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Spain in September/October
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heysan
Posts: 23
Joined: Sep. 11 2009
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RE: Spain in September/October (in reply to heysan)
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I thought I would sum up my trip to Sevilla to help those who are planning a similar trip. I was there for the month of October. My flamenco background: I started learning flamenco mid 2009 with Deteresa1 (Andy) for some months before leaving Ithaca. Accommodation in Sevilla: I paid 250Eu for a room in an apartment outside the old city (Buhaira). This was a good deal so expect to pay more in the old city (I think 350Eu is realistic). I think one needs some luck finding short term accommodation. There are some useful websites: www.idealista.es www.loquo.es www.fotocasa.es www.easypiso.com www.pisos.com. www.easypiso.com (supposedly the best site to look for other people to share a place with) www.pisocompartido.com I found mine through a group post on couchsurfing.com Getting around in Sevilla: There are public bicycles for 5Eu a week and bicycle lanes on the sidewalks on many big (and some small) streets. The central part of Sevilla is quite small so it takes at most 30 minutes on a bike to get from one end to the other, assuming you don't get lost in the maze of cobbled streets! To see live flamenco: I can recommend the following places. -Devorando Flamenco, c/Joaquin Costa, Alameda (just opposite el bar pimiento). Usually free, except sat nights. Crap ventiliation and so super super smokey (think: burning eyes, clothes still smell after washing). The owner, Gaspar, spent some time in Texas so speaks some English. A small venue with character. -Los Corralones, c/Castellar, 52. This is a dance school and some nights they open the bar and have music in their courtyard. So it feels quite intimate. Students and pros pop round on Thursday nights and have a jam. Great singing, improvisation. -I can recommend Taller Flamenco to _find_ information about live flamenco. They print a weekly handout listing bars with regular shows or impromptu flamenco. Many shows are free. Learning flamenco: Juan del Gastor gives lessons from his house. He came recommended via David Cerva via Norman Klineman. He charges 50Eu for one session which lasted, on average, 1.5 hours. What did we do in ten or so lessons? Basics of solea (por arriba and por medio; some intros, falsetas using different techniques: pulgar, arpeggios, picado), basics of solea accompaniment (he sings too); basic buleria; basic alegria + accompaniment; basic solea cante. My Spanish is very limited so we didn't spend lots of time talking. Most of the lesson I was doing something musical rather than verbal. Juan would play something, ask if I wanted to learn it (yes!), and then proceed to break it down bit by bit (ie. note by note or phrase by phrase) until I got it somewhat fluently. This would take 10 - 30 minutes depending on the difficulty. The tempo was usually very slow so I could memorise the falseta/chord changes during the lesson. He would also play with me, which was a good way to build my confidence. Sometimes he would leave the room and let me practice for a few minutes so that I could work out the kinks. He would ask me to play without him when he thought I could handle it. Juan is also very friendly and humble. His wife Lucie is English so I did ask and receive some verbal feedback at one point. I think I got the most out of the cante accompaniment lessons; certainly this constituted completely new material for me. I also took a handful of lessons on basic right hand technique from Antonio Moreno. He teaches from his house for 35Eu an hour. (http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=1zMMnZTW6AU) I think that even after one session my tone improved. Lessons were also in Spanish. I met a bunch of guitarists who have been learning at the Cristina Heeren flamenco academy for 2 or 3 years. The academic year is 9 months, 5 hours a day. There are three levels: beginner, intermediate, advanced. Even the beginner guitar curriculum covers accompaniment and history of flamenco. I attended a day at the beginner level: the classes are in groups (between 10-20 or so), and it seems the levels in a class can be somewhat mixed. Very noisy with so many guitars. A typical day is 1.5 hours technique, .5 hour break, 1.5 hours palos, and then 1.5 hours of either accompaniment/history of flamenco/compas/etc. Many of the young flamencos (guitarists and dancers and singers) that I saw perform in Seville passed through this academy. Each 3 month term costs Eu1000. My overall thoughts in random order: At first it was quite tough to find the non mainstream venues to see flamenco. I noticed a small but vibrant group of students who regularly went to jam sessions or busted out their guitars after a gig. If you want to practice with students of song or dance I would recommend posting signs at the larger schools (Cristina Heeren, Esperanza Fernandez). I was told Sevilla is the best place to learn dance but there are other great (better?) cities to learn and experience guitar: (in no particular order) Granada, Cordoba, Jerez, Cadiz. There is much to see in the city (architecture), and the mountains or the beach are a few hours drive away. Hope this helps! Sasha
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Date Nov. 8 2010 16:46:00
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