Miguel de Maria -> RE: When is it...not Flamenco?? (Sep. 15 2005 21:43:30)
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Wow, I step away for a day and foroflamenco has woken up! I like it! Kate, I can understand how all the people in your community would agree on the style of music they have grown up loving and performing. It seems to me that when they say "puro" they are talking about a specific way of performing the music which is open to gypsies and people who were born in Granada (or Jerez, or whatever). Those who are from this area and follow the traditions are puro. Anyone else is a pretender. While I can sympathize with their point of view, I don't agree, anymore that I agree that all jazz which is played by non-New Orleans residents (well there aren't any anymore) is not "puro" jazz. What we are really taking about is an exclusionary and racist set of standards. I love this type of music too and I agree it should be nurtured and not allowed to fall by the wayside, pushed away by the "le le le's", but I still reject this snobby terminology and mentality. Disagreement aside, surely you know that I applaud your work in this area and hope you can continue it as long as you wish. Florian, go to Spain! You will learn so much and you will love it. You really should do anything in your power to get over there. No lip from you, young man, just go! Everyone else, it seems to me that the essence of this argument is the same old generation gap, old vs. new, roots vs. growth kind of thing. It's very natural, and the only salve is tolerance. You may think that your kind of flamenco is "authentic" or "puro", but just a little knowledge of the history of flamenco (not merely of your town, but the big picture) shows you that flamenco is by nature an amalgamation of Gypsy, Sephardic, and Arabic musics. The guitar technique is a folk technique with many significant additions from the classical masters of Spain. What many call a pure and ancient thing is not really that old at all, and those who decry its commercialization don't seem to know or acknowledge that the professionals have created most of its features. Nothing stands still and kids always have to go further than what was before. Old folks curse the modern football players who have their own dances, or badmouth the incredible athletes who play basketball for their flashy styles. But the young'uns are just going to roll their eyes at them, because "they don't get it." But is either of them right? Is it more pure to shoot a layup than a rim-rattling dunk? Give me a break...anyways they both count for 2 points. I don't like the new forms of flamenco half as much as older stuff, but I wouldn't insult the artists of a livign art for their experimentations and innovations by telling them that their art is not pure. It reflects very poorly on those who do and shows a lack of perspective. Unless you want to play bulerias all day, it might help to reflect on the many beautiful palos of flamenco and remember that they came about by evolution, not a single clap of inspiration from a "puro" Gipsy family in Jerez!
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