Manuel Cano

Granada, 1926 - 1990. Guitarist. Was also a renowned sch… Read Full Bio ↴Manuel Cano

Granada, 1926 - 1990. Guitarist. Was also a renowned scholar and researcher of the flamenco guitar, whose knowledge was set forth in conferences he illustrated himself, articles, talks at congresses and other flamenco events, etc. That work was not as brilliant as musical performance on stage, but equally valuable. The height of all that work was his book La Guitarra. Historia, estudios y aportaciones al Arte Flamenco.

He was a friend of Andrés Segovia, who requested on a dedicated photograph that he wipe flamenco clean of "falsely musical forays". Cano gave flamenco guitar concerts all over the world. He said that Bach and Scarlatti, for example, had made marvellous music, although there is more. One of his first recordings, which he was especially fond of, was that titled Evocación de la guitarra de Ramón Montoya. Throughout his career Manuel Cano acquired numerous guitars from different epochs of a great value - not only economic -, forming a small personal museum. He kept them all ready for use, and on occasions gave very attractive concerts in which he interpreted works from different epochs playing each work on one of his guitars from that time. On his death that collection of instruments and other objects was acquired by Japanese who created a foundation named after him in Tokyo. He was a Professor of Flamenco Guitar by competitive examination at the Senior Conservatory of Music and Declamation of Cordoba, Standing Academic of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Granada and had the relevant membership of the General Authors’ Society of Spain.