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What is the difference between the 2? I think I know what dynamics are: loudness or softness of a note. But what about phrasing? Somebody said it's how you let notes breathe, but I am not sure what that means.
Phrasing is a more broad term that might included tone, vibrato, technique approach (how you attack or play or sing a note), connecting the notes with ligado vs detaching them with staccato, etc. We can admit that timing and dynamics play the biggest role in what will distinguish how a phrase is played of course. Dynamics really are just louder vs softer executed notes. It is impractical in many cases to signify one soft note, two loud, 5 VERY soft, one VERY loud, etc, especially with fast notes. That IS dynamics but most of the time dynamics refers to a general arc of a long passage getting louder or softer gradually or all at once suddenly. So the nuance of that language might favor "phrasing" to distinguish those to gradual or sectional dynamic approaches. But again, this is just a language issue and getting very very specific always clears things up.
here, "the PHRASING of your compás or rhythm playing will be the result of tempo+dynamics+technique (which strum pattern)". In spain they use "aire" and "soniquete" or "pellizco" in equally vague manner, lacking specifics. Hope that helps.
Although it has come to mean all the things Ricardo mentions, the essence of phrasing is the grouping of sequences of notes to clarify meaning in the music. This may refer just to written phrase marks in the music, or to the various means a musician uses to communicate that grouping in performance. The 'breathing' is a singer's breathing, the commas and periods in the lyrics.
Although flamenco hast strict rythm and rules, you are flexible inside that rule in your expression (length of notes, accents, silence, how you build tension and how you resolve that tension, etc.). Dynamics (loud, soft, etc.) serve phrasing and not the other way around.
The 'breathing' is a singer's breathing, the commas and periods in the lyrics.
Right, as in taking the breath or pausing is related to timing/rhythm, and the actual breath of singing vowels becomes "intensity" or dynamics (loud or soft). Since I am into both playing and singing, I often get a sense of "gearing up" mentally as I am performing in order to execute a difficult passage (perhaps the fast picado is coming, or the high held note that we don't want to run out of breath on produce a similar anticipation).
Phrasing is a more broad term that might included tone, vibrato, technique approach (how you attack or play or sing a note), connecting the notes with ligado vs detaching them with staccato, etc. ... timing and dynamics play the biggest role
'Phrasing' is the meaningful rendition of music (chiefly melodies), comparable to an intelligent reading of poetry - the separation of continuous melodies into smaller units varying in length from a group of measures to a single note. 'Articulation' refers to the technical components used in this division, as referred to above. (Harvard ).
But, though articulation will of necessity be used in phrasing, 'music' is that which results from the unidentifiable communion between the sensitivity of a player and instrument, other humans in the vicinity etc. It's not a combination of techniques. Words like honesty, listening (to yourself too) and giving are more appropriate than technique.
Frank Zappa once said 'make a jazz noise here'. Ditto flamenco - "oh look, I've emphasised a note and this one is a bit later than it should be. My phrasing (like my hair) must be looking good in the back!"
Guitarists are not great at this, as they mostly value technique, but think of Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra. Miles. I doubt they studied the individual components of phrasing much.
"Articulation" is a good word, as it relates to speech and the "clarity" of what you are trying to express musically. 9 out of 10 times both the "clarity" and the "feeling" you believe is "magic" or whatever elusive thing, comes down to a technique detail. Moraito vs Diego del Gastor, there are very "technical" things that are distinguishing that sound. Meanwhile people wrongly criticize "that guy is just technique, no feel" it is actually the fact they are not attending to such a detail. At least in my experience when I hear these things and then truly examine what the heck is going on with that different sound or expression.
"Listen to yourself then change", not as easy as it sounds. People who record themselves often have a way more objective view of "themselves", and fight with the issues of technical detail way more than people that just go at it "I just feel it man!". At the end of the day it is our mistakes that end up constructing our unique artistic personalities.
9 out of 10 times both the "clarity" and the "feeling" you believe is "magic" or whatever elusive thing, comes down to a technique detail
Evening maestro.
This is the rub. I might be agreeing with you if we're saying the same thing. 'Contains' is the word. However, I'm reading you saying that it's the application of these articulations that will make your phrasing sound superior. Au contraire, mon brave. For me, that elevated quality playing will contain this control but as a result of the musician's er.... musicality. You would probably say AS A RESULT of their musicality ( ). Of course, you have to have learned these articulations already to be able to use them.
A drummer at my local pub in Sarf london in the 70s was fantastic. Called Martin Drew. He ended up playing with Oscar Peterson (with Niels-Henning Orsted-Pedersen, the infinitely named monster of double bass). His playing was so f* far into the pocket it was a drumming singularity. Monster swing at crotchet=60. I bet he didn't work on how best to pause; he was just a musician of the highest calibre. All the high level articulations you mention were evident in his playing by virtue of his musicality.
quote:
Listen to yourself then change
By this I don't mean listen to your soloing sometime later over a beer, but monitor what you are playing as you play it and amend what you then play as a result of what you hear. Again, it's not a trained response to certain variables, it is your response as an artist to the music you are creating. I used to sing what I wanted to play when improvising as it created something more original (than my 'stuff' linked together into a solo). Occasionally, I actually played the same thing. After a while I found that I was listening to myself as I played and following a different line as a result.
People who record themselves often have a way more objective view of "themselves", and fight with the issues of technical detail way more than people that just go at it "I just feel it man!".
Paco was his own worst critique. He composed something, liked it at that moment, next day he couldn't stand it. It is a fuucked up psychological thing. Then again, I see some people believe in themselves so much, that no matter how crappy they are, they think whatever they do is f-ing genius. People like Paco, are perfectionists, never happy with themselves (mostly because of upbringing, father always expected more, this and that ...), other people exact opposite. Objectively we all wanted to say "Paco, you are the best, why aren't you 100% happy" and in other cases "dude, how about you learn some basic compas first before trying that Paco picado run at 500bpm"
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). Of course, you have to have learned these articulations already to be able to use them. 
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