Welcome to one of the most active flamenco sites on the Internet. Guests can read most posts but if you want to participate click here to register.
This site is dedicated to the memory of Paco de Lucía, Ron Mitchell, Guy Williams, Linda Elvira, Philip John Lee, Craig Eros, Ben Woods, David Serva and Tom Blackshear who went ahead of us.
We receive 12,200 visitors a month from 200 countries and 1.7 million page impressions a year. To advertise on this site please contact us.
In another thread someone asked if the pros practice scales. I found this article yesterday on Pedro Sierra. The author of the article attended a workshop with Manolo Sanlucar in 1984 and Pedro Sierra was one of his roommates. Sierra would have been about 18 at the time.
Here's a quote from it: "El compañero nos despertaba todas las mañanas a las siete y media con escalas y diferentes ejercicios. No venía a desayunar con nosotros en la cantina, sino que dejaba el instrumento a la diez menos cuarto para subirse en el microbús que nos llevaba a las diez a los Alcázares, lugar del curso". Translation: "Our roommate woke us up every morning at 7:30 with scales and different exercises. He didn't come to breakfast with the rest of us at the cantina. He didn't put the guitar down until a quarter till ten to board the microbus that took us at ten o'clock to los Alcázares, the place where the course was held".
That doesn't really answer the question about scale practice. Were they full scales up and down the neck or short runs from actual falsetas? However, I think it gives a little insight into the sacrifices that the pros made while coming up.
Sacrifices? Look at Paco, he sacrificed his childhood, his whole life to this thing.
One random thought is I've met guys who put some foam (espuma) under the strings of the guitar (a sock also works) so they can practice during siesta or late at night. It also seems to help rhythmic control.
Sacrifices? Look at Paco, he sacrificed his childhood, his whole life to this thing.
Miguel, That was my point. While the other guys were sleeping, going to breakfast and socializing, Sierra was getting in a couple of extra hours of practice. This is probably the norm for the top players and this article about Pedro Sierra reinforces what you have said in countless posts about 'talent' and the whole 'nature or nurture thing'.
Printable Version
New Messages
No New Messages
Hot Topic w/ New Messages
Hot Topic w/o New Messages
Locked w/ New Messages
Locked w/o New Messages
Post New Thread