"The troupe was exciting! They were really very good! I hadn't expected this level of talent ...." Julie Woodman
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RIO FLAMENCO
Rio Flamenco is a flamenco troupe based in Prescott, Arizona. Flamenco music and dance is gaining popularity and interest across America. Rio Flamenco offers an exciting performance which keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. Our show is a spicy mix of traditional flamenco dance and guitar, hot Latin rhythms, and singing. It is suitable for public stage shows, and smaller venues including corporate and special events. Our
troupe is a richly talented group of musicians and performers with
extensive experience. The core group consists of four members:
guitarist/vocalist, percussionist and two or three flamenco dancers. To
enhance performances we can add a violinist, another flamenco guitar and upright
bass player, and a trumpet and percussion player. Comments from the Audience: “Enlightening, educational—an evening of pure entertainment. Music, dancing, singing and the history of the dance makes for entertainment at its best.” Carol Neil, Prescott, Arizona “My wife and I recently experienced the most amazing show of flamenco dance and Spanish music by Rio Flamenco from Prescott, Arizona. WOW! What a night! The dancing and music was mesmerizing. We look forward to their next performance so we can take our children who I know would really enjoy this. A true fan . .. “ Timothy Ramos, Prescott, Arizona
“It was pure enjoyment to see Rio Flamenco. Everything and
everyone was so colorful and lively! - a perfect flow and balance
between the acoustic music, dancing and singing. Hoping your
encore performance is a sellout as well.”
"The
instrumentalists (Antonio Concilovo on guitar, Kristin Garson on
fiddle) showed wonderful talent with lots of fine improvisation
throughout the musical and dance numbers. " (Bob
Anthony , AllArtReviews) |
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Monsoon Magazine, February 2006, Vol. 2, Number 2 Passion is the best way to describe Rio Flamenco. The rhythms are riveting as they are beat out by guitar, drums and the staccato of feet hitting floor. This is an engaging dance. The women pound out a message with their feet, flourish their skirts and look you straight in the eye. You have to love it. Flamenco is a way of life for four members of Rio Flamenco: Ana (Anna Cocilovo), Billy Deal on percussion and Antonio (Tony Cocilovo) on guitar (and guest artists). In fact, the Cocilovo’s have a dance floor in the middle of their living room. For Antonio, his love for flamenco began 25 years ago while living in France. Knowing Tony had a deep interest in playing guitar, a friend brought him to some caves where the gypsies lived. Tony proudly played a Brazilian piece on his guitar; one of the gypsy men then picked up a guitar and blew Tony away with the flamenco music. That day began years of playing and studying for Tony. Tony says that flamenco is full of passion and life; it has more life than most musical forms. There are many different rhythms within flamenco, it is always changing and evolving. Rio Flamenco follows the more traditional straight forward forms of flamenco. There is a certain rhythm that the songs are done to; some parts of flamenco are very deep. Personal strife and struggle are expressed through these dance forms. Through flamenco you can express all human emotion. Ana (Anna) had a love for Latin music since her college days. She was always interested in dance, but never thought she would be a dancer. Finally her desire won out and she began her study of flamenco. She has even had private lessons while visiting Spain. There, she and Tony enjoyed the flamenco clubs, took lessons, and Anna came home with authentic Spanish flamenco dresses. The gypsy culture is the heart of flamenco. All the flamencos are somewhat different, the common bond is love for the rhythms, the feeling and the passion is the underlying bond. There is now a growing flamenco culture within the United States; several colleges have degree programs in flamenco. |
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"Leova Mejia sold the audience with her dancing ..... " (Bob Anthony , AllArtReviews) Daily Courier, The Scene, Friday, February 24, 2006 Rio Flamenco brings traditional flamenco and Latin rhythms to the Blue Rose Theater By Todd Etshman The Gypsy tradition of flamenco music and dance has become increasingly popular in the United States, and guitarist Tony Cocilovo has provided a taste of it for Prescott residents since the late 1980’s. Cocilovo and his wife, Anna, went to Sevilla, Spain, the heart of flamenco tradition, in October, to “immerse ourselves in flamenco music and culture,” said Anna. Anna took daily lessons from a Gypsy dancer, and the couple attended daily musical performances. “It totally energized us and influenced us”, said Anna. “We brought back information about what is authentic and what we should be doing in our performances.” Tony said. “Modern flamenco is free-form and stylistic. We tried to get the real Gypsy influence. “We want to try and focus on applying what we learned to American audiences.” Tony said of his “cuadro,” or troupe of performers. Flamenco lovers in Prescott will get to see the results of the traditional Spanish Gypsy influence with the Cocilovos and their group Rio Flamenco in authentic Spanish costumes at 7:30 on Saturday, Feb 25, at the Blue Rose Theater.
“I think American audiences like the more upbeat aspects of
traditional flamenco. We perform for the people in the audience,
and their preferences definitely impact the pieces we play for
them. “It expresses a universal language of emotion and drama“, Anna said of the music that dates back to the 11th century and mixes guitar and dance with percussion, body and hand movements and passionate facial expression. In recent years, “The Gypsies realized they could make money doing it for the tourists,” Anna said. “The small intimate theater that you see flamenco performed in Spain is called a tablao,” Anna explained. “The Blue Rose Theater is kind of like Prescott’s little tablao.” “We are excited to have Rio Flamenco at the Blue rose Theater,” said Director Jody Drake. “The theater is dedicated to presenting historical and folk artists. It is a privilege to have the rich talent Rio Flamenco has to offer.” Tony got his first exposure to flamenco while living in France where he was impressed with the skill of gypsy guitarists. He has now been playing flamenco-style music for nearly 25 years. “It’s a continuous thing, I’m always learning,” he said. In addition to dancers Ana and Leova, and guitarist Antonio Cocilovo, the group consists of Billy Deal on percussion, violinist Kristin Garson, and flamenco guitar and upright bass player Armand Ramirez .
Click the photo below for a Google Video of Antonio playing guitar and castanets at the same time. (wait a moment after clicking for it to buffer) |
