«Three great concerts» consolidated the Festival de Lucía, which took place from 17 to 19 August, in Castro Marim, as «a major event on the Iberian agenda».
The event, in homage to guitarist Paco de Lucía, "eternal genius and absolute master of contemporary flamenco", filled the "Revelim de Santo António in the three nights of the show", according to the Câmara de Castro Marim.
Paco de Lucía had family roots in that county, in the town of Monte Francisco, where his mother was born.
The festival kicked off, in keeping with tradition, with “a serenade in Monte Francisco, on the afternoon of August 17, in what is intended to be a place of pilgrimage in memory of Paco de Lucía – Largo Manuel Gomes – Tribute to Paco de Lucía», says the municipality.
With Antonio Rey and the voice of Pepe de Lucía, brother of Paco de Lucía, the serenade “became an intimate and welcoming moment, of pride and longing”.
Even on the first day of the event, but already at night, the stage at Revelim was Antonio Rey, guitarist and flamenco composer. On the second, by Javier Limón y Original Quartet (OQ) and, on the last night, the Festival gave space to two shows: the first by Fandóziando and then the concert by Mário Pacheco and the fado singer Ana Maria.
For Francisco Amaral, mayor of Castro Marim, the Festival is important both "in cultural terms" and in the "improvement in the quality of life that has been provided to the population", since the funding for the work at Largo Manuel Gomes, through CRESC Algarve 2020, «it also allowed the redevelopment of the streets of Monte Francisco».
The Lucía Festival itself is supported by CRESC Algarve 2020, 60% co-financed by the FEDER, for two years.
Paco de Lucía (born in neighboring Andalucia – Algeciras) is recognized as one of the best composers and guitarists in the world and had his roots in Castro Marim, specifically in Monte Francisco, the land where his mother, Lucía, was born.
It is in this connection that the Festival de Lucía is based, honoring a guitar of various languages, crossings and hues, like the one Paco de Lucía inhabited its audience, but also paying homage to women, through the memory of his mother.
After the first event, held in 2016, which wore a more intimate character and was applauded by around 700 people, this Festival was consolidated in the 2017 edition, where «more than 4 thousand people» were received. This year the initiative won another day, new languages and links, also seeking to represent the universality that Paco de Lucía gave to flamenco.
Festival de Lucía has another name in world music in its genesis, the fado singer Mariza, godmother and ambassador of the initiative and who was part of the poster of the previous edition.
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