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A standing ovation for Gerardo Nunez and his group (cante, cajon, dancer and mini-bass) in Dundee last night. Jim and Ron were in attendance and will doubtless add their comments to this later, but for my part I have to say that I have never seen a better performance of flamenco new and traditional. Paco de Lucia is coming to Edinburgh soon with a similar group, but will be hard pushed to improve on Nunez's group. I look forward to making a comparison.
Nunez is an INCREDIBLE guitarist! Possibly the greatest living flamenco player - much better live than in his recordings.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to El Oud)
I wasn't there, but I've seen Nuñez live a couple of time, and I fully agree with your little review. I just wanna add that Gerardo is IMHO one of the best guitarists in the world all styles. He is SO dynamic, and the way the group works is very inspiring. Lots of space for the individual and still a very tight group groove or compás. It reminds me a bit of the way a very high level jazz trio works. Very inspiring, also because you can see that they are having fun when they play.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Guest)
Yeah, I agree Rob, the man is so at one with the guitar it's just like an extension of himself... he plays so relaxed and effortlessly. A nice balance of Traditional and Gerardo stuff, which had something for everyone there... from any guitar background. All the band were top notch and full of energy and I was really taken by the power of Carmen Cortez's dancing. Later that evening we went back to the Function room at the hotel for a drink and it was a sort of "open" night, with various students and folk getting up to play a few tunes...jazz, classical...and Jim also did a set with his group (guitar, dancer,cajon). Afterwards the singer and cajon player from Gerardo's group, who were staying at the hotel and had been having a drink at the bar got up and did a number! It was after 1.00am by then and I was beginning to fade, and thinking the night was drawing to a close, went back to get some sleep. Silly me....'cos the next day Jim told me that the singer returned again accompanied by John Fillmore (who is an excellent player) for another session!
I'll let Jim fill in the juicy details...I just heard the gist of it!
By the way Anders, I let John Fillmore try out your negra guitar and he thought it was excellent. He was astonished at the price!
I'm still in a bit of a dream from the Nuñez concert....
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Ron.M)
quote:
I'll let Jim fill in the juicy details...I just heard the gist of it!
Jeez! Ron, his show was fantastic, absolutely genius, all of them. Blistering performance and then that lovely wee Buleria played in a very traditional Jerez style, thrown in the middle just to show the critics that he's the real thing and got it all.
Before I went on Ron lent over our table and said to me ' Nunez is coming in to hear you play' my blood pressure dropped for a second then surged back up cracking of the inside of my head followed by that pitted feeling of 'I'm going to be sick' I then realised that Ron was kidding me on but I still felt sick as I sat there waiting for our turn to come round Thing was that Lorna Derek and I, had agreed to do the 'open mic' gig some months ago. Didn't realise at the time, but how do you follow a show like his. I mean, three folk from Glasgow up on stage doing their flamenco stint an hour or so after the big one. So we went on and as it happened, not realising that Gerardo Nunez and his wife, Carmen Cortez did indeed drop in to hear three numbers Turned out that they were standing at the door by the bar just behind you Ron. Thank God I didn't see them and only found out after. Can you guys imagine how dreadful that would have been to have got up there knowing he was watching? Woke up this morning thinking to myself, how many folk can say Gerardo Nunez came buy to see their show? Later we had a great Granaina from Nunez' cantor, Rafael de Utrera, you could have heard a pin drop, no joking, the hall was dead quiet as Rafael sang a beautiful song he called 'Nina' Big John Fillmore was asked to accommpany and I gave him my guitar. He had about five minutes to get it sorted and then up on stage. He pulled it off with great style and some marvellous and tender sounding chords. Magic!
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Jim Opfer)
I hope this is the group thats preforming on the 14th august in sweden. I only know about percussion and bass so far..not a word about any dancing or singing.
But who would mind watching Gerardo play solo for an hour and a half huh?
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This is hard stuff! Don't give up... And don't make it a race. Enjoy the ray of sunshine that comes with every new step in knowledge.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Jim Opfer)
Ha Ha! Jim, You know, the first sense I got of impending mastery about to descend upon us, is when the two of us went back to the classroom in the Caird Hall and we were just playing around with some falsetas and stuff, then I suddenly noticed that the room was reserved for Carmen Cortez at 4.00pm, and this was like 3.55pm! As we both left pronto I saw the guy change the name on the next room to "Gerardo Nuñez"! I said to the guy "Is he here yet?", and he said, "Yeah, he's just down the hall doing a sound check...go down there to the stage wings and you'll see him." So Jim and I had a look... And one thing I'm really proud to say about Scotland, is the fact that nobody hassled the man, or went up to annoy him by trying to talk to him or ask for photos etc. He was busy and everybody realized that he had a big job to do and left him to centre himself....
Jim, I'm sure that Gerardo and the group were totally delighted that there are some folk here that love their music, so much as to want to perform it themselves. I think you gave them a good feeling, so that's why the guys from Gerardo's band wanted to come up and play in their own free time. Good on you amigo! And if I joked with Lorna about Carmen Cortez being there, you can tell her that I think she is a great dancer, with bags of potential and a true Gitana spirit that Carmen herself could not but respect in somebody from outside Spain.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to El Oud)
Lucky for you guys. I wish he was coming over here.
I just got the Encuentro DVD and book a couple days ago and am very impressed with it. Well worth the ~$70 or so from El Flamenco Vive. I remember also someone had posted saying that the Encuentro folks are a little ambivalent about continuing to produce the series - I really hope they edit every one of the series in DVD and continue to publish new volumes. Best place for us to help them is at the register, huh?
The playing is advanced, which most of you could have guessed, but I highly recommend it for everyone. You'll enjoy watching his hands in your living room or computer room, wherever. It's really a nice edition. Even if you're not advanced, there are some good suggestions which in time the viewer will appreciate. the music is interesting too. There's even some farruca for those of you who like it. The bulerías and tangos are very, very nice too. Mostly they are drawn from his previous material but he's changed them a little, then mixed falsetas from different recordings.
A while ago, I wrote that I was working on some of his music and a few people said they really didn't like him, I think if they saw the show you saw, they might reconsider.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Ricardo)
Hey Ricardo! OK... as a once sceptic of Gerardo, I must announce that the guy is great! He got to my soul! You know, I think of any kind of music you perform...be it Rock, Hip-Hop, 50's Standards or Flamenco... The main thing that comes across is sincerity... That is the most important thing... The thing that makes any music work is that single idea. That's what makes music...music!
I enjoyed Gerardo's concent so much that I'm booking tickets for my wife and daughter to go to Edinburgh to see...... "The Man!" ... LOL! (I've already got mine's...but they weren't interested at the time)
Anyway I've explained it as a day trip to Edinburgh to see the castle and let the two girls have a shopping "experience" on Princes Street, looking for neat tops and that! Afterwards, we sit for a "boring" hour or so in the Usher Hall and watch the greatest living Flamenco guitarist in the world and then go back home to Stonehaven! Duh!! Is there anybody out there!!
cheers??
Duh!
Ron
PS Between you and me...I think they'll LOVE it!!!
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From: Washington DC
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to El Oud)
quote:
Ricardo, how many Spaniards are there at the course in Sanlucar.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v238/RicardoM/IMG_1013.jpg Well lets see, there were 1,2,3,4,5......., oh there is a Dutch guy, one guy half Spanish gypsy half Dutch, does he count?, couple German guys and gals, Swiss guy, at least one American I see...
Really what is the point of a question like that? If there is any problem with types of students that go there, it is more about HOW MANY people are there and what is the overall level. This year there were WAY too many guitar students, and at a lower level. In years past it was a smaller more intimate studio, which makes it easier to learn. Also, having more advanced players makes things move faster. Last year he turned people away. Perhaps he promised them they could go this summer and that is why he was overbooked. For me it was too big. But I met some great players, Spanish and not. One guy was from Granada, one guy was German, another Swedish.
It is great meeting people from all around the world who are into flamenco. There are some Dutch guys who play better than most Spaniards. It is great being in an environment where we can learn from Gerardo in class, and from each other in the juergas. Free concerts of Rafael de Utrera, Nano de Jerez accomp. by Gerardo, etc, everynight something. The point is everyone there is an aficionado, and it is an intense week of hardcore flamenco.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Ricardo)
Ricardo, I must admit that after seeing him in concert, I've been listening to his stuff more and more. I've been listening to his Carmen Linares/Gerardo Nuñez album all this week and I'm finding things I never really heard before. His harmony is incredibly detailled and structured to the last note. Can you tell me...has he studied music and harmony etc...or is he an "instinctive" sort of player? His compositions are certainly very lavish and complex.
When you go to Gerardo's school, is there any time for private consultation...or is it mainly a group thing?
My experience in Dundee was that John Fillmore could have addressed many questions and problems that I have...but that there was no time for it, as he was too busy trying to teach classical players Flamenco compás, so that became the priority, so it just got down to playing the same Soleares falsetas over and over again.
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to El Oud)
quote:
Really what is the point of a question like that?
Ricardo... I'm sorry, I understand your harm, but please don't misunderstand me, I was just curious. You know, I live here and sometimes I wonder how things work. It can be a strange thing to live in another country, language, moral, codex etc. I totally follow what you say, nacionality doesn't count. I don't ask for someones nacionality when I get an order, and that's exactly the same.
It looks like you had a good time, and that's by far the most important thing.
Posts: 15725
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Guest)
No harm Anders, sorry to come off like I was on your case. I have heard that same question A LOT, and just felt like addressing it here. I know it is question lurking in the back of a lot peoples minds reading or thinking about attending a course like that. I have caught myself having similar thoughts, with no harm intended. Didn't mean it to sound like I was jumping on you. There are a lot of factors that make something more or less "flamenco" or even "gitano", beyond the obvious.
I passed through Granada on my trip, but only for a day and night. Had to show my friend the Alhambra, etc. Wished I had more time, I would have liked to visit your shop. Hopefully next year.
Posts: 15725
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Nunez in Dundee last night (in reply to Ron.M)
quote:
When you go to Gerardo's school, is there any time for private consultation...or is it mainly a group thing?
It is "mainly" a group class, but...if you are like me you and stick your foot in the door a little, you can take something more personal home with you. You can't just sit there and follow the class or let others direct. You need to take some initiative in these types of group classes. Gerardo is a very open guy, but if nobody is asking him for anything specific, he will start showing stuff he feels he should. I have been in a class where one of the more advanced students was pushing him to show more than the rest were ready for, but I actually like that sometimes. It really depends on the size of the class and the overall level. But hanging out in Sanlucar, I have always found Gerardo in a moment with his guitar where I could catch him alone, and get a little something like "private consultation". The whole environment there is so inspiring.
quote:
His harmony is incredibly detailled and structured to the last note. Can you tell me...has he studied music and harmony etc...or is he an "instinctive" sort of player?
Definately "instinctive", though, I have heard him play a bit of Bach, more for fun I think than serious. You would be surprised how quick he is at changing his own seemingly "structured" compositions, often on the fly. Conceptually he is like most flamenco players. He uses his fingers to find things, and his ear and heart tells him if it is good or not. There is a certain fretboard logic to what he does, a lot of things that he does are both lyrical, and fall nicely on the fingerboard, ie, it is fun to play. At least for me!
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Possibly the greatest living flamenco player - much better live than in his recordings. 
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