Víctor Monge SERRANITO
(Professional Biography )
VICTOR MONGE “SERRANITO”. Flamenco guitarist and composer was born in Madrid (Spain). He was self - educated and at the age of 12 he started as a professional. He is regarded as one of the best guitar virtuosos in History, and one who has demonstrated in his trajectory a great ease for performing, as well as an usual interest in his own evolution and artistic growth.
He starts playing the guitar at the age of eight, with very little training from his father, and soon after he starts working with his elder brother, in a trio called “Los Serranos”, thus the nickname Serranito, because he was the youngest in the group. Víctor Monge is already a legend in the history of Spanish music. His virtuosity combined with his musicality makes him one of the greatest flamenco performers. His tireless work and his new ideas to enrich flamenco music have granted him the admiration of the classics.
Owner of a deep knowledge of the flamenco culture, with an extraordinary musical intuition and highly self - demanding, he is characterised by the extreme care in the balance of his compositions, adjusting complexity and precision to harmony, and creating the necessary climax in each cycle of the composition, picking up the gist of the flamenco roots and recreating it into his own vital conception. A great show of accuracy and flamenco feeling recorded by Serranito in all his works and which has been shown on a huge number of stages in the world. Heart-felt and transcendental, his concerts are filled with force and brilliance but also full of restraint: of rhythmically punctuated silences, powerful and tonal, aided by a classical technique and tone coloring.
At twenty-one he met “Narciso Yepes” who became a great influence for Serranito. After accompanying the greatest flamenco figures, his first album was published in 1960 and in 1969 his first solo performance. In 1970 José Ramirez, the guitar maker invited “Serranito” to play the guitar for the great maestro Andrés Segovia, that same year Victor debuts in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, in London. Since 1970, he makes numerous tours around the world, back then he was the first flamenco guitarist that performed in India.
His first great recognition arrived In 1971, when he received the "National Prize of Guitar - Ramon Montoya" in Cordoba, and in Jerez, the Chair of Flamencología in 1978 the Foreign Affairs Office invited “Serranito” to Strasbourg when Spain became a member of the European Council.
In 1982 he released his concert of guitar and orchestra in the Royal Theater of Madrid with the Symphony Orchestra.
Outside the stages, “Serranito” has composed music for films and his is the music of the Spanish Pavilion in the Universal Exhibition of 1988 in Brisbane, Australia.
In 1993, he represented Spain in Guitar Festival like the one in Israel, Jerusalem, in Damascus, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Tunisia, Naples and Rome.
On December 1995, he performed with his group in Bosnia as part of the celebrations for the treaty of peace of Dayton, which marked the end of war in the Balkan Mountains. Soon after this, he made a tour in Canada, where they named him the prince of flamenco. In 1997, he toured in Russia for the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the Federation of Russia and the Kingdom of Spain.
In 1996/1997 “Serranito” began a world tour representing Spain in the International Music Festivals of Turkey, Bulgaria, Budapest, Rumania, Czechoslovakia, Bucharest, Poland, as well as in the Guitar Festivals of Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy and South America.
Moreover, he performed his concert “Ecos del Guadalquivir” in Madrid, and then in Greece, Switzerland, Germany, South America, & New York.
In 1997, he toured in Russia for the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the Federation of Russia and the Kingdom of Spain. This same year he received the City Hall of Madrid Golden Medal of Artistic achievement for his trajectory.
In 1998/1999 he composed “Mi sonido y el tiempo” - “My Sound and the time”. Which he first performed on the International Festival of Cordoba. During the following months he played that piece on a tour around Europe, East Europe and Latin America. In the year 2000, he played for the fist time The Aranjuez’ Concert “Concierto de Aranjuez”, a piece of the Maestro Joaquin Rodrigo, in the International Music Festival of Galicia, along with the Royal philharmonic of Galicia. and directed by Ernest Martinez Izquierdo. He’s also played that piece in the Flamenco Biennial of Seville, with the orchestra “Arsian Musica” directed by Ignacio Yepes. At this point “Serranito” names the concert as “Two worlds and a guitar” as a guitar manifestation both of flamenco and of classical music The Biennial of Seville is followed up by a Aranjuez’ Concert’ tour in Latin America.
During the 2000/2001 he performed a tour in Morocco sponsored by the Culture Department for Cultural Morocco 2000/2001.
With 20 records, the critics identify him as a musician whose command is staggering. A musician whose composition, sense of the harmony, exigency of his left hand and the gentleness of his right hand, as well as his style, positions him in the revolution operated in the guitar on the second half of the 20th century. But beyond these aspects, deep in its production, one finds the most intimate truth of this singular artist: the beauty and the goodness of spirit, the most secret and mysterious aspects of styles. Nowadays “Serranito”, who is one of the Spanish artists with greater number of decorations and honors, is working on two different projects: the recording of an exhibition video of flamenco which will be released December 2002 and his next album (release date 2003) as well as an upcoming world tour of his latest work. His latest album - Sueños de Ida y Vuelta - with Camerata Romeu, released by the Author foundation has been nominated for the best flamenco album in the 4th Annual Latin Grammy Awards - September 3 - 2003, a pm et / pt CBS and awarded the prize for best guitar soloist album by the National Critics.
This work is taken to stage in Sevilla Biennial 2004. In 2005 he premieres his show " Con Solera" during the International Guitar Festival in Cordoba. He was awarded the "Tio Luis el de la Juliana" prize, given by the hall of residence "Isabel de España" during its 50 anniversary.
In 2007, during the Flamenco Festival of Caja Madrid, Street of Alcala has been recognized by the award, granted only to flamencos artists who have developed his artistic career from the capital of Spain (Madrid).
In 2009, after a tour along Japan there received the Award IX Rafael Romero “The Gallina " of the Flemish of Andújar and it is claimed to do a tour along Central America, circumstance that serves to the Festival of Guitar of Costa Rica to celebrate an Honouring to Victor Monge "Serranito".