Bay Area Flamenco presents
NOCHE DE CANTE GITANO ANDALUZ: AGUJETAS & MORAO
Singer: DIEGO AGUJETAS
Guitarist: PEPE DEL MORAO
Vocals & Palmas: Tomasa Peña
This special concert celebrates the release of the CD “Agujetas y Morao,” a project presenting the historic collaboration between two of the most important flamenco families of Jerez de la Frontera, an essential cradle place of flamenco. Diego Agujetas with his voice and Pepe del Morao with his guitar, defend the essence of flamenco Gitano and their family’s legacy. The CD was recorded using the very same guitar that Pepe del Morao's grandfather Manuel Morao played when accompanying Diego Agujeta's father "El Viejo Agujetas" for the legendary TV series "Rito y Geografía del Cante,"
Diego Agujetas a cult figure among aficionados of the cante, is revered for his ability to evoke the duende of the ancient sounds through his voice. Born in 1945, he is the son of “Agujetas el Viejo” a blacksmith from the San Miguel neighborhood of Jerez de la Frontera, renowned as a depository for the oldest forms of Gitano singing especially the siguiriyas and martinentes of giants such as Manuel Torres and José de Paula. His mother, from a parallel tradition in el Puerto de Santa María, was heir to a style of song known as the Gitano “romance.” Diego, like his brother, the legendary Manuel Agujetas, keeps these forms alive, passed down through the generations. Bay Area Flamenco is proud to present Diego Agujetas in his first appearance in the U.S.
Pepe del Morao represents one of the most important flamenco guitar-playing dynasties in history. Born in 1986, he began his professional life at age 14 working with his grandfather’s group, Manuel Morao y los Gitanos de Jerez. He was taken under the wing of his uncle Moraíto at a young age, performing with him and with his cousin Diego del Morao throughout Spain and around the world. A skilled accompanist for the cante he has worked with renowned singers such as Juana la del Pipa, Tomasa la Macanita and Jesus Méndez and appears on the CD “Nueva Frontera del Cante de Jerez.” An accomplished producer, Pepe has directed several large-scale producitons since