Are you in the mood to listen to some good bulerías de Jerez?
Then you’ll love today’s clip of José Mijita and Manuel Parilla direct rom Jerez.
This is one of the letras you’ll hear…
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José 'El Mijita'
Bulerías
Pañuelo de raya en raya
mare cómprame usted uno
antes que el hombre se vaya
Do you know how to dance bulerías with the cante?
Watch how it’s done in the clip below as Carmen Herrera dances while José Mijita sings at the Feria del Caballo in Jerez.
Then find the words, and translation, of the letra you hear.
So you want to better understand how to dance bulerías with the cante?
I have an idea for you,
But first, here’s a letra.
(You can watch Carmen Herrera dance to this as José Mijita sings in the video to follow.)
Can you name one thing a dancer can do that shows they’re in tune with the singer?
Below Carmen Herrera demonstrates how to dance respecting the cante in our class with José Mijita on the last Flamenco Tour to Jerez.
We studied a few letras with José.
Here’s a video of Carmen Herrera dancing at Viernes Flamenco back in 2013.
This is a coletila José Mijita sings to her:
Dice que tiene
la novia nueva…
What is is about watching singers, guitarists, and palmeros dance por bulerías?
You’re in for a treat, for that’s exactly what José Mijita does at the end of today’s video:
Here’s a peek at what we’ve been up to so far on the Flamenco Tour to Jerez …
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Dancing to the cante. It is what every dancer from Jerez does, professional or non.
It is the dancer conversing with the singer.
In order to dance to the cante,
You must become familiar with the letras (song verses) and engage with the singer when dancing.
To gain familiarity with the letras:
1. Listen a lot.
2. Take a cante class, and study the letras.
To engage with the singer when dancing:
1. Observe what other good dancers do. (Hint: Notice the way Carmen responds to José in the video.)
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Last week you heard the letra that we studied with José 'El Mijita' on the Flamenco Tour to Jerez. This week I want to share with you the coletilla we worked on. (Along with another video snippet)
It is a mouthful.
Not. easy. to. sing.
Getting all of the words in the last line out of your mouth, number one, in compás, number two, while playing palmas, number three, and following the melody, number four.
Like I said, not easy to do. But we sure had fun trying.
See for yourself in the following video snippets
On the past two Flamenco Tours to Jerez we've had a cante class with José 'El Mijita.' Exciting, Scaaaary, and FUN! You can see video of that at the end of the post.
Above is one of his favorite letras to sing por bulerías; it's one we worked on in the classes.
Why do we study the cante?
We do it to expand our understanding of flamenco as a whole. Because as we know, the dance does not exist on its own. We do it to broaden our understanding of the language of flamenco. To learn new things. And, of course, to have fun...
During the class last spring Lily, one of the students, held onto Héctor Raúl for the duration of the class. She wasn't quite sure why, but I'm pretty positive it was a subconscious act done for support.
Because this experience took people out of their comfort zones.
Keep Reading
I am in Sevilla where the bells of the catederál keep ringing and the birds keep singing. That was not meant to rhyme, it just did. In Jerez there were lots of birds but not so many bells. And speaking of Jerez, last Saturday we went to hear José Carpio, "El Mijita," sing at a new little bar called Zoniquete. I mean it when I say that the place was small.