Miguel de la Bastide – Siento

With a track record like Miguel de la Bastide has, how could you go wrong? Miguel, originally from Trinidad and living in Toronto, Canada since he was 18, has won the Chalmers Award, the Toronto Arts Council Award, he is the first flamenco guitarist to be invited on staff at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, his music has been used for television commercials in Spain and his guitar artistry can be heard on the TV series Queen of Swords. He has a previous solo album, El Cambio and is featured on several compilation CDs.

Obviously, we are dealing with someone who not only plays well, but one who understands the guitar and understands perfomance. Siento is certainly not a let-down. Quite the opposite.

This is an album of beautiful music, elegantly performed and passionately understood by a true master. There is more to playing than just technique and this is something that de la Bastide understands fully well and delivers powerfully.

The approach is fresh, the sound is different from the traditional flamenco guitarist and the pieces are truly inspired. Definitely something you’ll want in your CD library.

A nice bonus is that the CD is enhanced, including a video for El Cambio, from his previous album, samples from other tracks and a photo album.

If you’re looking for a great guitar album, this is one I wholeheartedly recommend.