Dorantes (born 11 September 1969), known artistically as Dorantes, is a Spanish gypsy flamenco and jazz pianist. Dorantes belongs to a gypsy family with a large number of well-known artists in the world of flamenco in recent decades, being the son of Pedro Peña Fernández, grandson of María Fernández Granados, nephew of Juan Peña El Lebrijano and being related to Fernanda de Utrera and Bernarda de Utrera. Even so, he has made a name for himself in the world of flamenco with the use of the piano, an instrument traditionally foreign to the world of flamenco. Until the nineties it was unusual to use other instruments apart from the flamenco guitar, the cajón and the castanets. He started out in the world of music at a young age, starting with the guitar (he entered several competitions), to continue with the piano at the age of ten, when he began to study at the Royal Conservatory of Music. During his youth, he began to make his way in the world of flamenco with an instrument as atypical as the piano, to which he plays the flamenco rhythm, while incorporating new rhythms influenced by other musical styles such as jazz or classical music. With the piano he mixes flamenco, impressionist music, with echoes of Debussy and touches of jazz and melodic symphonism that fits in with the new age. The composer himself recognizes that in his training he has had to "invent his own technique and resources." Having already performed at the Real Alcázar before the kings of Spain, in 1998 he became known to the general public when he published his first album, Orobroy, which was well received by both purists and the general public, and took him on a world tour that lasted four years, during which he received numerous awards. He is the only artist to have been awarded three "giraldillos" in a single show at the Seville Flamenco Biennial. In 2001, after several years of giving concerts around the world, he released his second album, Sur, recorded in Seville, Paris and Sofia, which again surprised fans and, as with its predecessor, was acclaimed by the public and critics. Dorantes was invited by the Minister of Culture of Spain to form part of the Board of Trustees of the Public Institution - Gypsy Culture Foundation. An honour granted in recognition of his contribution to flamenco music and its internationalisation.1 In 2012, Dorantes closed the prestigious Montreal Jazz Festival, this being his second visit to the festival in 2 years and he released what is to date his latest album, ¡Sin paredes!, in collaboration with some of the great artists of the moment, such as Arcángel, Carmen Linares, Miguel Poveda, José Mercé, Noa, and Enrique Morente (who died in December 2010). In 2013, Dorantes composed 'Cristo Errante' for the Agrupación Musical Cristo de los Gitanos (Seville). On December 16, 2017, he performed at the Teatro Principal in Puerto Real presenting his new work "El tiempo por testigo...a Sevilla" with the audience standing up in front of such a display of art.
