BarkellWH -> RE: Segovia and flamenco (Mar. 20 2013 19:22:58)
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Segovia himself surely also knew all that, but instead of trying to put them at ease, and allow them to relax so they could perform at their best and true level, he would sit there stone-faced and unsmiling...By contrast, I also attended master classes as a guest of Pepe Romero. What a difference! Pepe would mingle with the students, smiling, kidding around, and put them entirely at ease. Andres Segovia was born in 1893. Pepe Romero was born in 1944. I would suggest that each was a product of his time. In European universities, conservatories, and under a maestro in Segovia's time, there was a very clear distinction made between the professor (or maestro) and the student. Professors and masters were the equivalent of gods, and the student's job was to absorb their wisdom. It was not to question and have a dialogue such as we are used to in the US, and which has occurred in Europe as well, at least since 1968 and after. I suspect Segovia was very much of this old European tradition of the master and the student, and much of his personality and interaction (or lack thereof) with students must be understood within that framework. Pepe Romero, on the other hand, came of age as things were changing, certainly in the US but in Europe as well. More openness, questioning, a far greater rapport between professors and masters and their students. Romero was not burdened with the old tradition that enveloped Segovia. I think that old European tradition might explain Segovia's personality and behavior more than anything else. Cheers, Bill
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