Spanish Flamenco

If you thought Spain was only about bull fighting, Soccer, food and their history then you need to think again. You can't possibly miss out the fiery & passionate Flamenco dance. The Flamenco is said to have come to Spain through the Gypsies who settled in Andalucia and is divided into three distinctive parts: The el cante - song, the el baile - dance, and the la guitarra - guitar. The Flamenco will be incomplete and soulless without either of the three.

The flamenco was mentioned in 1774 in Las Cartas Marreucas of Cadalso, and this was the first time it was mentioned in any form of literature. The guitar was used as a part of the flamenco first and then from 1910 to 1955, singing became and integral part of flamenco. One of the greats of flamenco guitar is Paca de Lucia and he revolutionized the concept of guitar in flamenco. Flamenco has come a long way since the gypsy days and today it is more of a fusion of jazz, salsa etc.

The song and dance of the gypsies, flamenco is an art where a solo dancer needs to bring out the real feelings of the subject of dance with her feet and body movements. The expression on the face changes with the body movement and with the nature of the song. If the song is tragic and symbolizes anger then the flamenco dancer will have to bring out the anger and the pain with her body movements. The body movements have to focus on grace and elegance. Flamenco has complex dance patterns, which can only be perfected using a sophisticated and subtle mix of footwork techniques. The flamenco dancer needs to wear special boots, which has nails driven into the heel or sole of the boots. The costume is very similar to that of the gypsy traditional dresses and has many frills on it.

Anyone can learn flamenco but the gypsies are said to have it in their blood. One of the famous flamenco dancers is Omayra Amaya. She is the daughter of one of the most famous flamenco dancer of his time, Carmen Amaya. Omayra was raised among the gypsies and she inevitably understood the various form of subtleties involved with flamenco. Today she has her won dancing school and choreographing company called AMAYA, Flamenco Sin Limites, Inc.

» Volare! - The Very Best Of The Gipsy Kings
» Masters of Flamenco Guitar

Tags: dance, flamenco, Spain, dancing