Fernanda de Utrera
Fernanda Jiménez Peña, best known as Fernanda de Utrera, was a gipsy “cantaora” - the Spanish specific name for “flamenco singer”. She was born in Utrera, Seville on the 9th of February 1923.
Fernanda de Utrera | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Fernanda Jiménez Peña |
| Born | 9 February 1923 Utrera, Andalucia, Spain |
| Genres | Flamenco |
Early life[edit]
She was the daughter of José el de Aurora and la chacha Inés. She was also the granddaughter of the cantaor Fernando Peña Soto, known as “Pinini”, who despite not being a professional singer, was very famous in Utrera.[1]. As per her sister Bernarda, both were “cantoras” since birth due to early artistic influences and their gypsy origins. Since their childhood, many gypsy flamenco artists came to the Jiménez Peña house in order to listen to the sisters sing.
Artistic career[edit]
Fernanda’s artistic career is closely linked to her sister Bernarda’s, with whom she shared concerts and recordings for fifty years. Both sisters started their professional careers in 1957 with Antonio Mairena, who took them to Madrid in order to act in the Zambra tablaos, El Corral de la Morería, Torres Bermejas and Las Brujas[2]
Style[edit]
Some consider Fernanda the best cantaora of soleares of all times. She was gifted with a husky, broken voice which she was able to modulate providing her with an unique style.
Apart from the soleá style, she was also a master of other flamenco styles such as bulería, cantiña or fandango[3].
Her soleares could be memorable when she was in good conditions to sing, which did not always happen, specially during her last years of activity. But during her good times, her dark and broken voice, almost always breathy but filled with mystery and “duendes”, was an instrument that transmitted emotions and chills to the listener. Ricardo Molina said that Fernanda’s soleares were “pure and mesmerising magic”; Caballero Bonald mentioned her “fine sobbing and deep expression”; Jiménez Díaz stated that every word in her singing was “ a blood fountainhead”; Félix Grande said she has “the most tender and husky women’s voice, the most desperate and delicate among all that honorate flamenco’s merciful grief”.
Illness and death[edit]
Fernanda suffered from Alzheimer.
On the 24th of August of 2006, at the age of 83, she died in Utrera due to a heart failure.
Filmography[edit]
Although she was not an actress, she took part in some cinematographic productions:
- Duende y misterio del Flamenco, Edgar Neville (1952)
- La novicia rebelde, Luis Lucía (1971)
- Flamenco, Carlos Saura (1995)
Prizes and acknowledgments[edit]
- Concurso Nacional de Arte Flamenco de Córdoba (1957) - Premio de soleares y bulerías
- Premio del Concurso de Mairena del Alcor (1966)
- Premio Nacional de Cante de la Cátedra de Flamencología de Jerez de la Frontera (1967)
- Dedicatoria del XII Potaje Gitano de Utrera (1968)
- Hija predilecta de Utrera (1994)
- Medalla de Plata de Andalucía (1994)[4]
- Medalla de Plata al Mérito en el Trabajo (2003)
- Medallas de Oro al Mérito en Las Bellas Artes (2005)
- Hija predilecta de la provincia de Sevilla (2006)
References[edit]
- ↑ González-Rodríguez, R. (January 2011). "Palo seco". Revista Española de Anestesiología y Reanimación. 58 (5): 325–326. doi:10.1016/s0034-9356(11)70072-x. ISSN 0034-9356.
- ↑ [Flamenco World - Especiales: Fernanda de Utrera. Flamenco Deep Song] Check
|url=value (help). Yale University Press. pp. 178–196. ISBN 9780300237481. Search this book on
- ↑ Lozano Jiménez, Juan Simón (2014-10-31). "Paradigma actual de los festivales flamencos, desde la perspectiva de la Gestión Cultural". Culturas. Revista de Gestión Cultural (1): 23. doi:10.4995/cs.2014.3122. ISSN 2386-7515.
- ↑ Monreal, Pilar; Becerra, Salvador Rodríguez (1987). "Antropología Cultural de Andalucía". Reis (37): 256. doi:10.2307/40183273. ISSN 0210-5233. JSTOR 40183273.
https://elpais.com/diario/2006/08/25/agenda/1156456801_850215.html
Álvarez Caballero, Ángel. 2006. Fernanda de Utrera, Cantaora de Flamenco
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