Edizione sulla musica popolare spagnola, nelle diverse forme che la caratterizzano, direttamene dalla chitarra di uno dei suoi più famosi esecutori tradizionalisti, Paco Peña. 10 Pezzi completi, 85 pagine. CD TABLATURE
INTRODUCTION
Andalucla, whose musical tradition is embedded in its earliest history, must have built up that
tradition from the influences and remnants of the cultures left by the various peoples who passed
through or settled on its land. Among these different cultures one can note the Byzantine, Moorish,
Mozarabic and Jewish, whose influence must have finally crystallized and become integrated in the
songs and dances of the Andaluclan people. Andalucfa was under Moorish domination for many
centuries - Cordoba being at that time the capital of the Western Islamic world. Therefore the
music of this land already reflected the Oriental influence.
Later, in the 15th century, many tribes of gypsies found their way into Andalueta as a branch of
immigrants who around 1447 entered Spain by Catalonia. They lived mainly in the fields,
nomadically and in poor conditions. Traditionally the gypsies were not great poets - hardly surprising
considering their circumstances - but they had a remarkable facility for rhythm and music,
and in Andalucla they found a rich, colourful folklore of exceptional poetic charm. Unlike other
music they had come across elsewhere in Spain, this folklore suited their character and came to
form part of their lives. They assimilated it and added something different to it. This "marriage"
gave rise to the phenomenon of Cante Flamenco, neither "gypsy music" nor Andaluclan folklore,
but both. So, it can be said without doubt that there are two main elements in Flamenco:
Andalucla, with its old musical background, and the gypsies - without both, Flamenco would never
have existed.
Nobody knows for certain when it all started because there are very few written records available.
The first notice we have is about a singer of Seguiriyas, Tfo Luis el de la Juliana, around 1780.
But even that is a little dubious because it was not mentioned until a century later in 1881 - by
Antonio Machado Alvarez ("Demofilo"); in fact the Seguiriya seems to have developed later from
another style: Tonas.
There are three main periods in the history of Flamenco. From the beginning of the 19th
century to 1860 it was part of the life of Andaluclan gypsies and poor people who kept it for
themselves and never performed outside their communities. From 1860 to 1910 was the era of the
"Cafes Cantantes", special tablaos or places wholly dedicated to Flamenco music. Since then,
Flamenco has emerged from its original environment to become known throughout the world.
No evidence exists that guitars were used during the first period. But as Flamenco emerged
("Cafes Cantantes") the guitar, which was already the instrument of Spain, was brought in to
accompany and enhance the human voice. Paradoxically, it is the guitar as a solo instrument, rather
than the singing, which has made Flamenco popular, when in fact the guitar, like the dancing,
derives all its inspiration from the Cante Janda (Flamenco singing) - the purest expression of
Andalucfan art.
When accompanying, the function of the flamenco guitarist is to help the singer or dancer to
to bring out the best of his talent. He must create an atmosphere suitable to each piece, and he must
provide a good clear rhythm and follow the voice in whatever nuances the singer may bring to it.
Also he must colour it by playing falsetas, or brief melodic sequences, between verses. The guitarist
is then at the absolute service of the singing and from it he takes all his inspiration.
When playing solo, the guitarist must convey the whole atmosphere of Flamenco. The falsetas
become much more elaborate and musical to resemble the singing. The rhythm also becomes
stronger and more elaborate to resemble the "foot-work" of the dancer.
A La Feria (Sevillanas)
A Paso Lento (Tientos)
El Mantoncillo (Garrotin)
El Nuevo Dia (Colombiana)
En Las Cuevas (Farruca)
Herecia Latina (Rumba)
La Romeria (Alegrias)
Santuario (Soleares)
Son De Companas (Seguiriyas)
Tonos Levantinos (Tarantas)