{"id":18194,"date":"2020-02-22T02:09:32","date_gmt":"2020-02-22T01:09:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.expoflamenco.com\/archivo\/?p=18194"},"modified":"2020-02-22T02:38:51","modified_gmt":"2020-02-22T01:38:51","slug":"a-wise-and-passionate-discussion-about-the-festival-de-jerez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expoflamenco.com\/archivo\/en\/actualidad-en\/a-wise-and-passionate-discussion-about-the-festival-de-jerez\/","title":{"rendered":"A wise and passionate discussion about the Festival de Jerez"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Expoflamenco Jerez Shop<\/a>\u00a0was created, it was meant to be a reference for the flamenco world in Jerez de la Frontera, a place not just to shop for some flamenco item or souvenir, but a venue where events promoting flamenco would be held. Thus, the round table Festival de Jerez: 25 years<\/em><\/a>\u00a0successfully took place, with the participation of Isamay Benavente<\/strong>, director of the festival, and a large group of journalists, flamencologists and artists.<\/p>\n

Our dear director Manuel Boh\u00f3rquez<\/strong>\u00a0was the moderator of the round table and opened the event remembering his experiences and expectations of the festival in its early days. \u00abI remember attending the first edition, back when I had much less gray hair, and I was one of those who didn\u2019t believe the festival would be successful, because the people of Jerez prefer a more intimate kind of flamenco, experienced in small groups, around a table or by the counter\u00bb, explained Boh\u00f3rquez. \u00abYet, [this festival] has become established as one of the world\u2019s most important flamenco festivals. It\u2019s now an essential flamenco event in the world stage, a magnet for many people from different countries, with a very important program\u00bb, stated this flamencologist.<\/p>\n

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Past and present, in the words of Isamay Benavente<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Thereafter, the director of the festival, Isamay Benavente, took the floor. \u00abThis year we have a new series at the Santo Domingo cloisters venue. It\u2019s not just a new series, but it\u2019s the first time we\u2019ll use this particular space, which has never been used as a venue before: the high dormitories of the cloisters. The festival has two well-defined pillars. It has a wonderful design by Paco L\u00f3pez<\/strong>, who is an incredible manager. The idea was to create a cultural industry here, and that\u2019s why we decided to focus on baile<\/em>\u00bb, Benavente pointed out.<\/p>\n

\u00abWe were heavily criticized in the first few years, particularly by Jerez\u2019 leading artists and by many people who couldn\u2019t understand why the city had a festival or baile<\/em> and not of cante<\/em>, since Jerez is renowned for its cantaores<\/em>. We choose baile<\/em> because Paco believed that the foreign public is more interested in baile<\/em>. After people get hooked on baile flamenco<\/em>, they also become interested in cante <\/em>and flamenco guitar\u00bb, continued Isamay.<\/p>\n

The director of the festival also highlighted the training courses which have been a feature of the festival since its early days. \u00abIn the first edition \u2014 a very short one \u2014 we only had one course. It was taught by Angelita G\u00f3mez<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 present among the public \u2014 and it was as part of a scholarship for the Compa\u00f1\u00eda Andaluza de Danza<\/em>, where Mar\u00eda Pag\u00e9s<\/strong>\u00a0was the director at the time. It was taught for the scholarship holders because we didn\u2019t have time to advertise the course\u00bb, she stated.<\/p>\n

\u00abWe were heavily criticized in the first few years, particularly by Jerez\u2019 leading artists and by many people who couldn\u2019t understand why the city had a festival or baile and not of cante, since Jerez is renowned for its cantaores\u00bb (Isamay Benavente)<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Benevente also highlighted the contribution of the festival to the discovery of new talent. \u00abBesides that course, there were a series of shows featuring both local and non-local artists, many of whom were little-known. That\u2019s another contribution of this festival. There are many artists here in this land, and most people only knew the locals, who are very good, but they barely knew any artists from other cities. The festival has enriched us by featuring so many artists from lots of different places\u00bb.<\/p>\n

Finally, Isamay reviewed the courses of the 24th<\/sup> edition of the Festival de Jerez<\/em>. \u00abThis year we have fifty-three courses and workshops. As a novelty, we\u2019ve also included weekends. Eighty-seven percent of available spots have been taken, one thousand and twelve spots. We know by experience that many people also sign up for courses after they arrive here. There are many sold-out shows and flamenco aficionados have great interest in this festival\u00bb.<\/p>\n

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