El Flamenco El
“El flamenco, expresión genuinea de ese particular sentir del ser andaluz y del gitano, toma de la fusión de la cultura árabe, sefardita y mora para expresarse a si mismo y traspasar, asi, las barreras que por antonomasia envuelve a este arte en un secreto casi místico.” The flamenco, a genuine expression of the Andalusian gypsy experience, fuses the Arabic, Sephardic, and Moorish cultures while, at the same time, the transgression of these barriers envelops the art in an almost mystical secrecy.
Flamenco exists in three forms: el cante, the song, el baile, the dance, and la guitarra, guitar playing.
The flamenco dancer performs with passion, fervor, even tortured expressions but always strives for grace and dignity.
Like American jazz, flamenco dancing involves improvisation. It is the dancer’s spontaneous expression of the moment’s emotions. The Spanish call it duende. The word means goblin or fairy, but to the flamenco dancer it signifies an inner force that fuels an inspired performance.
The Gypsies cultivated and popularized cante jondo — deep singing. The name refers to the emotional depths reached by its singers.
What does duende mean to a flamenco dancer?
What are the three forms of flamenco?
What does a flamenco dancer strive for?
What does cante jondo mean?