Grands Cantaores Du Flamenco 16

As a child, Manuel Soto was nicknamed Deafness (la sordera), because it was a common affliction in his Flamenco Gitano family. He was born in Cadiz in 1927 among relatives that were all cantaores or bailaores, and down the line, his two sons also became cantaores: Jos and Vicente Soto. His career progressed from the style of the cantaor de venta - rustic, powerful, but without genius - towards an expressiveness that became less brutal, and increasingly more restrained and profound with maturity. Jos Blas Vega wrote that He truly dominate[d] the entire range of styles of the cantes of Jerez. in 1953 he went to Seville where for five years he remained rather anonymous at the tablao et Guajiro, but his 1958 win at an important competition in Cadiz earned him greater distinction and he became engaged in the companies of Maria Rosa and of Manuela Vargas. After touring with them, he performed at the famous tablaos in Madrid and was awarded the prestigious Copa Jerez by the Catedra de la Flamencologia Andaluza, which led to his first recording as a solo cantaor. Later, in 1983 he was awarded the national Grand Prix for cante by the Catedra de flamencologia and in 1984, the Cumbre flamenca at the Alcala Palace in Madrid.