Over the last quarter century, Paco de Lucia almost single-handedly sparked the evolution of flamenco from a closed, tradition-bound folk art into a vibrant international art form. He took a dying music in the hands of a moribund and querulous generation and gave it a vitality that made it accessible to young people around the world. Respecting at all times the traditional canons of rhythm and form, his creativity and his tireless search for freedom have brought about drastic changes in all areas of flamenco endowing the artists of this genre, with a dignity they did not possess before.