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Letras

Your Love and My Love | The Weekly Letra

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Your Love and My Love | The Weekly Letra

I'm in Jerez.

One by one the Flamenco Tour students are arriving. It's so exciting.

Tonight we get to know each other at the opening night tapas reception. Then we'll go to the Peña los Cernícalos to watch Ana María López's Fin de Curso. Tomorrow we begin our workshop with Mercedes Ruíz. The next day we start our bulerías class . . .

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I Can't Sleep | The Weekly Letra

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I Can't Sleep | The Weekly Letra

With just about every bulerías letra Zorri dictates to me, he smiles and laughs while explaining the meaning. (I really wish you could see him do this.) 

So, below find another one from Zorri.

Once you've read it, scroll down to the bottom of the post to see three awesome videos of people (Joaquin Grilo, Rocío Molina, and Midori) dancing por bulerías.

Bulerías
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Me acuesto y no cojo cama
Me acuesto con el sentío
a ver quién a la puerta llama

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The Birds and I | The Weekly Letra

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The Birds and I | The Weekly Letra

A letra por soleá. 

See how Israel Galván interprets it in the video that follows.

Soleá
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Los pajaritos y yo
nos levantamos a un tiempo,
ellos le cantan al alba,
y yo alegro mis sentimientos

The birds and I
we wake together
They sing to the dawn,
and I feel good

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I Want to be Free | The Weekly Letra

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I Want to be Free | The Weekly Letra

I originally published this here within the letra, Moraito Como un Lirio by Antonio Sánchez Pecino.

Today I wanted to highlight this estribillo: 

Libre quiero ser 
Como el pájaro que canta,
Primita, al amanecer

I want to be free  
like the bird that sings,
at dawn

You can see it in the video that follows...

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Tú Tienes Que Venir a Buscarme | The Weekly Letra

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Tú Tienes Que Venir a Buscarme | The Weekly Letra

Today a letra por tangos (or soleá, or bulerías, or soleá por bulerías...) followed by but another must-watch video,

Tangos
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Cuando me eches de menos
tú tienes que venir a buscarme
como un caballo sin freno

When you miss me
you'll have to come looking for me
like a horse with no brakes

Watch and listen to David Palomar sing it below along with Rafael Rodríguez on guitar. (I promise you'll be glad you did.)

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One Thing We Need to Understand About Letras | The Weekly Letra

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One Thing We Need to Understand About Letras | The Weekly Letra

Today I'm going to talk about how the same letra can (and definitely will be) interpreted in different ways by different singers. I'll also talk about why, as dancers, we need to pay attention to this. And finally, I'll share a tangos letra with you. (Oh, and at the end of the post I give you an activity to do from the comfort of your own home.)

How the same letra can vary

Depending upon who is singing, how they like to sing a given letra, and even how they are feeling at a given moment, one letra can be interpreted in many different ways.

Let's look at some examples:

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Cuanto más | The Weekly Letra

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Cuanto más | The Weekly Letra

Most likely there is at least one person in your life you feel this way about. (I can think of many, my nieces, my sister, my sweetheart, just about all of my friends...)

Why not share today's letra with one of your beloveds?

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Los ojos como las moras | The Weekly Letra

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Los ojos como las moras | The Weekly Letra

Yesterday I received an email from a reader, Max Herzog, a guitarist based in San Diego, who came across today's letra on my blog. (I originally posted it about four years ago. I struggled with the translation then, and I'm still struggling with it today.) Max had some great insights along with a smoother translation which I wanted to share with you. You'll find his translation below (with just a couple of small changes from me).

Fandangos
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Los ojos como las moras
y los dientes de marfil
y tu boca es una fuente
donde una noche bebí 
agua con ansias de muerte

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