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I've been playing guitar for a while, not flamenco thou. I'm learning and specifically trying the Buleria palo. Question is about structure: where for example in rock you have more or less a structure: intro/rhythm/chorus/solo/outro/etc...how does compas/falsetas/cierres/llamada/ cante flows? Is there a structure or is it just a bunch of compas intercalated by cierres and falsetas? Can any of you passionate folk enlighten me or direct me? Thank you Cheers
Yeah strictly cante accompaniment is gunna be different than baile with cante. Not a ton of structure with only cante, in fact bulerias in general is not a ton of structure compared to say solea, alegrias, tientos etc. Bulerias is almost more just party music or something you end another palo with.
Cante calls the shots. Guitar follows. The structure of the cante will determine when you play a falseta, so you'd really have to look into the structure of cante. Say if there are three verses in a buleria and you play a falseta at the end of the second, it'd be like cutting the singer off mid-sentence. You have to listen to the words and the melody of the song because 3 verses doesn't necessarily mean 3 compas, as the singer can repeat some verses or modulate them rythmically in different ways. Compas is just the basic rythm. Though sometimes playing the compas means just playing that basic chord pattern, usually as a filler when the singer takes a break (a short break). For me, llamada is just a series of moves that the dancer does that signals a change to the guitarist, usually a cambio de tercio or something like that.
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In that case, forget about everything I just said.
If just solo guitar, the reason why the structure is kind of odd sometimes, like a falseta, then compas, falseta, etc. is because the falseta were originally intended for accompanying cante. Eventually guitarists composed full pieces for guitar solo but even there sometimes you feel the influence of cante behind it, as if the whole pieces were just a bunch a falsetas flung together. A lot of the guys I work with nowadays seem to prefer composing full pieces and then breaking them down into short falsetas they can use in different settings. Though I guess that's a personal choice. Many people also just compose their own falsetas and not full pieces.
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"Anything you do can be fixed. What you cannot fix is the perfection of a blank page. What you cannot fix is that pristine, unsullied whiteness of a screen or a page with nothing on it—because there’s nothing there to fix."
I'll tell you this though. A solo written by somebody who's been accompanying for many years and a solo by someone who's only ever played for themselves sounds very different to the ears of an experienced flamenco.
If you're expierienced you can provide a context for people's ears which allows you to surprise them and be clever. If the whole solo is a surprise it usually just sounds like a bunch of notes.
ORIGINAL: Macchi Is there a structure or is it just a bunch of compas intercalated by cierres and falsetas?
That would do the job then if accomp isn't a goal. Work on keeping the groove going and throw in the fancy stuff here n there once the groove is solid. Mess around with it, have fun, make a film and upload it here
I'll tell you this though. A solo written by somebody who's been accompanying for many years and a solo by someone who's only ever played for themselves sounds very different to the ears of an experienced flamenco.
If you're expierienced you can provide a context for people's ears which allows you to surprise them and be clever. If the whole solo is a surprise it usually just sounds like a bunch of notes.
one should frame that and put it on a wall :-).
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The smaller the object of your focus the bigger the result.
Question is about structure: where for example in rock you have more or less a structure: intro/rhythm/chorus/solo/outro/etc...how does compas/falsetas/cierres/llamada/ cante flows?
Assuming the falsetas, compas phrases, letras etc are all learned and understood and well rehearsed, the "structure" you are asking about is in fact what the individual gets to create or improvise, in his or her own unique way. You can work it out at home by trial and error (arranging) or you can just go for it on stage see how it flows (improvise). Regardless of which creative method you prefer, most of us with experience have in mind the start and finish.
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