First steps in Madrid
On March 17, 1911, with 600 pesetas in his pocket and millions of illusions, Francisco Alonso arrives at a Madrid passionate for the cuplé cultivated by stars such as La Fornarina, Resurrección Quijano, Pastora Imperio, La Bella Chelito and La Goya. Alonso, helped by the Granada-born comedian Alfonso Paso, will write a cuplé to make his way.
Little by little, he becomes a well-known composer. Together with the composer Tomás López Torregrosa, premieres at the Teatro Martín on November 13, 1911 Shouldering Arms! In 1913, with the librettist and composer Enrique García Álvarez, he composes The Good of Guzmán.
In May 1916, at the Teatro Novedades, he premieres Music, Light and Joy, a nice magazine that will be his first great success.
Two years later, he composes the “comic-lyrical fantasy” From Madrid to Hell, which includes a chotis entitled “Hey, Nicanora”, which is loved by the public.
Alonso also has special ability for writing pasodobles. One of the best is composed for Las corsarias, a revue by Enrique Paradas and Joaquín Jiménez that premieres at Teatro Martín on October 31, 1919. The pasodoble “de la banderita” will be heard on streets and cafes, in Africa, sung by the soldiers in the war and even Alfonso XIII himself will confess that he sings it while shaving.