Gabriel Sopeña’s admiration for Federico García Lorca surpasses any artistic facet. Building a universe « musical around the figure of the poet from Granada was one of the few things that remained for the Aragonese master to accomplish. Sopeña has teamed up with Almeria singer-songwriter JJ Fuentes to open Lorca’s «Balcón Abierto» and create a historic EP that will have a first advance: «¡Ay Girasol!».
In a music market saturated with commercial alliances, the union of Gabriel Sopeña and JJ Fuentes emerges as a rare and sincere exception. What began as a concrete collaboration on Fuentes’ latest album has crystallized into a deep artistic friendship and an ambitious project, an EP where both creators put themselves, with absolute respect, at the service of the word of one of the poets with the greatest influence in Spanish literature.
THE LORCA UNIVERSE
«¡Ay Girasol!» is not limited to a commonly published poem, but rescues a fragment of the famous and complex play «So five years pass». «I return naturally to the work of Federico García Lorca after having previously set several of his poems to music. Sharing this passion with Fuentes in the face of a date as significant as the 90th anniversary of his death has been the definitive impulse to dare to take on this challenge,» says Sopeña himself.
The veteran artist from Zaragoza does not hesitate when it comes to defining the project: «It is an approach to Lorca’s work from the author’s song and a quite original prism in terms of cadence and rhythm». For his part, JJ Fuentes underlines the challenge and honor of working side by side with Sopeña. He has always seemed to me to be the best poetry musician in our history and this work is being an honor and constant learning,» he considers.
The single «¡Ay Girasol!» will be available on Friday, August 21 on all digital platforms, backed by a Lyric Video. The full EP will consist of four compositions, two by each artista.
