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Posts: 36
Joined: Sep. 11 2010
From: USA california
Duende
Anyone know a good book or resource to read about Duende? Or can explain your own interpretation? I have found quotes by Garcia Lorca, but seek further study of its meaning to flamenco. many thanks in advance, -g
Lorca writes: "The duende, then, is a power, not a work. It is a struggle, not a thought. I have heard an old maestro of the guitar say, 'The duende is not in the throat; the duende climbs up inside you, from the soles of the feet.' Meaning this: it is not a question of ability, but of true, living style, of blood, of the most ancient culture, of spontaneous creation."
Everything that has black sounds in it, has duende."
"This ‘mysterious power which everyone senses and no philosopher explains' is, in sum, the spirit of the earth, the same duende that scorched the heart of Nietzsche, who searched in vain for its external forms on the Rialto Bridge and in the music of Bizet, without knowing that the duende he was pursuing had leaped straight from the Greek mysteries to the dancers of Cadiz or the beheaded, Dionysian scream of Silverio's siguiriya."
"The duende's arrival always means a radical change in forms. It brings to old planes unknown feelings of freshness, with the quality of something newly created, like a miracle, and it produces an almost religious enthusiasm."
"All arts are capable of duende, but where it finds greatest range, naturally, is in music, dance, and spoken poetry, for these arts require a living body to interpret them, being forms that are born, die, and open their contours against an exact present." [1]
If I have understood correctly, in spain Duende is not much talked about(maybe because of respect towards it) and not crystal clearly defined. It can be compared/is equal to "having soul". Duende means also "elf" in spanish.
this is very difficult to describe...flamencos never even mention this word... essentially imagine yourself in a situation when there are people performing and there's an audience and a bubble forms and everyone becomes a part of the act, their hearts beating at once, it's when this magic occurs...and you can feel your heart pumping, the adrenaline flowing...
or imagine that you sit down with your guitar, accompany a dancer and a singer, and you're not just "accompanying por soleá" but become the soleá...when you're all one...a good dancer friend of mine for example describes this as a deeply sexual act, she says she goes on stage to have multiple orgasms :D
You should remember that Lorca did not know much about flamenco, he was a romántico: his maestro was De Falla, who knew more about classical music than about flamenco.
The essay of Lorca should be taken with a dose of salt.
You should remember that Lorca did not know much about flamenco, he was a romántico: his maestro was De Falla, who knew more about classical music than about flamenco.
The essay of Lorca should be taken with a dose of salt.
On a side note I must admit that "duende" is something that one can't put into words, especially in a manner like in the second post.
a situation when there are people performing and there's an audience and a bubble forms and everyone becomes a part of the act, their hearts beating at once
Man, that's a GREAT description! I think you summed it up better than Lorca.
quote:
De Falla, who knew more about classical music than about flamenco.
I think that the concept of 'duende' exists outside the realm of flamenco. Outside of music even. Andalusian Gypsies aren't the only magicians on the planet...
I never mention it myself, but when asked i generally describe it as a goal in a football match (obviously one made by your club). Personally i see duende as the subconsciousness taking over control of the body. The few times it happened to me it felt like some alien energy force took over control of my body... from one second to the other my brain had nothing to say anymore about how my hands moved or what was played..... obviously when that alien energy source structurally plays the guitar a 1000 times better the you could ever do yourself you're not scared and you don't complain, you simply enjoy the few seconds (or even minutes) that are given to you by good fortune.
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