The fall 2023 edition focused on the guitar. Boulder, Fort Collins and Lyons hosted maestros from Spain: Rafael Riqueni and Juani de la Isla, with the voice of El Cañejo.
Rafael Riqueni, guitar
Grammy nominee 2021. Rafael Riqueni was born on August 16th 1962, in the Triana neighbourhood of Seville. At twelve years of age he gave his first performances as a soloist, and at fourteen he won the two main national guitar awards: the Ramón Montoya Prize in the VIII Córdoba Competition, and first prize in the VI National Competition of Jerez. In 1981 he won first prize in Jerez again.
In 1986 Riqueni published Juego de Niños, the first chapter of one of the most praised discographies in flamenco and Spanish music history, introducing harmonic and compositional ideas that began to define his unmistakable, classically influenced style. Flamenco earned a cult following among generations of guitarists, Mi Tiempo (1990) brought critical acclaim, Suite Sevilla (1993) was inspired by Spanish classical impressionism, and Maestros (1994) paid tribute to Niño Ricardo, Sabicas and Esteban de Sanlúcar.
After 1996’s Alcázar de Cristal he did not record for twenty-one years. His comeback came at the 2014 Seville Flamenco Biennial, where he received the Giraldillo a la Maestría Prize. Parque de María Luisa (Universal Music, 2017) was hailed as the best flamenco guitar album in recent history, and in 2020 he premiered Herencia in Seville before an international tour and the Guitarra con Alma Prize at the XXXIV Festival de Jerez.
During the edition Riqueni also gave a masterclass at the Dairy Arts Center.
Juani de la Isla, guitar
Juani de la Isla is a highly respected flamenco guitarist from the island of San Fernando, near the port city of Cádiz. He has toured internationally with some of the finest flamenco artists of this century, among them the singers José Mercé, Chato de la Isla, Rancapino and Pansequito, and the dancers Javier Barón, Sara Baras and Manuela Carrasco. He has composed for the company of Cristina Hoyos, was for over a decade musical director for the singer El Barrio, and has taken part in more than 300 albums. In 2015 he released his first solo CD, Libertad En Mis Manos.
El Cañejo, singer
Raised in Barbate, he took his stage name from his mother, known as La Cañeja. His cracked, compás-filled voice lets him sing cante jondo with purity, or open up flamenco-fusion with rhythm and melody. He has performed across Spain and Europe, was part of the group Zocaire, published his first album La luz que me guía in 2016, and has performed at Casa Flamenca and around the United States since 2018.
