Paco de Lucía Essentials

A master flamenco guitarist of prodigious technical virtuosity, Paco de Lucía established himself in the ‘60s and '70s. Later he became a principal proponent of the new flamenco movement, adding jazz harmonies to his palette and tango to his repertoire. De Lucía's technique was so advanced as to seem almost invisible: he combined hard strumming, rapid-fire runs and complex rhythms into a personal sound that celebrated flamenco's past while shaping its future. "No matter how far you go harmonically," he said, "no matter how crazy it seems, it has to smell and sound like flamenco."