Another one from the little book followed by a video of Argentina singing it live..
Serranas
La aurora cuando sale…
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Letras
I played hooky today and took myself to the beach on a whim.
15,000 steps of beach walk therapy felt so good.
And so, here’s a letra about the sea:
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It's worth posting another version of this letra.
Soleares
Popular
Quisiera ser como el aire
y tenerte yo a mi vera
sin que lo notara nadie
I would like to be like the air
and have you by my side
without anybody noticing
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Another letra from this alegrías by David Lagos and one more video that I'm pretty positive will make your day all kinds of better as soon as you watch it.
Alegrías
David Lagos
A un lance de su capote
suenan la palmas en la plaza
y es que torea en la plaza
vaya torero Rafael de Paula
With a throw of his cape
the clapping sounds in the bullring
because he is bullfighting in the bullring
Wow, the bullfighter Rafael de Paula
You can hear this letra at 2 minutes 30 seconds, but I highly recommend watching the whole thing, especially one minute in when he sings his tri tri tri trans and the very end.
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Bulerías
A Letra from Otra Galaxia (Other Galaxy)
Antonio Humanes, José Monge Cruz (Camarón)
Yo me pregunto mil veces
mi paso por este mundo
y a quién le debo mis alegrías y mis penas
¿Será al cielo y a la tierra
o a los senderos ocultos de la esfera?
I ask myself a thousand times
my path in this world
and to whom do I owe my joys and my sorrows,
to the sky and the land
or to the hidden paths of the globe?
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Malagueña de Chacón
Voy a dejar tu querer
por el hablar de la gente
pero ten por entendido
que me va a costar la muerte
el haberte conocido
I'm going to stop loving you
because of what people say
but understand
that having known you
is going to cost me my life
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Dancing to the cante. It is what every dancer from Jerez does, professional or non.
It is the dancer conversing with the singer.
In order to dance to the cante,
You must become familiar with the letras (song verses) and engage with the singer when dancing.
To gain familiarity with the letras:
1. Listen a lot.
2. Take a cante class, and study the letras.
To engage with the singer when dancing:
1. Observe what other good dancers do. (Hint: Notice the way Carmen responds to José in the video.)
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Awhile ago I posted the first letra of this alegrías by David Lagos along with an unbelievably wonderful video of him singing it live accompanied by his brother Alfredo Lagos. Today find a couple more not to be missed videos of David performing it, along with the first letra. One is him live in Cádiz, and the other is him singing for Mercedes Ruíz dancing in a bata de cola during a rehearsal.
Que es chiquita y salerosa
no le pongáis tanta falta…
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Improvisation in flamenco. It's not as tricky as you may think.
Today I explain how to improvise in fiesta style flamenco dances.
If you follow certain principles, you can improvise no matter your level.
So if you think you're not ready to do this, think again…
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I received an inquiry about the words to the following sevillana this week. It's one of the first I learned.
Faly used to sing it, and we would dance to it. And dance to it. And dance to it. And then we would dance to it. Ever been there?
So, here you go.
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On the past two Flamenco Tours to Jerez we've had a cante class with José 'El Mijita.' Exciting, Scaaaary, and FUN! You can see video of that at the end of the post.
Above is one of his favorite letras to sing por bulerías; it's one we worked on in the classes.
Why do we study the cante?
We do it to expand our understanding of flamenco as a whole. Because as we know, the dance does not exist on its own. We do it to broaden our understanding of the language of flamenco. To learn new things. And, of course, to have fun...
During the class last spring Lily, one of the students, held onto Héctor Raúl for the duration of the class. She wasn't quite sure why, but I'm pretty positive it was a subconscious act done for support.
Because this experience took people out of their comfort zones.
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Bulerías
Si me quieres por fuera y no por dentro
Quítate de mi vera cariño lento
Si me quieres por dentro y no por fuera
Déjame que te bese tu piel morena
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Today I share with you another favorite letra from Sol:
Por el habla de la gente
olvidé yo a quien bien quería
mientras yo viva en el mundo
se me acabó la alegría
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I'll be honest. In the beginning, I wasn't a huge fan of flamenco singing.
It wasn't that I didn't like it.
It intrigued me that's for sure. But I didn't feel inclined to sit around and listen to it a whole bunch.
It didn't take long before that changed.
I guess it happened early on during my time in Sevilla, on that first flamenco trip.
And actually, while I was initially drawn to the baile, the cante played a huge roll in getting me hooked on flamenco ... and keeping me in it.
Just like the compás.
And now,
Well, you know how it is now.
Which brings me to the letra:
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Tangos.
Tangos del Titi
Popular
Mi mare me lo advirtió
que a ningún forasterito
le diera conversación
My mother warned me
not to strike up a conversation
with a stranger
You can hear Argentina sing this letra in the video below
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I saw this video the other day on Facebook with Argentina (so beautifully) singing this coletilla,
Todo es de color...
Accompanied by Farruquito, sitting at a dining room table. (You can hear it at about 3 minutes.)
And so, today's letra
It's actually an entire song, and it's kind of long, and you definitely don't want to miss the video of Lole and Manuel performing it live which you'll find (along with the translation) as you scroll down in the post...
Todo es de Color
J.M. Flores*
Todo es de color
Todo el mundo cuenta sus penas
pidiendo la comprensión,
quien cuenta sus alegrías
no comprende al que sufrió
I told you that today I'd post a video of Manuel Molina singing...
Along with another letra:
Que Nadie Vaya a Llorar
Que nadie vaya a llorar el día que yo me muera
es más hermoso cantar aunque se cante con pena
que nadie vaya llevar ni flores ni ropa negra
no me vayáis a enterrar para pudrirme bajo tierra
es más hermoso cantar mientras mi carne se quema
y luego me ofrecéis al mar o al aire o sobre la arena o en un jardin,
me da igual
pero cuando yo muera que nadie vaya a llorar
Nobody cry the day that I die
It's more beautiful to sing even if one sings with sorrow
Nobody bring flowers or wear black clothes
Don't bury me just to rot underground
It's more beautiful to sing while my flesh burns
And then offer me to the sea, or to the air, or over the sand, or in a garden,
It doesn't matter to me,
But when I die, nobody cry
You can watch another version here, one that will be part of the upcoming Flamenco Sin Fronteras documentary.
Oh, and you might want to check this out as well.
At his funeral, people sang as he requested, and his daughter, Alba Molina wore white.
You might also enjoy these...
Manuel Molina passed away on Tuesday. Que descanse en paz.
May he rest in peace.
Here is something to remember him with today. An incredibly beautiful video of Lole y Manuel performing Dime.