Born in Córdoba, Spain as Francisco Peña Pérez, Paco Peña began learning to play the guitar from his brother at age 6 and made his first professional appearance at 12. Encouraged by his family, he left home and began performing throughout Spain as part of a government-sponsored folk music and dance program. This led to calls from professional Flamenco companies in Madrid and the Costa Brava, where Peña established himself as a highly regarded accompanist to Flamenco dance and singing. 