Monday, December 17, 2012
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Read part of the introduction to A Time-Defying Heritage
It is my belief
that in order to understand flamenco correctly you must live among these people
and participate in the life style that is attached to it.
I am also inclined
to believe that in order to truly appreciate flamenco as it was intended you
must witness it first hand in the surroundings of an old bodega or in someone’s
living room where it is performed by everyday people who are not artistes and
who have no intention of ever becoming one.
The flamenco
culture has been molded and preserved in the homes of the gypsies who would
sing and dance whilst attending their daily routine.
This way of life
was never about producing commercial stars, in fact the parents of many of the
greatest performers did not want their children to become flamenco artistes at
all.
Many of the gypsies
in the small towns and villages were butchers or farm labourers who used the
flamenco song as a means of unwinding or relaxing after a day’s work.
This was certainly
the case with the family of the subject of this book - Fernando Peña Soto.
Fernando was known
locally as Popa Pinini and although
his legend is based on the fact that he was the patriarch of one of the most
important families in flamenco history, he was a simple butcher who made his
living in Seville.
His voice was never
recorded so therefore there is no concrete evidence that this man was an
exceptional singer and there is not anyone alive today who could honestly
declare that they could remember his singing.
There exists only
one photograph of this humble man, who was born in a small village deep in the
lower region of Andalusía, and if you were to ask the average Spaniard,
including a good crop of the flamenco fans, they probably would not know who he
was.
There are, however,
many flamencologists or died-in-the-wool aficionados that will be able to tell
you that El Pinini was the grandfather of La Fernanda de Utrera, one of the
greatest singers in flamenco history, and that he was also the great
grandfather to Inés and Pedro Bacán. There are also many who will know that La
Perrata is the cousin of La Fernanda and that she is also related to Mercedes
La Serneta, but there are few who will know how they are related, other than
because they are of gypsy origin.
It has been my
intensions to try to piece together this intricate family tree and demonstrate
that this gypsy clan is one of the mightiest families to be associated with flamenco,
or in fact, any musical culture.
The branches of
this genealogical tree are laden with some of the most majestic and most
inspiring flamenco performers of the last two hundred years and I believe that
they need to be documented together in one volume; something which, apparently
has never been done before.
This huge family
can be separated or broken down into three sections: Pinini, Perrate, and the
Peñas of Lebrija, which incorporates the names of Bacán and Funi, and as we
shall see, they are in fact one large family.
It was also most
important to review the family of Paco la Luz with some degree of depth in this
book because El Pinini and Paco la Luz are actually related by the same set of
great-grandparents.
http://books4spain.com/search/recommendedbooks/7/185/
Monday, December 10, 2012
Zambomba
Villancicos:-The Flamenco Christmas
Carols
Said to have
been the invention of the mighty Manuel Torres; the villancicos were originally
peasant songs (canto de villano) which have since become the flamenco Christmas
carol that are traditionally sung in the week leading up to Christmas.
In Andalucía the
villancicos are also known by the name of zambombas,
a name that derived from the instrument that is traditionally used to accompany
them.
The
zambomba is a percussive instrument that would normally have been made from an
old paint tin or flower pot, over which a membrane is stretched: a stick
attached with small cymbals is inserted through the skin and this is moved up
and down to create a droning rhythm.
Tambourines,
cowbells and an array of home-made rhythmic instruments will also be used in
this lively festive song and together with the clapping rhythms and boisterous
jaleo; the whole atmosphere will become a swirling, noisy festivity.
It
is a gathering, especially, but not exclusively, among gypsies who light fires
on their patios - around which they form a semicircle to take turns in singing
a line or two, before everyone joins in with the chorus. The tunes are of all
sorts and rhythms but they are always lively and joyful and may be in the style
of the bulerias or rumbas.
The
whole family will join in from the grandparents down to the smallest of
children and these parties are natural flamenco schools where the children
learn by simply watching, and being totally engulfed in, everything that happens.
The
buleria is also an integral part of this celebration and everyone is expected
to sing, dance or simply clown around to the thumping of table tops and
clapping of hands.
It
was once, and still is in some villages, customary for the gypsies to hold a
fiesta during the week leading up to Christmas and this celebration would start
with a Matanza; the ritual killing of
the pig.
The
women would then prepare the pig and make an array of pork products, which
would include chorizo, morcilla, manteca and chipparones, They would also prepare
sweet delicacies like pestiños, which
are small fried dough cakes that are flavoured with anise, and dipped in honey.
The
most customary celebration takes place on Noche
Buena - Christmas Eve – a night when families congregate en mass to
celebrate the coming of Christ..
The
twenty-fourth of December is celebrated throughout most of the Christian world
but few cultures celebrate Christmas Eve like the gypsies of Andalucía,
especially those in Utrera, Lebrija and Jerez de la Frontera.
It
is a night where the whole family will gather to eat, drink, sing and make
merry, and whilst the rest of us are retiring to our beds, the gypsy fiesta
will be in full swing and will only cease when they can consume and sing no
more.
This
celebration is renowned for being a night of celebration and not a night for
sleep and a constant flow of food and drink will keep the revellers fuelled for
a night of flamenco and fun. The night will progress into a riotous fiesta of
bulerias, tangos and zambombas, which will ring out from the tiny houses that
are packed to the seams with people.
At
around midnight the woman will prepare the turkey, which is then placed in a
large cauldron along with plenty of wine, garlic, bay leaves, a wad of rosemary
and a good dose of salt and pepper.
This
is then left to simmer for a few hours whilst the celebrations continue. Plates
of marinated olives, Serrano ham and
tangy Manchego cheese, along with an
array of other andalucian delicacies are consumed to keep the effects of the
whisky and wine at bay.
When
the feast is ready (at around two in the morning) the singing will cease and
the turkey will be served with plenty of bread to mop up the delicious cooking
juices.
After
the meal, and a brief time to recharge, glasses will be refilled and the
singing and dancing will take up again until the early hours.
Christmas
day is not such a big event and this day will normally be used to sleep off the
hangover and recuperate from the previous night’s carousing.
Jerez
de la Frontera is the foremost city where the zambomba fiesta takes place in
the week leading to Christmas, but many of the main cities like Seville,
Granada and Málaga, will have zambomba festivals.It is advisable to see
the local press for details of Zambomba nights that are held in the main
squares or flamenco tablaos.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)