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Miguel de Maria -> RE: Why can't I use a 4 finger ras all the time? (Jul. 13 2003 13:03:35)
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At my school, they use the a m i i quite often. Tino explained to me that using the five stroke compas makes it difficult to get an even sound in most palos, but that it´s good to use in Soleares. I think what he meant is that beats with 4 strikes in it sound more even, more regular. Actually you can easily see this in comparing flamenco and classical tremolo, the 4 beat classical sounds very linear while the 5 beat flamenco quite round and full. Perhaps in compas you want more discrete sounds.
It seems that Tino uses this amii for compas, such as in Alegrias (starting on 1) amii amii 3 amii amii 6 amii 8 and 10 11 12. Tino doesn´t use marote style ras very much, for his continuous ras he seems to favor iai, i up a down i down. Of course, as Tom said these are both personal and regional. These are as much Tino´s choices as anything Sevilla would represent, I believe. last night at the Festival at Moguer (where I saw Antonio Canales, and Chocolate accompanied by my teacher Eduardo Rebollar among others!) I noticed that each guitarist seems to have his own favorites. One guy Nino Jero or something, seemed to use Marote style ras for almost everything. He played really hard, and left lots of spaces in his compas, always coming in on weird beats and always hitting the accents and stops dead on! Very dynamic. He and his singer even played a rumba.
Another very useful ras is the ma down p up ras. This is powerful and can be put into triplets or even beats. Yes, it´s just up and down but it can be done very fast and I think just about every guitarist does it. Plus, it seems to me to be easy, you just have to practice it slow and relax and will come out pretty quick. Seems useful for accompanying dancers, especially when they start going fast.
Another point, is that there seems to be at least two different ways of playing the same ras. There´s the throw and the push. So you play a four stroke ras by flicking, marble style, your fingers are the string. You get a percussive sound, especially when you aim it at the bass strings. However you can also push. Sort of like laying the finger on the string and then pushing it through. That´s another sound, and this is how I have been practicing. It seems to make for a fuller, more lush and rich sound.
While I´m here, I´d also like to share some guitar student secrets. I have been hanging out with a bunch of guys who go to the Paco Pena school, I delight in getting inside information and insights about the master and his program. First thing, when you start for two months you can only play with your thumb. He tells you that for 2 months you must only play with the thumb, and then he shows you how. Supposedly you are supposed to push down and, as if you were trying to push the string into the soundhole! And with your thumb completely relaxed and free of any muscular activation, you use your forearm to push in. I am sure you will find this very interesting Ron. For 2 months you are supposed to do this.
Paco Pena always insists that you play with a very particular sound--his sound. And he insists you always play with a very powerful volume. Phillip, one of the students, says that it´s incredible how loud PP plays, that he has never heard anyone play like that, although PP is a small person. I am going to try to learn how to do the thumb thing, although using your arm to push your thumb sounds like a horrible transgression of the economy of motion principle, if it´s necessary at least I should learn a little of it.
And Finally, it seems that there is a secret to becoming an excellent guitar player--you have to practice! The consensus among my group is that you have to play 5 hours a day. This actually is more than my research, which has said that you have to work 4 hours a day for ten years, to become a virtuoso. And notice I said work, not play... there is a chasm of a difference between those two things.
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