ARTE Flamenco Pura provided an emphatic reminder that flamenco is best appreciated when the guitarist is joined by dancers and singers.
Led by guitarist Juan Martin, Arte Flamenco Pura has two dancers (David Morales and Raquel de Luna) and a singer (Antonio Aparecida). Organised by the Improvised Music Company, their performance at Vicar Street was magnificent.
The music and dancing all express controlled passion, building toward rhythmic frenzies yet remaining curiously restrained. Rhythmic climaxes were cut short, lapsing into silence and then slowly building again.
Martin is recognised as one of the great flamenco guitarists, and with the aid of discreet amplification he managed to sound more like a full band than a lone musician. The guitar was always supported by the insistent handclapping of the other members of the group, allowing elaborate rhythmic patterns to emerge.
Singer Antonio Aparecida belted out the melodies, his sliding, ornate delivery providing a constant reminder of flamenco's Arabic roots.
Both dancers were awesome. At one point, David Morales performed a kind of cadenza, spinning around and creating a soft drumroll with his feet (Martin's exclamation, "Forget Michael Flatley!" drew a cheer). But most impressive was the way the dancing was so inextricably linked with the music - Martin never took his eyes off the dancers' feet, responding to their tapped rhythms.
A truly remarkable evening.
