Solero Flamenco is proud to present a group of talented and passionate Flamenco artists. With years of experience and a deep understanding of this mesmerizing art form, our artists bring the essence of Flamenco to life on stage. From soul-stirring dances to powerful guitar melodies, our artists captivate audiences with their skill and intensity.
"La Paloma sang with drama and passion,…making the love and loss of which she sang resonate deep in the soul. She demonstrated mastery in her ability to rapidly change tone – flashy and assertive in one moment, somber and melancholy in the next. She knew when to use her volume for power but also when silent pauses enhanced the drama.”
-Annie Prafcke - Austin Chronicle
IRMA LA PALOMA is a flamenco artist, singer, and choreographer. She is Co-Founder/Artistic Director of Houston’s Premier Flamenco Performance Company, Solero Flamenco (2009).
Born of Spanish descent in Havana, Cuba, she began her flamenco training with Spain’s Olga Bustamante at Concepción Arenal and with María Asela Bermúdez at Escuela de Baile Monterroso y Antas de Ulla. She performed Flamenco and Spanish Regional Dances in Havana’s Centro Gallego and Teatro García Lorca.
La Paloma is a sought after collaborator and has served as Choreographer for Houston Grand Opera’s digital production, "Suite Española - Explorando Iberia” (2021). She performed and recorded her original work, ”El Corazón Manda” in Kathak-Flamenco - A Celebration of Cultures (2019). In 2017, she performed selections from Manuel de Falla’s “El Amor Brujo” with the Helena Symphony in Montana, Allan R. Scott, Conductor. She also composed and recorded vocals in Cafe Khytaro’s “Distancia" (2008). In May 2023, Solero Flamenco performed for Queen Sofía of Spain and guests at the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute Gala. Solero Flamenco was recently reviewed by the Austin Chronicle: https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/arts/2023-06-07/review-solero-flamencos-a-journey-through-spain/
Irma currently tours nationally as featured vocalist in Solero Flamenco Candlelight Concerts presented by Fever Original Events. She performs in Houston Airports’ globally recognized Performing Arts Program, Harmony in the Air. She keeps a busy performing schedule and enjoys composing and developing new works for performance and publication.
“Each drumbeat revealed a full articulation of his hand, from fingertips to palms, the energy moving up into his shoulders and his feet, embodying the rhythms.”
-Annie Prafcke - Austin Chronicle
ANDRÉS FELIX began performing professionally in 2011 - providing percussive accompaniment for cante, guitar, and baile (song, guitar, and dance). He was tuned to flamenco music at an early age as his Spanish heritage and music were ever present in his childhood. He developed musicality and rhythm for guitar and percussion, the flamenco disciplines of his choice. Andrés received guitar instruction at the Festival Flamenco de Albuquerque and and in Houston from flamenco guitarist Jeremy García. He also received cajón instruction from the late Maestro Timo Lozano and participated in the Houston Spanish and Flamenco Festival workshops with percussionists Enrique el Peru and Chris Howard. (2011 - 2016). In 2023, Andrés Felix added “recording artist” to his list of accomplishments when he appeared on Jeremy García’s latest album, “Nuevo Día,” released on Frameworks records. He currently tours with Solero Flamenco in Candlelight Concerts presented by Fever.
"...incredible finger fire."
- Molly Glentzer - Houston Chronicle
"...great technical skill with a deft sense of style"
- David Ragsdale, Kingwood Observer
"...mesmerizing...fiery and passionate..."
- Jim Shortt - The Scene Magazine
JEREMY GARCÍA is a classical and flamenco guitarist, award winning composer, educator and recording artist.
His latest album, Nuevo Dia, (Frameworks Records label 2023) was praised by critic Jim McCutcheon: “A refreshing take on some old standards and an excursion into contemporary flamenco-based guitar…GarcÍa’s performance is spirited, accentuated by flamenco techniques including golpes and rasgueados, and played with a quasi-improvisatory, wild flamenco disposition that at no time disrespects the original music.” (American Record Guide, Nov-Dec 2023). Other albums include García y Reyna’s Baile del Sol and Café Khytaro’s Distancia.
Noted for dazzling performances throughout the United States, Garcia collaborated with the Houston Grand Opera accompanying soprano Ana María Martinez and flamenco dancers in HGO’s Suite Española (2021). He has been a soloist with the Brazosport Symphony and the Grace Symphony Orchestra. García and Irma Paloma co-founded Solero Flamenco, Houston’s premier flamenco performance company. He is featured guitarist, and they tour nationally in Candlelight Concerts by Fever.
A noted composer, García’s work, Zalamera Columbiana won the top prize in the Flamenco Composition category at the 2023 Septimo Concurso de Composición para Guitarra Fidelio, in Madrid. Composers representing Spain, Columbia, France and the USA competed for this high honor. His original work Suite Andaluz debuted with the Helena Symphony in Montana where he also performed Joaquín Rodrigo's El Concierto de Aranjuez (2017).
He is Associate Artistic Director of the 6-day Houston Classical Guitar Festival & Competition and is often invited as a guest artist to numerous festivals, where he gives concerts, master classes, workshops on technique and composition and conducts guitar ensembles. García and Paloma co-founded and directed the Houston Spanish and Flamenco Festival (2011-2016) with funding from Texas Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts.
García is Affiliate Professor of Guitar at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music. For 20 years he was Director of Guitar Studies at San Jacinto College where he also conducted an award-winning ensemble. He gives private lessons in both classical and flamenco guitar in the USA and abroad. García earned a Bachelor of Music in Classical Guitar Performance from Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi and Master of Music from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. (jeremygarcia.net)
“González was sharp yet graceful, jumping, kicking, and sometimes bending so deeply I thought she’d fall over…. She used her clothing as an extension of her movement, swirling and twisting her skirt with every turn…with both the confident flourishes of a matador and the alluring flirtation of a temptress.”
- Annie Prafcke - Austin Chronicle
ANDREA GONZÁLEZ is a flamenco dancer, choreographer, and instructor and has been a solo artist of flamenco since 2010. As a native of San Antonio, TX she commenced her studies of flamenco and ballet folklórico de Mexico with San Antonio dance legend, Teresa Champion at a very early age. She expanded her studies to classical ballet and pointe, jazz, and tap in addition to flamenco and ballet folklorico at San Antonio Dance Academy under the direction of Rosemary Cavasos Tatum. Andrea also studied with Michelle Rodriguez at The Academy of Dance Arts and a member of her professional dance company, Flamenco Fuego de San Antonio. As a graduate of the arts magnet school, North East School of the Arts (NESA), Andrea acted, sung, and danced in many musical theater productions and developed her choreographic strengths. She participated in the American Ballet Theater Summer Intensive in Austin and received a scholarship from the National Foundation of Advancement of Arts. As a finalist in the NFAA’s Arts Recognition and Talent Search scholarship program in flamenco, she had the opportunity to study with Rosa Mercedes, artistic director of Duende Ballet Español of Miami, Florida.
Andrea attended the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque where she studied flamenco with Eva Encinias-Sandoval. During her years at UNM, she performed with two professional dance troupes; Gbotsui Afrikan Dance Troupe and the Blythe Eden Dance Company, touring New Mexico, New York, and CA. Andrea has traveled to Spain and attends the International Flamenco Festival in Albuquerque as much as she can to study with esteemed flamenco artists from Spain. Andrea remains disciplined in her art through online classes with Cristina Aguilera, Irene “La Sentio,” Briseyda Zarate, and Concha Jareno. She has shared the stage with many talented flamenco artists in her years of solo work and other collaborations. Andrea continues to grow with every opportunity she has to dance and share her knowledge of flamenco.
Andrea currently tours nationally as a flamenco dancer with Solero Flamenco Candlelight Concerts presented by Fever Original Events. She has been a member of Solero Flamenco since 2021 and has been given the wonderful opportunity to create wonderful artistic creations with her fellow company members. She is a wife, a mother of two children and is pursuing a master’s degree in social work. Andrea’s hopes are to bring her passion for helping children and families and her passion for flamenco together in beautiful harmony. She enjoys nurturing others through dance and expression and will be teaching private lessons beginning in 2024
“Dance has and will always be a part of my life because for me it is spiritual, healing, and very personal. Flamenco is my connection to my ancestors, it is therapy, my meditation, my sanctuary because it not only moves my body through space, but it creates a vibration within my heart and soul.”
“Calix moved with lightness, her hands and arms moving with easy sensuality, yet she also proved her fierceness...”
-Annie Prafcke - Austin Chronicle
SOLANGEL LALI CALIX is a flamenco and Spanish classical dancer with excellent castanet technique learned from Maria Magdalena, one of Spain’s prominent players. Her love of dance began in her native Honduras and culminated in extensive training in Spain where she studied Flamenco, Ballet Clásico and Español at Amor de Dios School, Madrid with Ciro, María Magdalena. In Sevilla’s Escuela Flamenca, she studied with Juan Polvillo.
She later established Alianza Flamenca New Orleans as Co-Director with guitarist John Lawrence. From 1994-2005 she was the flamenco instructor at the New Orleans School of Ballet. She performed at El Matador, in the New Orleans Jazz Festival, and made several guest appearances in the states. Lali has been a professional flamenco dancer for over 40 years. Based in Houston, she enjoys teaching technique, choreography, and castanets. She performs and tours with Solero Flamenco.
ANDREINA PEREIRA NUÑEZ is a passionate flamenco dancer. She began her dance studies in “Tatiana Reyna’s Escuela de Danza” in her native Caracas, Venezuela. While her initial training was in the fundamentals of ballet and jazz, she excelled in flamenco dance and was selected as a member of the dance company representing Reyna's academy. She participated in national competitions, cultural events and productions. Andreina furthered her flamenco training in Master Classes and Workshops with renowned dancers Daniela Tugues, Chachy Peñalver, Ziudy Garrido and others. Upon moving to Houston, she continues dancing professionally with Solero Flamenco.
