Tengo un secreto.
I’m
afraid
to go
to Spain.
I leave in a few weeks, and I’m scared
But not for the usual reasons.
Nope.
I’m afraid to take people there. Even though this will be the fourth time I’ve taken a group there to study.
Seana was in Portland minding her own business. Studying flamenco and living her life.
In college she had spent a semester in Spain. She traveled around but never made it to Jerez.
Seana dreamed of returning to Spain.
To Dance.
And then one day she did just that
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For thirty years Stella had been wanting to travel to Spain. In the fall of 2013, she finally decided to make the trip. And she did it by joining the FlamencoTour.
"How scary it would be to come alone,"
Stella says.
"Once you come back [home] then you realize what a precious jewel you had ... and I'm jealous of people who are going to go."
Watch the video below to hear Stella talk about her experiences in Jerez.
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I mentioned that I had this fantasy of dancing on rooftops before I went to Spain for the first time. Once I settled in Sevilla and found my apartment, I was overjoyed to discover that it had an azotea.
azotea - rooftop
I wanted to go up there with my character shoes. Yes, character shoes. I was so stubborn, so green that I didn't believe having actual flamenco shoes would make that much of a difference when dancing. Anyway, I wanted to go up to try to practice the little that I could remember from class.
Carolina, my roommate, told me to make sure that the door didn't close or I would be locked up there with no way of getting down. I think she may have thought I was nuts.
So one day I went up to dance on the roof
It was sunny and beautiful. Springtime and not too hot.
But it wasn't like my fantasy.
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I have been anxiously awaiting the full moon.
But according to this letra, no moon is necessary...
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I know that workshops can seem overwhelming at times,
and hard.
Difícil.
Ricardo López, one of my favorite guys ever, knows this too.
And yes, even though he is a professional dancer who travels the world performing with people like Rafaela Carrasco, he still enjoys studying and taking cursillos.
So I want to share with you three suggestions from Ricardo that we can use in class.
And after that I'll talk about how his tips can help us outside of the studio as well.
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Today I want to show you a video of Becky and Aida from the rooftop of our apartment in the Barrio San Miguel, an important flamenco neighborhood in Jerez.
They describe their time in Jerez together.
They talk about being in bulerías class, In the words of Becky,
"You soon realize that you have the support of everybody in the room. Not only your fellow travelers, but everybody else who’s there. Everything is there. The music. The singing. The jaleos. The palmas. You can really have some amazing breakthroughs."
And they talk about the togetherness of the group,
"We were on the same page, everybody," Aida says.
They talk about other things too. Hear what they have to say in the video below.
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"I'm proud of myself," says Gay.
And she should be.
Gay came with me to Jerez after having taken only a few flamenco classes, EVER! She took one workshop with Ricardo López in Portland. That's all.
And then she decided to join me in Spain.
Watch below to find out about her experience in Jerez.
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When I first got the idea for the Flamenco Tour to Jerez I envisioned a private workshop with Mercedes Ruíz.
That's it.
Nothing more.
A class just for me
Well, and the other people I would bring with me.
I was in Jerez studying, taking classes from Mercedes and others.
I felt pushed and pulled in all different directions. Confused and overwhelmed with all of the different choreographies, the choreographies that I had walked in on the middle of.
I didn't like it.
I was supposed to be having fun, but it was feeling stressful instead.
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Amy talked to her six kids and husband in the States regularly while on the Flamenco Tour in Spain. Thank goodness for Skype!
Watch the video below to find out what Jerez was like for a mother of six adopted children.
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"We all came from different walks of life. We had different experiences, and yet, the flamenco was what connected us." - Jackie Villegas-Maclin Watch the video below, and find out why a trip to Jerez was something Jackie, a flamenco teacher from Kirkland, Washington, will never forget ...
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In the video below Pat, a very beginner and first time traveler, talks about what the Flamenco Tour was like for her. The video was made after her first trip to Jerez. She came back with me a year later too and has already signed up for next fall's trip!
She inspires me just about every time I see her, or even just think about her. Watch the video to find out why.
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Hoy,
Bulerías
Popular
Me pongo a cantar y no puedo
la garganta no me ayuda
tengo que tomar zumito
de la naranja moruna
I go to sing and I can't
My throat doesn't help me
I have to drink the juice
of the Moorish orange
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We love fandangos around here, I know you know that. Here's one for you today:
Un sabio se volvió loco
con su esencia y su saber …
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She said she was going to show them how to dance in a losa
Pequeña.
Y por fiesta.
It was Ani who said that. Ana María López. She said it on a Monday morning in Jerez.
We had been there for a little over a week I guess.
And on this particular Monday morning the ladies had gone to bulerías class ahead of me.
When I walked in I saw something I'd never seen before
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Here’s La Paquera singing bulerías and one of the letras you hear
En un cuartito los dos
veneno que tú tomaras…
On the wall of her studio Mercedes has a photo of herself with Marco Flores when they were young. I wish you could see it. In the interview that follows Marco mentions how they danced together when they were starting out. They still do.
You'll also find out about how Marco grew up with flamenco in his family, how he began his career, and about his process of creation. He even shares some direct tips for us as students, though bits of advice can be found in all of his responses.
I originally posted it in 2011 and repost it today after watching snippets of his latest espectáculo from the 2014 Jerez Festival. Oh how I want to see that show! Further down you'll see a video of him dancing solo por siguiriyas.
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Here's an interpretation from Miguel Poveda of the popular Bulerías de Cádiz reflecting upon the current-day situation in Spain. Scroll down for an out-of-control amazing video of a live performance, ¡que compás y gracia! with José Quevedo, Diego del Morao, El Londro, Luis Cantarote, and my (not real) boyfriend's real brother, Carlos Grilo.
Bulerías de Cai
¡Qué disparate!
Con el caray, caray, caray,
éstas son las cosas que pasan en Cai,
que ni la hambre la vamos a sentir,
que mire usted que gracia tiene este país.
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1. Do it anyway
2. Come back to your body
3. Respect opinions, but be yourself
4. Feel and allow
5. Notice all of the other "not thems" who are doing it alongside you
6. Remember that art is universal, and so is expression