks should probably read:

Alegrias 'Salero Gaditano' - Sabicas
Bulerias 'Con Un Clavel' - Sabicas
Farruca 'El Albacin' - Sabicas
Zapateado - Sabicas
Taranta 'Camino De Linares' - Sabicas

I think the ordering for the non-Sabicas tracks is okay. March 1, 2008

NOT what I had hoped!

This was not what I had expected, and I was disappointed at the performances. Ive heard better players play the same songs, and usually I do not agree that anyone can top the original player of a song, but I felt like there was not enough energy in the way these songs were played, and it sounded kind of sloppy, and rough, rather than concentrated and smooth. December 3, 2007

This album is for musicians

I am a big fan of flamenco, but I am not a musician. I still like and appreciate the music in this album, but I think it is for musicians who can understand the skill. May 21, 2007

Four of the Best (before the 2 Pacos)

This is a high quality recording of four of the best Flamenco Guitarist predecessors to Paco Peña and Paco de Lucia. March 28, 2007

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