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Hello everyone! Individual learning: I, for one, am still learning compás (uffff!). I've watch a few videos from various performers! Picked up 2 soleares, zorongo, 2 tangos & a farruca, working on a sevillana, learning picado, tremolo & working on alzapua (full plate). For me, it's easier to look (observe), listen, and feel as supposed to read standard notation. What are you guys "methods" for learning a piece?
I find the most important thing for me is to know how it should sound in my head - I need to have internalised the sound first, then I can work on trying to reproduce it. I probably spend as much time listening as playing (haha that's my excuse for not having my guitar in my hands ). No I'm serious.
Sometimes I like to have the tab to just help me find the right notes because I'm not quick at that.
My teacher doesn't use tab or notation, but teaches me through playing what it should sound like and then breaking it down into manageable chunks. This works well for me. But other teachers I've been to have used tab or standard musical notation.
My favorite thing to do is to transcribe the piece. It sounds nuts, but It helps when you already have a transcription so you don't have to muck about with really dense passages.
But, in my experience re transcribing something from a recording will help you internalize it better, and if you play along with the piece as you transcribe, you also work your technique. start slow, bring it up to speed (there are freeware programs out there that can do that.)
I am never more aware of the phrasing of a piece than after i'v eheard it twenty times and trying to write it on a page!
I started off learning from the Juan Martin solos book and still use that, as well as many other tab books, sporadically. I don't like notation, it can be easier at first than learning by ear, but many nuances are difficult if not impossible to express like that (especially rhythmic ones--try learning bulerias from a Juan Martin book!), it's harder to memorize a piece since you develop a dependency on the tabs, and you rarely learn what you're playing within the context of the particular compas.
Like most good teachers, mine teaches me by ear and by sight, and you know what, after an hour's lesson, I've almost completely memorized something far more complicated than something simpler that I'd take ages to learn on tab. If you can get a teacher, don't hesitate, but many of us aren't fortunate enough to live in Spain or a metropolitan area where there is flamenco.
I'm talking about me as well :) Funny, I was just talking about farruca, since I started learning that last Saturday with my teacher. I can hardly imagine the trouble I'd be having with this piece--both playing and remembering it--if I didn't have my teacher showing me. Listen, ear training is always a good idea.
You gentleman are a wealth of knowledge. Thank you! As I mentioned in a different thread I was somewhat "taught" to put a few chords together at a younger age. Pheasant songs from Puerto Rico, somewhat similar to "cante" w/ lots of moorish influence. Living on the highland where tradition "was" passed down to younger generations by looking and listening, mainly due to the lack of "formal instruction" (meaning schools of music). I guess my point is that it appears once you develop and "train" your ear/sight you have a tendency to rely more on it. I was just delighted to observe/listen to an instructional video where a farruca was played, much to my amazement within a few minutes with guitar in hand I was able to play it . I then turned to the handbook & eventhough I knew what was written and knew how it was supposed to sound, it was somewhat tedious to follow. Remarkable discovery in view. I know not all the palos would have a visual (dvd/videos), also they are complicated...but hopefully the ear would help! Reminds me of an old proverb : "what we learn to do, we learn by doing". Once again, thanks for your input.
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). No I'm serious. 
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