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RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to britguy)
I was there.
The show was 2 hours, plus intermission plus a little extra at the end.
Three guitarists, 2 singers, 1 cajon player and 3 dancers (1 male). Paco did one solo while everything else was with the group. The male dancer seemed very good to me and he was front and center for much of the program.
I really enjoyed it and I thought it was a great show.
And.......no flutes. Thankfully.
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The universe is indeed expanding - to get away from this planet.
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to Yojimbo)
quote:
I was there.
Me too!
I thought Paco's playing was wonderfull to hear. Beautifull tone, and what smooth, lyrical tremolos. Very traditional falsetas, and with few of the overlying technicalities present in 'modern' flamenco guitar playing.
I thought both singers were excellent, especially the girl, who was exceptional. Too bad the dancers got all the applause. Especially the male dancer who sort of dominated the whole programme with his energetic zapateado and acrobatics - very reminiscent of Jose Greco, I thought. But there's no doubt the audience loved every minute of it.
Interesting to note that Paco and the other older guitarist used the traditional hold, whereaes the younger guitarist just rested the guitar on his right thigh and crouched over it, blues-style. Also Paco frequently raised the heel of his right foot to elevate the guitar a little. I find I tend to do that, also. . .
A great show. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
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Joined: Jul. 12 2009
From: Washington, DC
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to britguy)
quote:
I thought Paco's playing was wonderfull to hear. Beautifull tone, and what smooth, lyrical tremolos. Very traditional falsetas, and with few of the overlying technicalities present in 'modern' flamenco guitar playing.
Glad to hear that, Britguy. Of all the top tier players on the circuit, Paco de Lucia, Vicente Amigo, et al, Paco Pena remains my favorite. I just enjoy his more traditional style of playing. I'm going to see him on February 1, when he performs here in the Washington, DC area.
Cheers,
Bill
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RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to BarkellWH)
quote:
I'm going to see him on February 1, when he performs here in the Washington, DC area.
Well Bill; you can look forward to a great show of traditional flamenco. Be aware of the female singer. She really has a fantastic flamenco voice and delivery. Gave me goose bumps. . . The male singer is great, also. Sounded a bit like Raphael Romero at times.
Too bad Washington is so far; I'd be tempted to see it again.
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to rombsix)
quote:
Paco Pena is freakin' amazing.
wow I really like Paco Pena in this little clip there. I especially love when he just banged a triplet rasguado and then saying to himself "that´s so sick" at 2:16.. haha ..AWESOME! :))
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Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to Doitsujin)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Doitsujin
quote:
Paco Pena is freakin' amazing.
wow I really like Paco Pena in this little clip there. I especially love when he just banged a triplet rasguado and then saying to himself "that´s so sick" at 2:16.. haha ..AWESOME! :))
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to britguy)
It was a great show and I highly recommend it if it comes to your town.
About the guitar holds, I noticed each guitarist had a different hold. PP had his guitar quite high up in the traditional method. Another guitarist, as noted earlier, had his guitar horizontal while the third one had his sort of in between. No-one had a footstool.
I especially liked the short bit at the end of the performance, when the female singer did a little dance, and one of the guitarists did a little singing.
About the video posted by rombsix - the host of that show was sitting across the aisle from me. Not a big deal, but something to note.
I wish my rasqueos were as good as PP's - he makes them look so easy. I had never heard of the triplet with the little finger before.
_____________________________
The universe is indeed expanding - to get away from this planet.
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to britguy)
quote:
But was anyone curious about the two bits of tape stuck to the heel of his guitar?
And why they were there?
(I'm pretty sure I know the reason, but let's see who else can guess. . . )
He actually has a Gitano guitar support stuck to the lower bout of his instrument.
About the pieces of tape (which I don't think he has here) - they are usually there to increase friction / grip between the guitar and Paco's pants so it doesn't slip. There is a piece of tape near the heel on the lower bout. Don't know why that is there. There is a tuner stuck to the guitar near the heel on the upper bout.
Cheers!
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RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to rombsix)
quote:
There is a piece of tape near the heel on the lower bout. Don't know why that is there.
Well; I have an Iranian friend who studied with Paco in Rotterdam, and he told me Paco always had a little patch of grease (of some kind) stuck to the heel of his guitar, and periodically lubricated his fingertips with it !
I think THAT is why the piece of tape is on the heel. To protect the guitar's finish from the grease.
(But I could be mistaken. Just an educated guess. . . )
RE: Paco Pena in Toronto - tonight! (in reply to britguy)
Well, many players do that bit with the grease. They just put it on the actual finish of the guitar though, without using any tape. The grease on the tape would maybe not work well, but I'm not sure. Maybe Paco Pena does things differently. The grease is usually placed on the upper bout near the heel though, where Paco Pena has the tuner in the above video. Maybe Paco Pena likes putting the grease on the lower bout near the heel instead. Who knows.
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