Flamenco is everywhere here in Jerez, in our classes, at the peñas and bars, and, then of course there's the spontaneous and casual flamenco that is a part of every day life here in Jerez. We see it as we walk past the bars and even as people greet each other on the street with palmas and a song. Olé. We can't get away from flamenco. We hear it as we walk to our rooms; we dance it in our sleep. (I've been doing steps and hearing sounds in my dreams which I know is a good thing.) Flamenco, flamenco, and more flamenco.
We are one week in to the Fall Flamenco Tour to Jerez, and I can hardly believe it. So much has happened and there is still so much more in store! People often ask me what happens during the Flamenco Tour, so below you can read about the first week of the fall tour, see photos, and even watch a video from one of the peña shows . . .
Today's letra(s) comes from Cuatro Soneto de Amor by Rafael de León. This is the second part, which you can see Mayte Martín sing live (Ten Cuidao) in the video below.
Me avisaron a tiempo: ten cuidado,
mira que miente más que parpadea,
que no le va a tu modo su ralea,
que es de lo peorcito del mercado.
I've got a whole song for you today along with a video of Niña Pastori and Falete singing it.
It’s Válgame Dios by Chaboli and Niña Pastori.
Y es la verdad
Querer así es un pecao…
Here's a caña followed by a video of Carmen Mora accompanied by Carmen Linares. (A couple of years ago we studied this dance with Mercedes Ruíz on the Flamenco Tour to Jerez. I can't wait to go back and learn more from her in a couple of weeks on the next tour!)
Caña
Popular
Aquél que tiene tres viñas
y el tiempo le quita dos,
que se conforme con una
y le dé gracias a Dios
Below watch (and be blown away by) Emilio Ochando's award-winning piece Tinevo, which took first place in the XXVº Certamen de Coreografía de Danza Española y Flamenco, where he and three other dancers do their thing with castanets and bata de cola. They dance to this original fandangos by Los Makarines:
Fandangos
Los Makarines
Cantan las hojas,
bailan las peras en el peral,
bailan las rosas,
rosas del viento no del rosal,
y nubes y nubes flotaban,
dormían al ras del aire,
todo el espacio giran con ella,
la fuerza del AIRE.
You're going to LOVE the video below of the Makarines performing sevillanas live. The third copla they sing is an excerpt from this sevillanas and it has to do with the Rocío pilgrimage. Here it is:
Sevillanas (De: Porque El Relente Le Daba)
José Miguel Évora/Isidro Muñoz*
Porque el relente le daba
Le puse mi chaquetilla
Le puse mi chaquetilla
Porque tiritaba y yo la veía,
Ay!
Below you'll find a video of El Sordera singing today's letra and yesterday's coletilla. Enjoy!
Soleá por Bulerías
Popular
Dios va a mandarte a ti un castigo muy grande
Y eso es porque tú te lo mereces
¿Ay por qué me vienes culpando?
Y yo culpa no tengo
Que de ti habla la gente
Here's a coletilla along with a video you'll love of Pastora Galván.
Ay que te quiero
pero de lachi no te lo peno
Tangos flamencos are sensual and playful. Earthy and fun. Grounded and feminine. Tangos is a four-count rhythm and can be one of the most comfortable flamenco rhythms to groove to. Check out this video of La Lupi teaching and rehearsing tangos with the Ballet Nacional de España, and you'll see what I mean. There are a variety of tangos letras of different lengths and subject matter. Here's one for you today followed by video of a very young Estrella Morente signing it.
Tangos
Popular
Cautivaron a una mora
y a España se la trajeron
y en la pila del bautismo
Candelaria le pusieron.
Today in honor of the solar eclipse (which we saw at 99% visibility here in Portland) I give you what is actually a pop song. It's by Lya whose amazing voice you can hear in the video below with Los Makarines.
More tangos...
Por más que tú no me quieras
yo te tengo que querer
I'm on a tangos kick as I prepare for the upcoming understanding tangos workshops, so here's one more for you today:
Tangos
Popular
Me voy a meter en un convento
que tenga rejas de bronce,
pa' que tú pases fatigas
y de mi cuerpo no goces.
Chorus from Tangos Retrecheros
María Toledo
No sé que tiene el flamenco
que cuando lo canto
me alegra por dentro
You're going to love listening to the tangos in the video below (Trrrrrust me). And the way it's filmed makes you feel like you're right there at the fiesta, so go ahead, play along with palmas. Here's one of the letras you'll hear:
Tangos
Tú te colocas y en frente de mí,
que por si acaso yo me caigo pa' trás
empújale el columpio más
Here's a tangos letra and a video (that you'll love) of La Lupi dancing to it. Enjoy!
Tangos de la Repompa
Popular
En el cristal de mi copa
tu cara se reflejó,
y aquel poco de licor
que yo me llevé a la boca
de veneno me sirvió.
Mientes como hay Dios
The moon is almost full, so I've included a lunar themed letra for you. (Though this one would make more sense on a new moon...) And since yesterday's video analysis was a hit, I decided to do another. Below you'll find a video of Beatríz Morales dancing to today's letra and giving many clear examples of what it looks like to dance to the cante along with my description of where each component of the structure occurs within her dance. Check it out, and find out what the ultimate bulerías goal is.
Bulerías
Esta noche la luna a mí no me acompaña
Me voy solo pa' casa
No espero al alba
La luna se ha enfadado por no llevarla
anoche a la verbena de Santa Ana
No me enfades luna, tú no me enfades.
Bulerías is arguably one of the hardest flamenco forms to dance due to it's improvisational nature, complex rhythm, and nuanced cante. But dancing bulerías is less mysterious than you may think. Once you understand the components of the dance and how they relate to the music (the singing and the compás) you'll be well on your way to obtaining bulerías freedom.
Below l explain the basic bulerías por fiesta structure and how it relates to the cante. After that you'll find a video of Pastora Galván along with an analysis describing where she dances each component of the structure. Finally I give you an activity to help you internalize the information.
Here is a siguiriyas letra and a couple of videos for you:
Siguiriyas
Dolores mía
en un laito de mi corazón
te tengo metido
Thinking about that first trip to Spain in 1998 has reminded me that I need to step it up in the doing things that scare the *#%~&> out of me category. Read on for a lesson around that idea and more of my story from that first trip. Also, find out why it's essential to listen to flamenco music, read a letra about Sevilla, then see a video of Juana la del Revuelo, Aurora Vargas, and Remedios Amaya ...
During my time in Sevilla I saw these women perform. During my time in Sevilla I saw these women perform live. As you'll see from the video below, it was wonderful. Their CDs were among some of the first I purchased once I accepted the fact that I needed to start listening to flamenco music. You see, in the beginning I wasn't very interested in listening to the music, especially cante, unless I was dancing, but Chris convinced me to start listening. He said I needed to do this to understand and internalize the compás.
My plan was simple (and not very well thought out):
Travel around Spain, settle somewhere in Andalucía, find flamenco classes, find work.
I had no contacts in Spain, no leads on where to study or work. I didn’t even know what city I was going to live in.
I just knew that if I wanted to learn flamenco I needed to go to Spain.
Today I'll tell you about finding flamenco in Sevilla, what it taught me about perseverance, and how it can help you.
![Bulerías Made Simple [The Structure of a Bulerías Dance & How It Relates to the Cante]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/568079e7bfe873f15c115eee/1499384968842-1S9JWZZSPQYMQOEAEMVX/Umi%27s+shoes+dancing.jpg)
![Why You Shouldn't Call It Quits [My First Flamenco Dance Experience in Spain]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/568079e7bfe873f15c115eee/1497863268662-WXHKPVB6FCMAZCUITFKF/Abanicos+b%26+W.jpg)