The venerable concert hall of the Bisbee Women’s Club was filled to capacity for both the Saturday and Sunday performances of the Chris Burton Jacome Flamenco Ensemble. The popularity of this group is easy to understand. Chris Burton Jacome is one of the finest flamenco guitar artists, and is a wonderful organizer of Flamenco performances. He has picked the finest flamenco singers and dancers and has enthused audiences in major cities in the U. S. and abroad.
The dancers are Lena Jacome and Martin Gaxiola. Both are infinitely skilled, experienced and exciting.
Lena Jacome is a tall, beautiful woman who appears to be completely devoid of excess weight.
She was quick and graceful in her first solo, a beautiful dance in which the light blue skirt was an important part. Fitted at the hips and nearly floor length, the weighted hem must have been at least six feet long.
It appears that all flamenco includes frequent changes in tempo and loud accents with heels, marking a complicated rhythmic pattern.
The male dancer, Martin Gaxiola, is even taller than Lena and like her carries no excess weight. His dancing is exciting, featuring heel accents even more. His feet are amazingly fast, producing sounds like a roll on a snare drum, interspersed with those very loud heel accents.
After intermission, Lena returned wearing a beautiful shawl over a black and white dress. She looked like a royal beauty from a Velasquez painting. The male dancer joined her and they danced together a very complicated duet, a sort of rhythmic courtship.
Most of the time there was a compelling rhythm created by clapping hands. For one number they used castanets, but the hand clapping was equally effective. Chris Burton Jacome, leader of the ensemble, played guitar throughout. He was sensitive to every change in the melodies or the rhythm, and demonstrated true expertise in the field of flamenco.
Olivia Rojas was the singer. She has a very good voice, though her Spanish or Mexican style differs considerably from the styles to which we are accustomed. In the upper register the difference is slight, but in the center of the vocal range the Hispanic singer produces a sound that is different.
The male dancer, Martin Gaxiola, electrified the crowd with his final solo. His dance was very masculine, a sort of challenge to the world. The audience loved it, giving not one but several standing ovations.
The Bisbee Women’s Club and the Love of Music Series hope to secure a return engagement as soon as possible, and are considering three concerts instead of the usual two, since there were other potential customers for whom there was no room.
The Love of Music series of concerts presents 10 chamber music concerts each season in the ideal environment for solos and small groups. The prices are reasonable and the concert quality very high. Call 432-7217 for information.
