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.
It appears that this video was just posted last March. (I'd seen the other, older clip years ago but not this one).
At the end of Alban Berg's "Lyric Suite," each instrument in the string quartet recedes into the background, and the piece dissipates into silence. The silence is noted in the score at the end, like it's part of the composition. I feel like Gerardo's piece should have a couple minutes of silence at the end. (The album gives us 5 or 6 seconds).
Posts: 15725
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to machopicasso)
Nice thanks for sharing. That was part of a suite he composed (in Rondeña tuning) that was deliberately abstract, including Farruca, that he used to accompany Israel Galvan. That is why they have the escobilla elements that you don’t normally see in guitar solos.
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to Ricardo)
Among the recent maestros, Gerardo's the best at expressing the beautiful darkness that flamenco permits. Antonio Rey (whose playing I admire) rarely goes there, and, when he does, he doesn't stay for long.
quote:
That was part of a suite he composed (in Rondeña tuning) that was deliberately abstract, including Farruca, that he used to accompany Israel Galvan. That is why they have the escobilla elements that you don’t normally see in guitar solos.
1. At which points do the escobilla elements occur? 2. Is there an album of Gerardo accompanying Galvan with this material?
Posts: 15725
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to machopicasso)
Escobilla at 3:336 till the end. I never found a video with Galvan and only know the material that was put on Andando el Tiempo, including this Solea, the Farruca (Canicula), and the intro to the Farruca (Trasgo), and likely, depending on the length of their performance set, The Rumba (La Habana a Oscuras), and his proper Rondeña material from previous albums (including 2 buleria, and Hacia mi). I am basing that assumption on the tuning aspect where he could seamlessly blend the forms together, and the fact those 4 new pieces appear on one album.
That video you shared is a year before his accident after which his playing changed drastically. I regret that he had been working up an entire albums worth of “classics” including things like Mario Escudero and several other traditional flamenco plus some classical guitar pieces, something Baroque like a lute suite or something I have forgotten, but he executed the entire Concerto de Aranjuez for the class (all the guitar parts added up to about 5 minutes of music ). All that was going to be on the “classic” album, but it never came to be after 2008.
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to Ricardo)
quote:
That video you shared is a year before his accident after which his playing changed drastically.
Yeah, I was initially surprised at the date from the concert footage I posted because I thought the injury might have happened in 2007. Was there ever a conclusive diagnosis of his injury?
Man, what a nightmare it must have been for him, not to mention the loss for flamenco guitar, more generally. Props to him for his continued playing, despite it all.
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to Ricardo)
quote:
That video you shared is a year before his accident after which his playing changed drastically. I regret that he had been working up an entire albums worth of “classics” including things like Mario Escudero and several other traditional flamenco plus some classical guitar pieces, something Baroque like a lute suite or something I have forgotten, but he executed the entire Concerto de Aranjuez for the class (all the guitar parts added up to about 5 minutes of music ). All that was going to be on the “classic” album, but it never came to be after 2008.
such a shame , can't help wondering what else would have been on that album... i remember the one class of his I took, seeing a slim volume of Barrios in his guitar case, and heard him play Aranjuez too.
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to machopicasso)
At 2:48 in the video at the top, the tempo increases significantly. The same is true of the album version at 3:28 (below). Is there a precedent for this in Soleá? If not, is it "elastic compas" a la Vicente? Something else?
Posts: 15725
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Gerardo Núñez, "Soleá de... (in reply to machopicasso)
quote:
ORIGINAL: machopicasso
At 2:48 in the video at the top, the tempo increases significantly. The same is true of the album version at 3:28 (below). Is there a precedent for this in Soleá? If not, is it "elastic compas" a la Vicente? Something else?
Yes, elastic tempo, however, this is as old as flamenco is old, it does not have to with Vicente’s generation. In this specific example, there is a possibility it was conceived with a specific dance choreography in mind, for example Galvan or Gerardo’s wife. Since I have not seen it I don’t know for sure, and I only say that because although almost ALL flamenco guitar players have speed up sections in Soleá like that, Gerardo’s is particularly “measured” or rhythmically clear in this regard.