Today you'll find two videos of the same letra, one version as tangos, the other as bulerías...
Dancing flamenco is never just about the dancing. It is a conversation between the dancer and the musicians. As dancers we need to hear where the changes and resolutions are in the music (especially the cante) so that we can respond with our dancing. Below find an activity that you can do from home to train your ear to dance with the cante.
And speaking of cante, we worked with the following letra during the Flamenco Retreat at the Oregon Coast last weekend. (See some pictures below). We looked at where the cante resolved then put in remates with palmas and later baile to reflect that. Watch María Toledo sing it por tangos and Marina García sing it por bulerías below:
Tangos (& Bulerías)
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No me pegues bocaítos
Que tú me haces cardenales
Cuando yo voy a mi casa
A mí me los nota mi madre
Traditional festivals (ferias) take place in towns big and small across southern Spain during the springtime. Locals dress up, dance, sing, eat, and have A LOT of fun. There are the bigger ferias (those of Sevilla, Jerez...) and there are the smaller ferias (those of Sanlúcar, El Puerto...). These exclusive springtime ferias are unique to Andalucía, and each one has its very own encanto (charm). One of the great things about the feria is that there you get to see both professionals and everyday people dancing flamenco; some may not dance very well technically, but they dance from the heart.
Below you'll see a video of Samara and Rocío Carrrasco at this year's Feria del Caballo in Jerez along with pictures from a variety of ferias in Andalucía.
Bulerías
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No quiero decirte nada
No vaya a ser que se te ponga
la carita colorada
Here's another one from Luis de la Pica.
Si en mis sueños,
con voz temblorosa…
One year comes to an end, another begins. Which means ... It's time to party! Read Manuel Machado's words on how we might do this flamenco style, and watch a video of Montse Cortés and Chonchi Heredia singing it live with Paco de Lucia below.
Then check out the end of this post where I share four flamenco events I'm looking forward to in the coming year.
(Bulerías)
Manuel Machado
Una fiesta se hace
con tres personas:
Uno baila, otro canta
y el otro toca.
Ya me olvidaba
de los que dicen ¡Olé!
y tocan palmas.
Today, a beautiful letra and a difficult translation ...
From Tonás y livianas
by Manuel Machado
Quita una pena otra pena…
I'm still in a bulerías mood as I prepare to head to Jerez for the Flamenco Tour in a couple of weeks.
And so, today I have a video clip to share with you of a little girl from Jerez named Triana dancing bulerías (her signature dance of course) for Rafael Amargo. She starts off by singing the following letra then dances while her dad sings and plays guitar for her. You're going to love it.
If you like exploring how letras can vary, if you're looking to practice bulerías to cante at a comfortable speed, or if you just want to get better at bulerías, then consider today's post a treat. You'll find a video with examples of one letra interpreted in two different ways along with a short activity to help you train your ear and get better at improvising.
First, the letra:
Bulerías
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El sitio donde te hablé
ganas me dan de volverme
y sentarme un ratito en él
After today's letra you'll find that video I promised you of Mercedes Ruíz dancing at this year's Fiesta de la Bulería (and really getting into it) followed by an explanation of what's happening at the end between the dancer (Mercedes) and the singer (David Carpio) along with an important concept to understand that can help you when dancing bulerías por fiesta by yourself. (I've also included a short activity for you to do at the end.)
Bulerías
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No sé por qué será
me duelen más que las mías
las penas de los demás
I'm still on a tangos kick.
Here's another letra for you followed by a video of Camarón singing it.
I'm still on a high from last weekend's tangos workshops. Por eso, a tangos letra for you today along with a video of Rocío Segura singing all kinds of letras, and an activity to improve your tangos dancing from home.
Tangos de la Repompa
Mamá, mamá no quiero eso,
Mamá, mamá no quiero na,
Quiero que vengas a verme
de tu propia voluntad
Mom, Mom I don't want that,
Mom, Mom, I don't want anything,
I want you to come to see me
of your own accord
Ever experienced pain and sorrow and struggled to truly feel into it even though you knew you needed to? Today's letra and video might be able to help with that. Below find a fandangos letra and a video of Rocío Márquez.
Fandangos
La pena grande que se llora
con las lágrimas se va;
la pena grande es la pena
que no se puede llorar;
esa no se va, se queda.
Lately I've had bulerías on my mind . . . I've been watching bulerías, listening to bulerías, dancing bulerías (in class, at home, in my head).
Naturally, the moves I'm currently working with during the 10-Day Dance Like You're In Class With Mercedes Ruíz Home Challenge are por bulerías.
So, today I offer you some bulerías inspiration via a video of Manuel Liñan dancing and a letra that David Carpio sings to him. There's also a quick activity for you at the end of the post. (I know, I'm big on activities this week.)
Below find a letra that David Lagos sang during our private show on the Flamenco Tour to Jerez.
That night David sang granaína, rondeñas, caña, fandangos por bulerías, alegrías, bulerías...
We were all in HEAVEN.
I want to share a story with you about how I messed up dancing bulerías last weekend, how it left me feeling not so happy about my dancing, eight important lessons about flamenco (and life) I learned in the process, and how those lessons served me when I applied them to a sticky situation in my life.
So last weekend I took a workshop with Alfonso Cid. He shared bunches of bulerías letras with us (you'll find one below) and gave a very informative introduction to flamenco, with a focus on cante. He had us all singing and doing palmas and even got some of us up dancing.
Toward the end of the workshop someone asked Alfonso to address how to dance bulerías por fiesta, how to dance to the cante. (As you know, this is one of my favorite things.)
Yay! (and Olé).
Some people got up to dance, mess up or not mess up, and learn along the way.
I was one of those people.
And here is what I learned:
I just returned home from Jerez, and naturally, I'm missing bulerías.
I have a letra to share with you today. It's one that David Lagos sang during our private show there, but before I do, I want to tell you a quick story.
It's one that Julie, a student on the Flamenco Tour, shared with me just before she departed Jerez.
On her last morning there, Julie took a final stroll around the city before she caught her train to Granada. On her way back to the apartments she found herself behind an older couple walking down the street. T
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 . . .
Below find another tangos from La Niña de los Peines followed by a recording and a palmas activity for you.
A mi madre abandoné
por tu querer solamente
Ahora me veo solita
sin madre y sin tu querer
Soleá apolá
Todo el mundo le pide a Dios
la salud y la libertad
y yo le pido la muerte
no me la quiere mandar
The whole world asks God
for health and freedom
And I ask for death
He doesn't want to send it to me
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
Popular
Me acuesto y no cojo cama
Me acuesto con el sentío
a ver quién a la puerta llama
