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Munin -> My experience with flamenco-lessons.com (Jan. 1 2009 5:15:46)
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After some weeks of contemplation and rewatching Jason's sample lesson every once in a while, a few days ago I finally decided to go ahead and register for a trial at his site, flamenco-lessons.com and I just wanted to share my experience with it. I really feel that he deserves some more exposure for all the work he has been putting into it.
Well I think I can just say it now - I feel that Jason has created an amazing site that is well worth the price of admission. Currently, there are already countless lessons online, divided into categories, from palos to things like a technique section. One of the things I really especially like about the site is that Jason covers things you only rarely see in instructional videos etc., for example Ida y Vuelta, Cante & Dance accompaniment, and so on. Even with the abundance of learning material these days, it often seems as if most books and videos restrict themselves to teaching rasgueados and a bunch of solea falsetas (exaggerated of course) and that's it. With Jason's site I get the feeling that he is really trying to share every bit of his flamenco knowledge, and for the people who simply don't have access to Spain or a place where the less obvious things are taught, his site is an invaluable resource.
And then there's all those cool little tidbits that truly make Jason's site stand out among others and also among other learning resources in general, for example Jason uploaded a lesson where he puts Thelonius Monk's "Round Midnight" in a bulerias rhythm. Now, the purists may see this as rather gimmicky, but personally, I really loved it - you just don't see these sorts of things anywhere else.
It has to be said though that in general, I think Jason's site is more tailored towards Intermediate+ players rather than beginners like me. Even though he classifies his lessons into 3 difficulties and has a bunch of videos available to teach the very basics, the beginner stuff is often very tricky too. And there are a lot more lessons classified as Intermediate/Expert online compared to the Beginner stuff. But for those who can do it - and of course, challenge is good - there is an insane amount of material available.
There are a couple things that could be improved, for example, and this ties into the last paragraph, I feel there should be a bit more structure to tie the lessons together in general - if I was a complete beginner having just subscribed to the site, I'd feel slightly lost. The site could use a bit more written text to accompany all the available lessons, for example some guidelines for beginners. And while Jason makes a "commentary" video available for every lesson and explains things well, it's often merely used to explain the theoretical or historical context rather than explaining how to specifically tackle certain parts of a falseta, for example (this is not true for every lesson though, just a limited impression I had).
In general though - I can highly recommend the site. He keeps adding new lessons constantly, the price is very reasonable, and most importantly, his material is truly, truly unique and has a personal touch to it, not just some rehashed "let's count bulerias compas" stuff all over again. No idea how the site compares to Adam Del Monte's, for example, but overall, I think it's one of the best monthly investments one can make. (Hope I didn't sound too much like an ad [:D] )
Are any other guys here also subscribers? What's your opinion?
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