| Paco de Lucía | |
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Paco de Lucía in 2007 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Francisco Sánchez Gómez |
| Born | December 21, 1947 |
| Origin | Algeciras, Andalusia, Spain |
| Genres | Flamenco music, classical music, jazz |
| Occupations | Composer, Guitarist |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1958–present |
| Associated acts | Joaquín Rodrigo, John McLaughlin, Al Di Meola, Larry Coryell, Paco de Lucía Sextet, Ricardo Modrego, Camaron de la Isla |
| Website | Paco de Lucía |
Paco de Lucía, born Francisco Sánchez Gómez (in Algeciras, Cádiz on December 21, 1947), is a Spanish virtuoso flamenco guitarist and composer. He is considered by many to be one of the finest guitarists in the world and the greatest guitarist of the flamenco genre.[1][2] He is noted in particular for his dexterity, technique and strength in his right hand, capable of executing extremely fast and fluent picados.
He is a leading proponent of the Modern Flamenco style, and is one of the very few flamenco guitarists who has also successfully crossed over into other genres of music such as classical and jazz. He is the winner of the 2004 Prince of Asturias Awards in Arts and in 2010 was awarded an honorary doctorate by Berklee College of Music in Boston.[3]
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Paco de Lucía was born Francisco Sánchez Gómez in Algeciras,[4] a city in the province of Cádiz, at the southernmost tip of Spain directly in front of the Rock of Gibraltar. The youngest of the five children of flamenco guitarist Antonio Sánchez, and brother of flamenco singer Pepe de Lucía and flamenco guitarist Ramón de Algeciras, he adopted the stage name Paco de Lucía in honor of his Portuguese mother, Luzia Gomes.[5]
His father introduced him to the guitar at a very young age and was extremely strict in his upbringing, forcing him to practice up to 12 hours a day, every day.[1] At one point his father took him out of school to concentrate solely on his guitar development. Combined with natural talent, he soon excelled and in 1958, at age 11, he made his first public appearance on Radio Algeciras. A year later he was awarded a special prize in the Jerez flamenco competition. In 1961, he toured with the flamenco troupe of dancer José Greco. In 1964, he met Madrileño guitarist Ricardo Modrego with whom he recorded three albums: Dos guitarras flamencas, Dos guitarras flamencas en stereo, and Doce canciones de Federico García Lorca para guitarra. Between 1968 and 1977, he enjoyed a fruitful collaboration with fellow New Flamenco cantaor (Flamenco singer) Camarón de la Isla. The two recorded 10 albums together.
De Lucía made a cameo appearance, dressed as a Mexican guitarist, in the 1971 western "Hannie Caulder," playing the melody of Ken Thorne's main theme over a string section.
His 1976 album Almoraima was a success and featured notable tracks such as "Almoraima" and "Río Ancho", the latter track of which has been covered by other guitarists such as Al Di Meola. In 1979, de Lucía, John McLaughlin, and Larry Coryell formed The Guitar Trio and together made a brief tour of Europe and released a video recorded at London's Royal Albert Hall entitled Meeting of the Spirits. Coryell was later replaced by Al Di Meola, and since 1981, the trio has recorded three albums. De Lucía's own band, the Paco de Lucía Sextet (which includes his brothers Ramón and Pepe) released the first of its three albums that same year. He has released several albums encompassing both traditional and modern flamenco styles.
In 1995, he recorded with Bryan Adams the hit song and video "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman" on the soundtrack for the movie Don Juan DeMarco. Through his wide discography he has advanced the technical and musical boundaries of his instrument. The University of Cadiz recognized de Lucía's musical and cultural contributions by conferring on him the title of Doctor Honoris Causa on March 23, 2007.
Until asked to perform and interpret Joaquín Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez in 1991, de Lucía was not proficient at reading musical notation. As a flamenco guitarist, he claimed in Paco de Lucía-Light and Shade: A Portrait that he gave greater emphasis to rhythmical accuracy in his interpretation of the Concierto at the expense of the perfect tone preferred by classical guitarists. Joaquín Rodrigo has apparently said that the performance was "beautiful, exotic and inspired".[6]