Dani Baraldés

Although he is one of the most recognised guitarists on the Barcelona scene, Dani, known as “El Patilles”, does not consider himself a specialist in the genre, though he admits to having tried to learn its language, structures and styles so as to hold his own with the bands in which he has had to play African-American roots music. He began at the age of sixteen as singer and guitarist of Los Impresentables. A host of artists and bands of different styles followed, among them El Fantástico Hombre Bala, Macaco, Jarabe de Palo, Bunbury or Rulo y la Contrabanda. With references ranging from Jeff Beck to Howlin’ Wolf, this versatile, effective and virtuosic guitarist confesses that what fascinates him about the blues is its power to express and communicate the truth of the music: “You can apparently move with few notes across a musically inexhaustible terrain … few notes to create many soundscapes. It is a vehicle for spiritual and emotional transmission, a language in itself”. A musical genre that on a personal level has allowed him to “meet a great many interesting people; it seems to me that it is a great worldwide family, very respectful of one another”.