Flamenco in Jerez

Costs are rising and times are tough.
Please consider a donation to keep this
place going.

Welcome to one of the most active flamenco sites on the Internet. Guests can read most posts but if you want to participate click here to register.

This site is dedicated to the memory of Paco de Lucía, Ron Mitchell, Guy Williams, Linda Elvira, Philip John Lee, Craig Eros, Ben Woods, David Serva and Tom Blackshear who went ahead of us.

We receive 12,200 visitors a month from 200 countries and 1.7 million page impressions a year. To advertise on this site please contact us.

Flamenco in Jerez

You are logged in as Guest

Users viewing this topic: none

Printable Version

All Forums >>Discussions >>General >>

Page: [1]

Message

<< Newer Topic Older Topic >>

Phil

Posts: 382
Joined: Jul. 7 2003
From: Rota, Spain

Flamenco in Jerez

I went to Jerez today to meet Estela, who is here for the Bulerias Festival. I was having a beer (or 2) with her and Melchor, and who walks up to our table to say hello to Estela? Paco Cepero! Melchor has met him a couple of times before and runs into people like Moraito regularly, but for me it was a big deal. I’m telling you guys (and girls) that if you’re going to go to Spain for guitar lessons or dance lessons, there’s no better place to go than Jerez. I’m sure the level of instruction is just as good in Granada or Sevilla, but those places just don’t have the Flamenco ambience that Jerez has. There are the peñas, which have performances every weekend and entrance is FREE; there’s the Centro Andaluz de Flamenco, which shows films, has performances, has libraries of recordings and videos that you can listen to and watch, and is FREE; and then there’s the very high probability of running into your favorite Flamenco artist walking down the street, which is also FREE.

Your lessons, however, will not be free, but if you deal directly with the teachers and don’t go through some booking agency, they will be very cheap (in comparison with what you’d pay in the States or the UK). And with the money you save you can pick up very nice guitar for a very reasonable price. Just stay away from the ones with the “media luna” on the headstock.

I know I sound like I work for the Jerez tourist bureau or something, but I’m really just sharing some of my excitement with you. After all, I told my Andalucian wife that I met Paco Cepero today and she said, “Paco, who?” If any of you ever decide to come here, write to me and I’ll be happy to help you out anyway I can. (And no, Merle, you can't stay at my house).

Phil

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Sep. 12 2003 19:37:09

El Craic

Posts: 164
Joined: Jul. 28 2003
From: Atlantic battered NW Ireland

RE: Flamenco in Jerez (in reply to Phil)

Hi Phil u r right, Paco Cepero interuppted his lunch to talk to melchor and fergusito and me at the festival earlier this year and moraito turned up the night after i left grr, but i will be back next march so maybe we'll hook up for some pena activity? Jerez is lovely, i want to experience flamenco across spain when my spanish gets better but i have a special love for jerez now.

_____________________________

You can't stop the waves but you can learn to surf

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Sep. 14 2003 21:08:34

Guest

RE: Flamenco in Jerez (in reply to Phil)

quote:

I’m telling you guys (and girls) that if you’re going to go to Spain for guitar lessons or dance lessons, there’s no better place to go than Jerez. I’m sure the level of instruction is just as good in Granada or Sevilla, but those places just don’t have the Flamenco ambience that Jerez has.

What? Sevilla is the birthplace of flamenco and Granada has more gypsies than Jerez. I doubt that Jerez would be better than those 2 places to learn flamenco.

Tomas

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Sep. 27 2003 0:15:15

Phil

Posts: 382
Joined: Jul. 7 2003
From: Rota, Spain

RE: Flamenco in Jerez (in reply to Phil)

quote:

What? Sevilla is the birthplace of flamenco and Granada has more gypsies than Jerez. I doubt that Jerez would be better than those 2 places to learn flamenco.

I don't want to get into a pissing contest over where the "cuna de flamenco" is, because it's irrelevant. But I can assure you that it's not Sevilla. Utrera, Lebrija, Jerez, etc. would be closer to the mark. I haven't got the slighest idea as to whether Granada has a higher gypsy population then Jerez, but that's also irrelevant. What is relevant is that today Jerez is the epicenter of Flamenco. I don't live in Jerez and I have no vested interest in making such a statement. However, I'm convinced that it is a fact.

BTW a large gypsy population doesn't necessarily mean that more Flamenco comes from a particular place. I live in Rota, which has quite a large percentage of gypsies and this is definitely not much of a Flamenco town. Except for the Agujetas clan, there's no well known Flamencos from Rota. That's right, I said the Agujetas clan. I think I'll just let you scratch your head over that one for a while.

Phil

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Sep. 27 2003 3:01:04