Flamenco is a popular style of Spanish Guitar Music. Flamenco has its own three forms which are Cante, Baile, and Guitarra. Cante is the song, Baile is the dance, and Guitarra is the guitar part of flamenco. Flamenco is a very important part of Spanish Guitar Music. It usually consists of someone playing the guitar, while people are dancing, and other people also join in with hand clapping. Although it is mostly popular in Spain, flamenco was influenced by other cultures as well.
Flamenco Guitar
The Flamenco Guitar is very similar to the classical guitar. That is no surprise however, because flamenco music and classical music are very similar. Both of the instruments are descendants from the lute. The normal flamenco guitar is made out of the Spanish woods cypress and spruce. Even though this guitar is similar to a normal classical guitar, it is also different. For example, the flamenco guitar weighs less and is smaller than a normal classical guitar. These features attribute to giving the flamenco guitar the sharp flamenco sound. Nearly all flamenco guitars come with a golpeador.
For example, there are several ways to strum the guitar for flamenco. Strumming is an easy way to scratch the body of the guitar, so a golpeador is needed. Also, besides strumming, the guitar still has many different styles of being played. For example, in flamenco, the musicians often use their hands and fingers and tap the body of their guitar to create sounds to blend in with the flamenco music. The hand and finger taps serve as another reason why a golpeador is needed.
History and Origin of Flamenco
Flamenco appeared for the first time in literature in the mid 1770s. During the Golden Age of Spain, flamenco started to get more and more popular. Flamenco started becoming common in the country's music cafes. Also, around that time, the number of music cafes in Spain began to increase. As time progressed, flamenco began to get more and more serious. Other forms of flamenco started to generate, and many of them got deeper in meaning. During the early 1900s, flamenco singing started to get attention. Soon, full flamenco dances were taking place with the guitar, the singing, and the dancing. After 1915, many people started to have shows for flamenco, and musicians would play in front of a crowd at a theatre or another public place.
Flamenco Today
Today, flamenco is different than how it started. The dancers are mainly female, and they are showcased more. In the past, flamenco was more artistic, and the music and dance was the main focus. Now, flamenco usually consists of three parts. When there is multiple people dancing and the music is playing, the audience often joins in clapping. Today, the audience is also involved in flamenco.
Written by
Shawn Kohan
Shawn Kohan writes article on many topics including flamenco music and new age music