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Reflejos del Alma is Jeff’s second album: seven pieces he wrote and arranged himself, in which flamenco reaches for the raw power of hard rock and the intimacy of classical music. Giuseppe Campisi plays double bass on the title track, and Mascha van Nieuwkerk plays cello on Compañeros, La Parrandera and La Lucha Interior. The album was made possible by the YAA Award 2018 (Young Artsupport Amsterdam).

When you look at yourself in a mirror, you can discern all kinds of features. It shows not only an image, but also the way you see yourself. This can be very confronting when you perceive shortcomings, especially those that are hard to face. Often we cast our eyes away and try to forget. Sometimes this is difficult, so we search for other ways to escape negative thoughts, to numb our mind. One way is to imagine yourself in a different realm of thought, where your shortcomings do not exist. Unfortunately, this can mean that unless your views change, the negative thoughts will never end and the urge to escape reality will only grow.

During my childhood the guitar was my means of escaping reality, but luckily it also became my solace and salvation. Eventually the art of composing drew me in, which made it possible for me to put my life experiences and feelings into music. While writing, I spent a lot of time thinking about what I love about music, and especially why I enjoy listening to different musical genres, not just flamenco. I discovered that these genres had a lot in common with flamenco. Flamenco can be aggressive, but also sensitive and intimate, lyrical yet rhythmical and percussive, spontaneous yet purposeful. Then I realized that the aggressive side of flamenco has something very hard rock-like about it, while its more intimate side resembles classical music. From that point on, I allowed myself to be influenced more by other musical genres that I appreciate, taking the first steps towards my own language, free from cultural appropriation.