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RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to Jasmine_27)
lol. i said she could play. lol. i didnt say she was el veijin lol.
my perspective is different. i don't like slamming on guitars all the time. i like both sides of things. i don't think flamenco is necessarily all punch power and volume.
not saying that you think that......
she can play by my standards. i'll bet she'd open up and start rippin out at a party or whatever lol. performances on stage in fron tof cameras aren't exactly what i would consider flamenco atmosphere lol.
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to HemeolaMan)
H-man,
You have a valid point - I'd be uptight too in front of all those people...Just slip me a little Pedro Domecq before the gig!
However, please note that my comments were not directed at L.G.'s talent or technique. My main gripe was the character of the music - From my viewpoint only, I felt it lacked sufficient rhythmic and dynamic contrast.
And slammin'? I meant those spicy, tasty, creative little dashes of accentuation that add zest to the stew. Without that splash of salsa, it's kind of bland! Just my opinion, though, so feel free to enjoy! Variety is the spice of life!
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to Jasmine_27)
Afra Blu is one of a handful prosperous female professional flamenco guitar players in the world today. After many years as a flamenco guitar teacher at the prestigious flamenco school "Fundación Cristina Heeren de Arte Flamenco" in Sevilla (Spain) she currently lives in Gothenburg (Sweden) and lectures about flamenco in several swedish universities and college schools of music besides her professional work as a guitar player.
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to Jasmine_27)
Any normal person can do anything they want...if they put in the time and effort....minus a few jobs/things that are totally rare and unattainable. as for flamenco i believe if you put in the effort...and tailor your time to the exact things you need....most people can do it. But, the ones that won't are the ones who do not have the desire, the passion, aka don't care about it enough to really put in thousands of hours. As for strength....nobody is strong enough in the beginning, that strength comes after thousands of hours of practice.
But i must say some people do have physical limitation that will make it harder....like small hands or whatever. But there is a solution for that as well...get a smaller scale guitar.
If you don't have hands then, well...i'm sorry. There are some people like that who play with their feet but i don't think it's flamenco and i can't even imagine how you'd try to do a rasqueo with your toes.
Some people have a natural affinity for things, making it easier for them to pick things up than others. and some people have physical limitation, economical, other limitations.
But the biggest thing that can bring any of us down is ourselves believing other people who are telling us we can't do something.
But i must say some people do have physical limitation that will make it harder....like small hands or whatever. But there is a solution for that as well...get a smaller scale guitar.
I find that A LOT of people use the "small hands" excuse. This doesn't make any sense, lots of children on youtube playing crazy stuff.. and let's not forget that there's a lot of capoing in flamenco.
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to Jasmine_27)
quote:
I find that A LOT of people use the "small hands" excuse. This doesn't make any sense, lots of children on youtube playing crazy stuff.. and let's not forget that there's a lot of capoing in flamenco.
yep, true. I'm just saying that there are ways to make that aspect of it not be an issue. And nobody should let anyone tell them they can't do something.
A guitar teacher friend of mine said last week that women can't really play flamenco, as they don't have the muscular strength or stamina in their right hands. Without being smutty, can you provide any evidence to disprove his statement, or do you agree with him? Preferably I'd like to send him a video or something. (which he'll then probably regard as an unusual freakish one-off!)
This is a ridiculous thread. Women can play as well as any man, classical, flamenco or rock. I know good female flamenco guitarists and bad male flamenco guitarists.
Social prejudice in Spain means that little girls are sent to dance schools, when the guitarists are little boys. A little boy who wants to dance is seen as gay, a little girl who wants to play guitar is weird.
Still, in the coros of Carnaval, we are now seeing girls playing guitar and bandurria. Solo falta otro siglo
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to Morante)
quote:
This is a ridiculous thread. Women can play as well as any man, classical, flamenco or rock. I know good female flamenco guitarists and bad male flamenco guitarists.
Social prejudice in Spain means that little girls are sent to dance schools, when the guitarists are little boys. A little boy who wants to dance is seen as gay, a little girl who wants to play guitar is weird.
Still, in the coros of Carnaval, we are now seeing girls playing guitar and bandurria. Solo falta otro siglo
Considering the big thread of the moment (the one with the poll), this post was hilarious. It sums it up pretty well.
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to kenjo138)
Anoushka is not that good. She is a low mid level player at best. And yes her daddy was greatly overhyped.
Annapurna Devi (Ravi's S. first wife, daughter of Baba Aluadin Khan (the master teacher of Ravi and a myriad of the greats) is light years ahead of both Anoushka and Ravi. Annapurna Devi is a surbahar player ( bass sitar, effectively. Bigger than a big ass sitar).
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to flamencositar)
quote:
ORIGINAL: flamencositar
Anoushka is not that good. She is a low mid level player at best. And yes her daddy was greatly overhyped.
Annapurna Devi (Ravi's S. first wife, daughter of Baba Aluadin Khan (the master teacher of Ravi and a myriad of the greats) is light years ahead of both Anoushka and Ravi. Annapurna Devi is a surbahar player ( bass sitar, effectively. Bigger than a big ass sitar).
Daviña Ballesteros' teacher was Gabriél Cabrera who was my teacher as well. Both lived in the same house, her parents still do. Untill last year she lived in Jerez preparing her for her final examination. I was invited with Gabriél by her parents. They showed me videos when she was a very young girl sometimes playing flamenco accompanied by Gabriél. At that time when I was there she was 14 years old.
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Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
RE: female flamenco guitarists (in reply to ToddK)
quote:
Still waiting for a good one.
None of them passed the "ToddK's Test" -also known as "reality check".
They are undoubtedly good, but amateurishly so. Each performance seems afflicted by some sort of faulting hesitation, denying that effortless flow that makes it enjoyable to listen to. In fact, I could not finish any of the clips.
Does any of them match the high standard of the professionals we are spoiled to listen to? No, none of them does!
I have heard many fabulous female Classical Guitarists (and for that matter, Pianists, Violinists and so on and so forth) who flirt with perfection as I do with a glass of wine, but none who can do true justice to a Flamenco guitar, not yet, really.
My opinion is simply based on a rather elementary test. I press "play": if I like what I hear, I carry on an often listen-to/watch it twice; if I don't like it, I skip and skip throughout, hoping in vain for some improvement, and ultimately I press "stop" prematurely. (and immediately rush to listen to Amigo or either Paco, to cleanse the unsettling taste they leave behind)
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