Flamenco is a style of music and dance which is native to several regions of southern Spain. Along with its Romani origins, Spanish, Byzantine, Sephardic and Moorish elements have often been cited as influences in the development of flamenco. It has frequently been asserted that these influences coalesced near the end of the reconquista, in the 15th century. It was not recorded until the late 18th
century. Flamenco is popularly depicted as being the music of Andulusian gitanos (gypsies) but historically its roots are in mainstream Andalusian society, in the latter half of the 18th century.[note 1] Other regions, notably Extremadura and Murcia, have also contributed to the development of flamenco, and many flamenco artists have been born outside the gitano community. Latin American and especially Cuban influences have also contributed, as evidenced in the dances of "Ida y Vuelta". On November 16, 2010, UNESCO declared Flamenco one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. Etymology
There are questions not only about the origins of flamenco, but also about the origins of the word itself. There are many theories (summarised below), but no solid evidence for any of them. The word was not recorded until the late 18th century. George Borrow asserted the word flemenc [sic] is synonymous with "gypsy".[citation] Blas Infante, in his book Orígenes de lo flamenco y secreto del cante jondo, suggests the word may derive from Andalusian Arabic fellah mengu, "Escapee Peasant". Infante connects the numerous Muslim Andalusians (Moriscos) who decided to stay and mix with the Romani newcomers when their lands were expropriated because of their religious beliefs. Other hypotheses include "Fleming, native of Flanders" (Du. Spain ruled Flanders for many years, and King Carlos I brought with him to Madrid an entire Flemish court. The "flamingo" derivation suggests a link between the colourful bird and the colourful costumes of the gypsies. Mediterranean going back to classical times, is probably impossible to determine. However, it seems reasonable that several hundred years of Moorish domination, in which Moorish and Jewish music was frequently heard, should have had a strong and lasting impact on southern Spanish musical forms. There are also the Western European influences, that can be seen in the guitar and the western musical style itself. A traditional Catholic church chant, the misleadingly named Mozarabic chant, is also sometimes cited as an influence. The Influence of the New World
The three centuries (four in Cuba) of Spanish colonialism in the Americas gave rise to musical and dance styles that were to have an influence back in Spain. It appears the fandango picked up dance steps deemed inappropriate by Europeans, as the dances for fandango, chacon, and zarabanda, were all banned in Europe at one time or another. References to Gitano dancers can be found in the lyrics of some of these forms, e.g., the chacon. Indeed, Gitano dancers are often mentioned in Spanish literary and musical works from the 16th century on. However, the zarabandas and jácaras are the oldest written musical forms in Spain to use the 12-beat metre, a combination of terciary and binary rhythms. The basic rhythm of the zarabanda and the jácara is 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12. The soleá and the Seguidilla, are variations on this; they just start the metre in a different beat.[1] When this occurred it made dramatic impact. The Rise of Flamenco
Early flamencologists were amateurs and relied on a limited number of historical sources, mainly the work of 19th century folklorist Demófilo and notes made by foreign travellers. In the 1980s, flamenco began to be studied in conservatoriums, and professional musicologists and historians such as Rios Ruiz and Álvarez Caballero began to carry out rigorous research. (Ríos Ruiz, 1997:14). The first mention of flamenco in literature is in 1774 in the book Cartas Marruecas by José Cadalso. Earlier flamencologists, like Molina and Mairena, called the period 1780–1850 "The Hermetic Period" when flamenco was said to be secretly danced in Gitano homes in the Seville and Cádiz area. Álvarez Caballero (1998) questioned this theory, stating that if there is no record of flamenco before the late 1780s, it is because flamenco simply did not exist. José Blas Vega has also denied that there ever had been a "hermetic period" or that there is any lack of evidence for the early period of flamenco as had been claimed by earlier flamencologists:
Nowadays, we know that there are hundreds and hundreds of data which allow us to know in detail what flamenco was from 1760 until 1860. . .the theatre movement of sainetes (one-act plays) and tonadillas, the popular songbooks and song sheets, the narrations and descriptions from travelers describing customs, the technical studies of dances and toques, the musical scores, the newspapers, the graphic documents in paintings and engravings; ... in continuous evolution together with the rhythm, the poetic stanzas, and the ambience.[2]
There is disagreement as to whether early flamenco was accompanied by instruments. The early flamencologists made the assertion that flamenco was originally unaccompanied romani singing (cante). Later, the songs were accompanied by flamenco guitar (toque), rhythmic hand clapping (palmas), rhythmic feet stomping (zapateado) and dance (baile). Other scholars maintain that while some cante forms are unaccompanied (a palo seco), it is likely other forms were accompanied if and when instruments were available. 19th century writer Estébanez Calderón described a flamenco fiesta in which the singing was accompanied not only by guitars, but also bandurria and tambourine. The Golden Age
During the Golden Age of Flamenco, between 1869–1910, flamenco developed rapidly in cafés cantantes, a new type of venue offering ticketed public performances. Dancers became a public attraction. Guitar players supporting the dancers increasingly gained a reputation, and so flamenco guitar as an art form was born. Silverio Franconetti, a sailor of Italian descent is said to have been the first "encyclopedic" singer, that is, the first able to sing well in all palos, instead of specializing as was usual at the time. He opened his own café cantante, where he sang and invited other artists to perform, and many other venues of this kind were created in Andalusia and Spain. Early flamenco commentators such as Demófilo claimed that this period was the start of the commercial debasement of flamenco. The traditional flamenco fiesta was small (fewer than 20 people) and organic - there was no telling when it would begin or end, if the artists invited would even turn up, or at what hour they will perform. By contrast, the café cantante offered set performances at set hours and top artists were contracted to perform. For some, this was crass commercialism, while for others it stimulated creativity and technical competence. In fact, most flamenco forms now considered "traditional" were created or developed during this café cantante phase or have been attributed to singers of the period, including El Loco Mateo, El Nitri, Rojo el Alpargatero, Enrique el Mellizo, Paquirri El Guanté, or La Serneta. In the 19th century, at the height of the Romantic movement, the "romance" of flamenco seized the middle class imagination of Europe. Composers across the continent wrote musical scores and operas to what they thought were flamenco themes, which they invariably associated with the Gitanos. Seeing a flamenco show became an essential part of any trip to Spain, even in regions outside of Andalusia that had very different musical traditions. In 1922, one of Spain's greatest writers, Federico García Lorca, and renowned composer Manuel de Falla, organized the Concurso de Cante Jondo, a festival dedicated to cante jondo ("deep song"), to stimulate interest in "uncommercial" styles of flamenco, which were falling into disuse. The initiative made little difference. The "Theatrical" period
The period after the Concurso de Cante Jondo in 1922 is known as Etapa teatral (Theatrical period) or Ópera flamenca period, so-called because the impresario Vedrines called his shows opera, to take advantage of lower taxes offered to opera performances. The cafés cantante were gradually replaced by larger venues like theatres or bullrings. Flamenco became immensely popular but, in the view of purists, hopelessly over-commercialised. In the new shows, flamenco was mixed with other genres and theatre interludes portraying picturesque scenes by Gitanos and Andalusians. The dominant palos of this era were the personal fandango, the cantes de ida y vuelta (songs of Latin American origin) and songs in bulería style. Personal fandangos were based on Huelva traditional styles with a free rhythm (cante libre) and with an emphasis on virtuoso variations. The (Canción por bulerías) adapted popular songs to the bulería rhythm. This period also saw the birth of a new genre, sometimes called copla andaluza (Andalusian couplet) or canción española (Spanish song), a ballad style. Source: Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flamenco
Accessed 2/24/11
