History of Flamenco

Andalucía is located in the southern part of Spain
and its capital city is Sevilla. The name Andalucía comes from the Arabic word Al-Andalus. During the time of Moorish reign Andalucía was the center power for the Arab nation. Besides Arab influences the region has also been influenced by the Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Visigoths and of course Christians.

Due to all the different peoples and civilizations that have called Andalucía home, it has become a melting pot for arts and culture. One of the most recognizable artistic features Andalucía has is that of the art of Flamenco. Flamenco was first mentioned in writing around the 18^th century, but most probably created long before then.

Flamenco is a style of music and dance that was created by the gypsies that lived in the region of Andalucía. The origin of Flamenco is very hard to pin point. Some historians believe that the musical aspects originated during the time of the Moorish occupation dating back to 711 A.D. When the Moors came to Spain they brought their instruments too, one of those instruments is the oud, the Arabic version of a guitar. The oud changed forms after it was brought to Spain, it was combined with elements of the European lute, more strings where added, and other aspects which have now become the traditional Flamenco guitar. Historians also believe that when Spain colonized the New World they returned with many Latin American influences, such as different forms of dance. All these forms mixed together and the Flamenco dance was born.

There are three basic parts to Flamenco, toque: guitar, cante: song and baile: dance. Toque, the first part of Flamenco, is the art of playing the guitar. The traditional Flamenco guitar is made of Spanish cypress and spruce; it’s lighter in weight and smaller in size to the classical guitar. All these elements make this special guitar sound a bit sharper than the classical guitar. The traditional Flamenco guitar also has a guard on the lower half called a golpeador, which protects the body of the guitar from the rhythmic taps that the guitarist does during a song. The Flamenco guitar is the only “true” instrument used when performing Flamenco. The other instrument is the voice or the cante.

Most true lovers of Flamenco believe that the soul of Flamenco is in the songs. The performers sing with so much emotion and usually on subjects all can relate to. Although most of the flamenco songs seem to be spontaneous, these songs follow strict musical and poetic rules. Cante Flamenco can be categorized into two themes, compas or libre. Compas follows a very strict rhythmic pattern and libre follows a free rhythm. Then there are the verses called coplas, which are usually concise poems. Cantes that use compas fit one of the following four patterns: solea, seguidilla, tango, and fandango. Within the solea group there are specific cantes called romances, solea por bulerias, and alegrias.

The final and the most memorable part of Flamenco is baile or dance. Flamenco dance is known for its emotional intensity, sound, and movement. The most authentic form of Flamenco is known as Flamenco Puro. This form of Flamenco is always preformed solo and is more improvised than choreographed. The dance consists of stomping ones feet, clapping ones hands, and extending ones arms while curving the wrists around ones body all in a rhythmic movement. The women wear traditional Flamenco dresses, some with bright colors and spots, and other times with muted colors even black, depending on the cante. The men usually wear slacks with a button down shirt and keep their “look” very simple. In traditional Flamenco young people are not considered mature enough to convey the soul of Flamenco and therefore there usually not very many young dancers. A Flamenco dancer usually does not hit their peek until their early thirties and will dance until their fifties or more.

Flamenco music, songs, and dance together create a wonderful combination of Spanish tradition. One that is a must see for any person traveling to the south of Spain.