José Georgio Soto (Seville, 1951) is a living legend. The last great live cantaor from the generation of maestros who instilled identity, significance and authenticity into the cante.
His cante is exquisite and passionate. Vibrant. And it has the power to find that perfect balance between delicacy and verism in the phrasing and expression.
He makes a mark on the soul of anyone who listens to him. Beginning softly, he elevates the cante; and then, the purest flamenco, the type that may at first seem harsh and complicated to an unsuspecting audience, becomes something gentle and naturally comprehensible.
José de la Tomasa’s cante is profound and stirring but also sweet and beautiful. Ancestral, yet at the same time, contemporary; it is, above all, natural; without one iota of staged drama nor of the unnecessary harshness displayed by many cantaores who adopt distorted versions of the “genetic obligations”.
José is the shaman everybody talks about behind the scenes and all the world kneels before him.
