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Is anyone going to this? Can’t make it to San Lucar (will go in 2025) and am getting spammed pretty hard with emails. Tempted to go just For a bit of flamenco immersion and hang in Spain for a few days.
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to ddias)
I won't be going, getting spammed hard too though. Also it is not easy to unsubscribe to Online Flamenco. There's no way to manage your subscription on their website, you have to email them which I find annoying, they respond quickly though. It's dead easy on Flamenco explained.
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Posts: 2732
Joined: Jan. 30 2007
From: London (the South of it), England
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to ddias)
Yeah im aiming for '25 in sanlucar. not going this year and just got a photo of foro member bursche enjoying a manzanilla in the square. hurtful!
Online flamenco marketing is pretty shameful and yeah they go hard.
I'm sure it will be really enjoyable but I think the Cordoba thing seems very expensive, and feels kinda directed at novices. Without wanting to sound like a snob "come and see what really happens in a flamenco pena!" or "get a chance to sample the Andalucian culture and food 1st hand" kinda makes me cringe a bit. If theres one place I've had a fair sampling of, it's Andalucia and the Flamenco there! And I think I've consumed more Salmorejo than English roast beef!
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Stu)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Stu
Yeah im aiming for '25 in sanlucar. not going this year and just got a photo of foro member bursche enjoying a manzanilla in the square. hurtful!
Online flamenco marketing is pretty shameful and yeah they go hard.
I'm sure it will be really enjoyable but I think the Cordoba thing seems very expensive, and feels kinda directed at novices. Without wanting to sound like a snob "come and see what really happens in a flamenco pena!" or "get a chance to sample the Andalucian culture and food 1st hand" kinda makes me cringe a bit. If theres one place I've had a fair sampling of, it's Andalucia and the Flamenco there! And I think I've consumed more Salmorejo than English roast beef!
Foro meet up in sanlucar in 25!
I know what you mean with the cringey copy and perhaps being more targeted at novices, but the date and fact its in Cordoba (where i haven’t been to in over 40 years) and opportunity to hang with other folks IRL is appealing. Plus the dates work - kids are at school, etc. I’ll decide today.
Posts: 1939
Joined: Dec. 2 2006
From: Budapest, now in Southampton
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Stu)
That'd mean 14-18 July, hopefully that'll be the case, I'll just need confirmation as I recall somebody saying they announce next year's dates at the end of the current curso.
Posts: 15334
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Stu)
I always WANT to go, but it depends on what is going on. This year, my house AC broke so I need like $12,000, so no Spain trip! Unless I can sell two condes fast! I will plan for 2025 and see how it goes this year.
Posts: 2732
Joined: Jan. 30 2007
From: London (the South of it), England
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to xirdneH_imiJ)
Hey Richard, yes hopefully will know in a weeks time. Can start planning.
Ricardo, yeah I guess it's probably pretty expensive trip all in to come from the US compared to us in UK. A much bigger undertaking.
I'm still getting messages about online flamenco cordoba course! A few days after it was.... "the final day to register!!!" I hope its a good course and develops onto another nice option. And later in the year too which is cool.
Posts: 1956
Joined: Jul. 12 2004
From: San Francisco
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Stu)
Yeah I'm hopeful as well. But it's been so long since I've been to Spain, I know it's going to be a great experience. Summer is difficult for me because of my work, and the distance from the west coast of the US means a long flight. I've got my noise cancelling headphones, and maybe a pill to pass out and hope I can handle it. I hate long flights.
quote:
ORIGINAL: Stu
Hey Richard, yes hopefully will know in a weeks time. Can start planning.
Ricardo, yeah I guess it's probably pretty expensive trip all in to come from the US compared to us in UK. A much bigger undertaking.
I'm still getting messages about online flamenco cordoba course! A few days after it was.... "the final day to register!!!" I hope its a good course and develops onto another nice option. And later in the year too which is cool.
Posts: 1956
Joined: Jul. 12 2004
From: San Francisco
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to ddias)
Just headed back to Seville after the course. It was a first class experience. The online flamenco team did an incredible job organizing it. If it happens next year I’m in. After a week in Seville I thought Cordoba might be a letdown but it was anything but. The quality of instruction was amazing and the events that were part of the experience surpassed any expectations. I met some great people from over a dozen countries including foro member ddias, whose company I throughly enjoyed. Paco Serrano gave a private concert for 25 people, and so did Tino. Both played extremely well.
Turned out Paco is an AC/DC fan.
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Posts: 1956
Joined: Jul. 12 2004
From: San Francisco
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Stu)
There was material that consisted of four falsetas and some compas things por solea sent a month before the course. The falsetas were presented at two different levels and were designed to be played together. The course focused on playing an about eight minute solea for dance with cante. I learned the falsetas pretty quickly as they were not difficult, however playing them well took more time. I’m not someone who can play super difficult things but I’ve been playing for decades and have played in dance schools and with flamenco companies and groups in San Francisco. I have also with performed with professional non flamenco groups for most of my life. I considered the flamenco groups I’ve been with amateur, as I consider myself an amateur flamenco guitarist. With that said, there was a professional singer and dancer there every day. Over the four days the entire solea was taught. The level of the other students didn’t really matter, as it was about each person learning to play for the dance and cante to the best of their ability. If you are someone that can play for pros from Spain without rehearsal, the class wasn’t for you. For me, I felt my accompaniment skills returning after not doing that gig for about 20 years. It’s always been exciting for me to play for good dancers, and I’ve never played for a singer as good as the guy who was there. Both are established teachers. There were a few wrinkles in the cante that are not done by non Spanish singers, and the dancer’s skills and flexibility also exceeded what I’ve generally experienced.
If you’re hung up by being surrounded by folks not as experienced it’s not for you. In class I focused on Paco, the singer, and the dancer. Paco answered any questions regarding any topic, be it nail care, the nuances of playing for bulerias cante, the half compas thing, string tension, performance issues, etc. It was obvious he really enjoys teaching. So I guess it depends on what you’re after. I’ve got a library full of transcriptions and enough experience to figure out anything I have the ability to play, as well as stuff I don’t have the chops to perform so I felt this format was better for me. By the last day there were 20 guys who were making it through an eight minute dance por solea with falsetas. I’m sure there were several who couldn’t have done it alone, likely most, but the sound in the room was still cool. I could tell Paco was stoked. I suppose if I was the only guy there, I could have covered a lot more material in that time period. That would have meant hiring these guys privately. Doubt that’s an option with an artist the level of Paco. I spoke to the marketing guy for online flamenco, and they know they are getting some negative feedback, and are trying to improve. But these guys are all in trying to make this work, and imo they knocked it out of the park.
quote:
ORIGINAL: Stu
hey thats cool! glad to hear it was so inspiring!
How was the level? I always felt the course seemed to be marketed at novices.
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Mark2)
Excellent write-up and endorsement. Experiences like this can be both rewarding and rejuvenating. I've never forgotten the time I had when I did a month's worth of study in Granada about a decade ago. It was worth every penny.
Posts: 15334
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Mark2)
quote:
By the last day there were 20 guys who were making it through an eight minute dance por solea with falsetas.
Interesting. Myself I can imagine it but what was the exact structure, types of letras and escobillas? Lately I have been bringing some local guitar students to the dance class and rehearsals so this might appeal to some of them.
Posts: 1956
Joined: Jul. 12 2004
From: San Francisco
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Ricardo)
Let’s see what I can remember: About four compas of guitar rhythm- he showed about six or seven inversions of E and F chords and said use the ones you want. Another four or so with the singer doing his temple, falseta Letra starts Dancer does a contessesion Letra continues- standard changes Towards the end of the letra he ends a line on Am, but then goes directly to the cambio (G on 3 of the next compas) Letra ends, desplante, Corte, escobilla, break, falseta, another letra, more footwork, another Corte, immediate tempo increase, footwork headed into bulerias, letra with mostly standard solea changes, but again a few variations in the melody requiring different changes, more feet por bulerias, end
Nothing crazy really. Next year would be a different program TBD- possibly with different teachers on different days, but definitely with cante and baile. That’s the best I can remember- I think the structure changed a little on different days. For me it was a really enjoyable refresher ( I didn’t go to any of the afternoon review sessions)but for some of the guys it was an eye opening experience into how baile routines work. I’m sure some of the guys never played for dance before but they went for it. I thought I’d be clever and nail some of the accents in the footwork but he changed them every time. I think the cante was pretty consistent but couldn’t swear to it being exact everytime. The singer did say he had dozens of solea letras that sometimes required slightly different changes. Paco of course varied his playing each time. I could tell how stoked he was when the entire class caught a corte.
quote:
ORIGINAL: Ricardo
quote:
By the last day there were 20 guys who were making it eight minute dance por solea with falsetas.
Interesting. Myself I can imagine it but what was the exact structure, types of letras and escobillas? Lately I have been bringing some local guitar students to the dance class and rehearsals so this might appeal to some of them.
Posts: 1956
Joined: Jul. 12 2004
From: San Francisco
RE: Online flamenco Cordoba course (in reply to Stu)
He said that he was aware some folks felt they were being spammed. They have talked about doing this live event for a few years, and mentioned all the planning it takes to attract enough students to make it viable. From finding the venue, which was amazing, and giving people enough notice to make arrangements, etc. They pulled it off wonderfully.
quote:
ORIGINAL: Stu
Yeah thanks for the write up mark.
Sounds like you had a great time.
And the pro singer and dancer there is great.
I think they are doing a cool thing with that site. Good luck to them.
I wonder what the negative feedback is? Hope it's not causing them stress.
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