Benise

Flamenco

Roni Benise (best known as Benise and pronounced Buh-ness-see) is an American guitarist who describes his style as nouveau spanish flamenco. After growing up in Nebraska, Benise moved to Los Angeles to pursue rock stardom. After hearing flamenco music on the radio, he switched from electric guitar to nylon-stringed classical guitar. He and a group of friends began busking on the street and playing neighborhood theaters and flea markets. From these performances, he quickly established a following. Benise and his friends came up with an act that married Latin rhythms to a circus atmosphere. He fuses world music (specifically, strongly Latin-flavored styles such as flamenco, salsa, tango, and samba underscored by African tribal rhythms) with rock, to create a sound that appeals to mainstream music fans and aficionados of world music. The mixture caught the attention of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and led to his 2006-2007 Nights of Fire! production that has aired on many PBS-affiliated stations, and won an Emmy Award. The show is a blend of theater and music, drawing from Spanish flamenco, Argentine tango, and Brazilian samba. To date, Benise has produced eight CDs (seven studio, one live) and 2 DVDs. He owns an independent record label, Rosanegra Music. History Benise comes from a small farm 30 miles west of Grand Island, Nebraska. The self-taught guitarist started playing at age eleven, and got into local bands as a teenager. His parents thought he would join the family business but he wanted to pursue a rock career. He felt limited by his home's remote location, so he moved to Southern California in 1999. He cleaned swimming pools, and played guitar in rock bands at night. In an interview with Varela Chuy of the San Francisco Chronicle, Benise counts Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, and all the greats among his influences. Benise stumbled into Spanish guitar listening to the radio, and something clicked. I think there are times in everyone's life when everything changes, he said. Hearing the Spanish guitar in the car was that moment for me because the sound takes you away to an exotic place, and it was a perfect fit, especially when I was in this crossroads of my life. He got a nylon string guitar and started relearning the instrument. Benise retired his electric guitar to focus exclusively on his new instrument. He meshed his rock background and the Spanish guitar in a combination he calls rockmenco, pouring out intoxicating Spanish flamenco-insp...