|
Ricardo -> RE: Globalization of flamenco (Nov. 13 2006 3:01:24)
|
quote:
"If great opera singers are not always Italian, and the best ballet dancers are not necessarily Russian, the time has come to assimilate the fact that in the not too distant future authentic stars of flamenco will be coming from a variety of countries."
I remember discussing this topic long ago with Estela somewhere. I am surprised she is writing that, although I am not surprised if she is writing it and sighing "ah....oh well, so much for the good ol days". I can't really tell from the article if she really has a change of heart or feels like "it's over for pure flamenco".
But to go along with a lot of that purist sentiment, which is kind of depressing to me, was something Gerardo said this summer. After he accompanied the young Jesus Mendez, an AWESOME new singer (read his interview at flamenco world), he said, very sadly, that it is a shame that in Jerez now, NO ONE under 21 is learning to sing flamenco. All the young kids are spoiled, listen to pop music, party, do drugs, whatever, and don't seem to care about the music of their parents, or grandparents...their heritage.
Perhaps he is exaggerating, but he seemed quite conscerned. I remember seeing a 12 year old girl singing really good old stuff in sanlucar, but maybe she is a rare exception, and now that she is older, not serious. I really hope there are kids somewhere who are into it because they like it. What will happen probably, like it did for Jesus, is they will discover they really like it when they are much older, and then too old to get really good at it the way the old masters had, starting as children, singing at parties with the whole family.
Of course Gerardo was one of the first to really speak up for foreignors doing flamenco. He really believes that it is legitament, but of course he knows what is really great and what is not. But that is not the point of simply "accepting" foreign flamenco. No one has to be as good a singer as Paquera, play as "gitano" as Tomatito.
No matter what happens, if foreignors take it over, or if flamenco as we know it evolves into something else, at least we have the history. No one composes Baroque style fugue nowadays, but is Bach really dead?
Ricardo
|
|
|
|
