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Hey Orson and Argaith, I am going with a group of other flamenco guitar students and we are going for a drink after to compare notes. PM me if you want to join us.
I saw him last yr at kings place and strangely enough was sat next to a couple of lads from the guitar workshops...graham and...? argh cant remember.....(lad from newcastle whos name i asked you before! )
it was good show and i guess it'll be the same one......but maybe not.
Just back - well pretty damned amazing! Gerardo did a couple of stretches of fast alzapua which just about had me fall off my chair. And generally great atmosphere, seemed very genial. And his playing was very musical - not just flashy technique - lots of dynamics and sensitivity.
The two singers were also great as was the percussion player. One of the highlights for me was the unaccompanied cante (ironically!).
Was also a great social - met lots of old friends that I hadn't seen in ages, plus a new one, Argaith from the foro!
Some more thoughts the morning after - my first thought hearing Gerardo play was how much he made of the guitar, I mean he got fantastic bass sounds and clear trebles, he made it sound like a huge instrument.
Carmen Cortes also had a wide dynamic range in her footwork. Some dancers pound the floor mercilessly, but she did some very soft which made the louder one more effective.
And his playing was very musical - not just flashy technique - lots of dynamics and sensitivity.
Many people said in past, Gerardo would play like a machine without feeling. These people are all wrong IMO. In his compositions the music always stood in the foreground. He just had (has still but less..now) a brilliant technique which got the attention of unexperienced people first. Its like you hear a flamenco record for the first time. All the people recognize the palmas very heavily coz they aren´t used in much other kinds of music. And if you think yourself about that, do you really recognize the palmas so much anymore in bulerias? They became natural and are just the rhythmical base for the music. So,.. that explains why unexperienced people only see Gerardos extreme techniques at first and forget to listen to the music behind that. (Coz the truth is, it´s the other way around) Well,.. as Nino de Pura said in past, if you want to express yourself through music, you need a good technique (at least as solo guitarist {also Cepero has an awesome technique by the way but he uses just single notes most of the time}). Without good techniques you can´t express yourself (only if you are a very simple character IMO hehe ) (Yes and cepero also has in almost all of his composition one picado phrase that kicks ass and is to be honest most often very unnecessary.. So he also uses his techniques.) Thats about Gerardos technique before his accident.
That he didnt use fancy techniques at his recent concerts has 2 reasons.
1: He really is a musician and the usage of fancy techniques is more the shoe of Antonio Rey, Rafael Cortes and these younger generation people who need to get attention as newcommer, or to compensate other things, who knows).
2. He can´t use his index very much, so not many possible fancy techniques except thumb left. That explains his amazing alzapua-runs in the alegria. The only time he made use of his left crazy techniques...and well,... Ailsa I like you I hope you are not mad about me... :./ But that means that you are unexperienced. @_@; sorry.. (Joke)
The last point about Carmen Cortes.
She is a simpatico lady but was more used as spacer to prolong the program. (As well as the martinete of the singer) Nice likeable people but you can´t perform an authentic martinete on stage and even less on stage in a non spanish speaking country. Martinete is very special, it´s very personal and should not be used as "show"-element IMO. (Also because 90% of the audience just wonders and don´t get anything) The same is true for any percussion solo. Who wanna see that except percussion-artists? At least for me, martinete, percussion solos and some kinds of dance are as commercial breaks. The bad thing is, I can´t switch to a better program till its over.
If you´ve read my post, don´t take my words too serious, especially not the part about the "unexperienced people" (if you fall in that category). I sadly have to write that here coz I recognized many new people in the foro who seem to be very serious all the time and may not be able to see that cool and just think a while about that before typing in just counter arguments in the head of the moment. I´m not guitaristedemadrid and not Ruben Diaz, so hold back with wise guy citing folks.
He is a true master and a real gentleman. We were the only ones left in the bar sipping to our drinks and nattering away when suddenly Gerardo turned up and shook our hands and said 'gracias'!
As Ailsa said, it was great to meet up with folks.
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It was him, right? 
) (Yes and cepero also has in almost all of his composition one picado phrase that kicks ass and is to be honest most often very unnecessary.. So he also uses his techniques.) 
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