Worlds of Music; Flamenco gitano!
- Series
- Worlds of Music
- Episode
- Flamenco gitano!
- Producing Organization
- World Music Institute
- WNYC (Radio station : New York, N.Y.)
- Contributing Organization
- WNYC (New York, New York)
- AAPB ID
- cpb-aacip/80-74qjqx0t
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- Description
- Program Description
- World Music Institute presents FLAMENCO GITANO! MIGUEL FUNI CONCHA VARGAS PEP A VARGAS JARILLO PAQUITO FERNANDEZ JOSELITO FERNANDEZ Friday, November 18, 1994 8 PM The New School, Tishman Auditorium 66 West 12th Street, New York City CO-SPONSORED WITH THE NEW SCHOOL FLAMENCO Flamenco or cante flamenco is essentially a style of singing, expressing mood and giving cry to a wide range of basic human emotions. The precarious conditions of the Andalusian singer of the past made it inevitable that s/he should dwell on the more tragic aspects of existence. Even though conditions are now incomparably better, the feelings inherent in the cante are universal and timeless and represent a link between past and present. Andaluca, the region of southern Spain which is flamenco's home, has a strong musical tradition documented from ancient times and flamenco certainly takes its place in that heritage. Throughout the centuries, , Andaluca absorbed peoples of very different cultures and backgrounds, _ 11 including Romans, Jews and Moors. As far as flamenco is concerned, the most significant arrival was in the 15th century when tribes of nomadic I Gypsies settled in southern Spain. Their arrival coincided with Ferdinand and Isabella's conquest of Grenada, the last bastion of the Moors, and the subsequent expulsion of Jews and Arabs from Spain. Historian Felix Grande, writing about life in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries stated: "The Jews were massacred, the Gypsies humiliated and persecuted, the Arabs exterminated, the Moriscos (converted Arabs) expelled, and the Andalusians generally exploited...if we do not relate the music...to brutality, repression, hunger, fear, menace, inferiority, resistance and secrecy, then we shall not find the reality of cante flamenco...it is a storm of exasperation and grief." It was against this background that flamenco evolved. While earlier records suggest that flamenco was at one time unaccompanied, it is hard for us today to imagine flamenco without a guitar. In effect the guitar forms an integral part of the song; singer and guitarist are one in creating the cante. The different types of cante provide the basis for all flamenco guitar playing. Most of the cante has an underlying rhythmic structure which must be strictly adhered to - the com pas. One of flamenco's chief characteristics is the complex syncopation against the com pas, with the cante being sung almost entirely off the beat and the guitarist maintaining the rhythm, whilst adding further to the syncopation. In some forms, like the cante libres (free song), the com pas is less apparent, but the singer may break into an established rhythm which the guitarist then has to follow. Indeed, the singer is at liberty to improvise, whether the toque (guitar playing) is free or in compas, and the guitarist may not know beforehand what is to be expected of him. There is no evidence that the guitar was initially used to accompany the cante, and even today some of the most dramatic forms of cante are invariably performed unaccompanied. However, it was certainly in regular use by the end of the 19th century and the guitar has an exceptionally long history in Spain, an early version probably being brought by the Romans. The lute was extremely popular in the rest of Europe during the Renaissance, but was rejected in Spain as a foreign intrusion since it was of Arab origin. Furthermore, the vihuela (the guitar's predecessor) was more suited to the accompaniment of ballads by strumming, since the lute requires notes to be picked more delicately. It was also cheaper to produce and more robust. In the 19th century there were two types of singing in Andaluca - the cante gitano of the Gypsies and the cante andaluz. Silverio Franconetti, an Andaluz of Italian origin and an exceptional singer of Gypsy styles, was the first to bring these two styles together. This integration of both forms resulted in the cante flamenco as it has come to us - the end product being without question greater than the sum of its parts. The wail of the cante hondo (deep song) resembles the mournful chant of the exiled sephardic Jews. Its poetry has the existentialist angst and philosophical questioning common in Arabic poetry. The dance which evolved slowly, fully blossoming in the 1840s, suggests the repetitive key symbol prevalent in Islam, the trance-inducing rhythms of Africa, and the stubborn search of the Jewish music. Flamenco is not Gypsy music.' Indeed, nothing like it has been found outside Andaluca, even amongst Gypsies in other parts of Spain - it is essentially Andalusian. Juvenal, in writing of Imperial Rome, tells of dancers who sing Andalusian love songs-possibly an early reference to the forerunner of cante flamenco. The Gypsies were never creators but were rather interpreters of the local cultures of the places where they stayed so the Gypsy song which Franconetti used was a line of development of Andalusian song over several centuries. Basically, he brought the two strands together to create a style which reflects the influences on Andalucia's people and culture throughout the centuries. Flamenco developed rapidly, gaining in artistic stature as well as popularity. Establishments appeared throughout Andaluca and beyond, dedicated wholly to the performance of flamenco. They came to be known as cafes cantantes, coffee theatres, where refreshment could be enjoyed while watching the performance. Although some of them survived until the middle of the 20th century, their heyday was past by the 1920's. Generally they were like cabaret theaters, with as many as four shows a day. Dance has always been associated with flamenco. It is difficult to imagine this music without movement. While sophisticated flamenco dance companies have been touring the world for more than 50 years, it is the raw unchoreographed dances of Andalusian gypsies that has maintained the art form in its most creative essence. Artists such as Miguel Funi and Concha Vargas can express acute emotions by the slightest arm movements or stamping of heels. About the artists: Miguel Funi, vocals, dance Concha Vargas, dance Pepa Vargas, vocals Jarillo, vocals Paquito Fernandez, guitar Joselito Fernandez, dance Miguel Funi was born in 1939 in Lebrija, the heart of the flamenco triangle - Sevilla, Cadiz and Jerez. From a famous flamenco family, he is the great grandson of Pinini and the grandson of Fernanda La Vieja. He is renowned both within his community and outside it as an extraordinary singer and dancer who is untouched by commercialism. He began singing and dancing in traditional gypsy flamenco gatherings such as weddings and baptisms and over the past three decades has appeared at all the flamenco festivals in Spain. He has performed throughout Europe, the Middle East and North America and recorded many cassettes and CDs. He last appeared in New York in 1984. Concha Vargas is best known to New York audiences for her appearances in the 1992 Broadway production Gypsy Passion. Born in Lebrija in 1956, she made her professional debut at the age of 12 in Gaspacho de Moron de la Frontera. She has toured with Mario Maya's company throughout South America and Europe and appeared at all the major flamenco festivals including those of Lebrija, Moron, Utrera, Marchena and Sevilla. For five years she has been a soloist with guitarist Pedro Bacan and toured with him throughout Europe and Israel. Pepa Vargas, Joselito Fernandez, and Paquito Fernandez are members of La Familia Fernandez, a well known gypsy family that has performed in many festivals in Spain and toured internationally. Pepa Vargas is a highly respected singer who combines various ancient gypsy traditions. She is the sister of Concha Vargas and the mother of Joselito and Paquito Fernandez. Joselito started training at the age of six with Pepe Rios and at the age of nine, appeared in the flamenco theater Persecucion at El Teatro Lope de Vega in Sevilla with El Lebrijano and Farruco. He has al
- Genres
- Performance
- Media type
- Sound
- Duration
- 01:17:17
- Credits
-
-
Co-Producer: The New School
Engineer: Haber, Edward
Engineer: Ruert, Paul
Performer: Funi, Miguel
Performer: Vargas, Concha
Performer: Familia Fernndez, La
Performer: Jarillo de Triana
Producing Organization: World Music Institute
Producing Organization: WNYC (Radio station : New York, N.Y.)
- AAPB Contributor Holdings
-
WNYC-FM
Identifier: 68024.1A (WNYC Media Archive Label)
Format: DAT
Generation: Original
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WNYC-FM
Identifier: 68024.1B (WNYC Media Archive Label)
Format: DAT
Generation: Original
-
WNYC-FM
Identifier: 68024.2A (WNYC Media Archive Label)
Format: audio/vnd.wave
Generation: Dub
Duration: 01:17:17
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WNYC-FM
Identifier: 68024.2B (WNYC Media Archive Label)
Format: audio/vnd.wave
Generation: Dub
Duration: 43:46:00
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- Citations
- Chicago: “Worlds of Music; Flamenco gitano!,” WNYC, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed July 17, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-80-74qjqx0t.
- MLA: “Worlds of Music; Flamenco gitano!.” WNYC, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. July 17, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-80-74qjqx0t>.
- APA: Worlds of Music; Flamenco gitano!. Boston, MA: WNYC, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-80-74qjqx0t