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RE: Flamenco popularity (or lack the... (in reply to Kaloguitarist)
Kalo,
We had a Peña in Ireland and one day a girl called and asked if she could come along. Of course we said yes. The following Monday we were rehearsing when a big Kawasaki motorcycle arrived, with a little punk at the controls.
She said she played electric guitar but wanted to learn flamenco. She was welcomed with open arms: we showed her how to play flamenco, she made friends with our dancer. Then we taught her how to accompany the dance. She became part of Monday night rehearsals
After a couple of years she had more pressing things in her life and left. But she has continued to be a friend of the Peña and even came to Andalucía to visit me, when I had jumped ship.
You have just fallen in with a bad crowd: you just need to find people with an open mind, who accept you for what you are and what you could be.
RE: Flamenco popularity (or lack the... (in reply to El Burdo)
quote:
Kalo,
We had a Peña in Ireland and one day a girl called and asked if she could come along. Of course we said yes. The following Monday we were rehearsing when a big Kawasaki motorcycle arrived, with a little punk at the controls.
She said she played electric guitar but wanted to learn flamenco. She was welcomed with open arms: we showed her how to play flamenco, she made friends with our dancer. Then we taught her how to accompany the dance. She became part of Monday night rehearsals
After a couple of years she had more pressing things in her life and left. But she has continued to be a friend of the Peña and even came to Andalucía to visit me, when I had jumped ship.
You have just fallen in with a bad crowd: you just need to find people with an open mind, who accept you for what you are and what you could be.
Suerte
Morante
The story is very inspiring! To be truthful, Arizona it is not that way. The scene is lame!
The flamenco scene is small and to give you an example...
There was TWO flamenco studios here! I will not mention names of the studio or even where they were located in the valley.
But the one flamenco studio, where I visited was owned by a wife (flamenco dancer) and Husband (guitarist)
Those two were very passionate about flamenco! I had seen them perform a couple of times!!! They were awesome!!!
I had visited their studio and I had a one time lesson with the husband. At the time the wife was listening and at the end of the lesson told her husband that she thought I was good enough to accompany dance classes.
She was saying how wonderful it was to see a girl play flamenco!
At the time things were going crazy in my life and I was still playing rock guitar and didn't know if I wanted to commit to just flamenco guitar.
Fast forward, the studio that her and her husband owned was being sabotage by another flamenco studio.
That studio literally hired people to vandalize there studio until they drove them out of town.
The last I heard they wanted nothing to do with the flamenco scene here and I don't blame them at all.
To have the kind of support as this gal you mentioned in your post takes a group of people to work together.
In Arizona you could see that there is a lot of BS politics, and until that changes, well, I am not sure if there is any hope in finding the right people.
I truly love the support on this site and I know there are many on this site who live in areas where flamenco studios don't even exist and still are inspired to play.
My hats off to them and I hope they continue to pursue there passion.
Sometimes, I wonder why I actually started playing flamenco? Maybe it starts there? Asking myself the questions, why I even started.
I put alot of pressure on myself as well. I will never be Paco, Ricardo, or Jason McGuire or Grisha, etc.
I know that may sound shallow, but, why continue if the scene here is political...
I only responded to this thread not to complain, but, being that it is an art form that is flickering, I often thought of the politics of what I experienced and even the studio I mentioned above who was driven out of town.
RE: Flamenco popularity (or lack the... (in reply to El Burdo)
This thing about Woman can do this and men can do that is pre cambrien stuff. There a specificities of each sexes, and it will flavor the result, be it music or anything else. But of course we meet many people from that era, and it's ok, there presence reminds us of our past.
Revive Athena and mesmerize thoose mortals with your flamenco guitar :)
RE: Flamenco popularity (or lack the... (in reply to El Burdo)
I am not competent to comment on whether the general popularity of flamenco is declining or not. But I must disagree with devilhand's assertion that informative websites are disappearing. Diosa mia! There are so many websites, blogs etc I couldn't begin to make a list. Expoflamenco.com, deflamenco.com and on and on. What I have not found, either now or previously, is any dedicated forum like this one (or the earlier Temple listserv) where knowledgeable ppl discuss, argue etc. Perhaps because we non-Spaniards are spread out and need a forum like this to connect, whereas if ppl in Spain want to talk and argue about flamenco they can just go to the tapas bar down the street. However, on FB and in YT comments I see lots of heated arguments among Spaniards, complete with ad hominem attacks etc. (I compiled about 100 pages of copy/pasted arguments about Rosalía. There's one currently raging about one partisan's claim that all flamenco--not just rondeñas--was born in Ronda.)
<<I can see a trend. For example flamenco websites in spanish with tons of useful information and links are disappearing with no reason one by one.>>
RE: Flamenco popularity (or lack the... (in reply to El Burdo)
quote:
Revive Athena and mesmerize those mortals with your flamenco guitar :)
While that might be an beautiful statement and encouragement, I find it very delusional.
Guys, without being a Debbie Downer, I am finding even social media to be full of BS as well....I highly doubt my playing is going to Revive Athena...LOL
Whatever my endeavors take me...I am just going to play for enjoyment and play for myself...
Heck I even see people who use youtube faking there subscribers all of social media is beginning to just turn me off as well...
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