2008年12月28日 星期日

Which Flamenco Guitar Instructional DVD should I buy?


http://www.falseta.com/articles/which-flamenco-guitar-instructional-dvd-should-i-buy/



Written By: Cesar Serna


 




There are now quite a few Flamenco instructional courses out on the market. Ranging in prices from $20 to $100+ but which one is the right one for you? Do you have to buy 1 DVD or take the plunge by purchasing a 10 disc set? Well we hope to demystify the whole process a little bit in this article.
First lets break up guitarist into three basic groups:


Beginner – The beginner guitar player is as green to Flamenco as it gets but they have a lot of drive to learn all the great Bulerias and Tangos they have just listened to on there first Paco de Lucia or Vicente Amigo CD. The beginner guitar player may already have chops and plenty of playing experience in other genres but is new to flamenco guitar playing. The need here then is structure, discipline and repetition in order to achieve proper hand positioning, solid practice routines and learn the fundamentals of flamenco guitar playing.


Intermediate – The intermediate guitar player is at least practicing Bulerias, Tangos, etc… that they have learned by listening to or by watching others perform. The intermediate guitar player may be taking some lessons if a good teacher is available and has probably performed some Flamenco pieces from time to time or incorporated some form of Flamenco into there performances. The need here then is learning to play in a performance scenario. For example learning what to watch for when playing for a singer, dancer or just learning to listen to cajon beats and groove along until timing is perfect.


Advanced – The advanced guitar player is performing live and has been for a while. But like most performers will, they have reached a plateau and are looking to push themselves to the next level. The need here then is to push to levels that are at Masters levels in order to learn and incorporate new Falsetas and or progressions into current performances.


So now that we have broken up flamenco guitar players into three groups place yourself into one of these groups. You might feel that you are in between Beginner to Intermediate or Intermediate to Advanced. Don’t worry about that now just pick one and lets get to the Flamenco instructional guitar DVD recommendations.


For the Beginner we chose:


Gerhard Graf-Martinez – flamenco guitar Volume 1


A lot of thought and design was incorporated into flamenco guitar Volume 1 to provide the ultimate informational and presentation of lessons to the student. You are taken from the very basics Rasgueo, Pulgar, Remate and Golpe and given several lessons on each followed up with a practice song presented in slow and regular speeds.


What impressed us was that the presentations came with multi-angle views giving you the ability to either view the side guitar, sound hole view to see how the hands touch the strings and side guitar with scrolling measure with musical notes and tabs to follow along with Mr. Martinez. And just when you thought that’s all you get Mr. Martinez keeps on giving.


flamenco guitar Volume 1 also comes with a the Graf-Martinez Reloj Flamenco chapter on the DVD that is similar to the Flamenco Metronome software (see previous review) as it includes scrolling measures of music with notes and tablature along with a clock marking the compas covering both auditory and visual learners. Unlike the Flamenco Metronome software the Reloj Flamenco included on this DVD requires no installs or special equipment as long as you have a DVD player you can practice pretty much all the major Flamenco Palos. For the Beginner Flamenco guitarist flamenco guitar Volume 1 gets our pick for best Beginner flamenco guitar instructional DVD.


For the Intermediate we chose:


Flamenco Live – flamenco guitar Bulerias Step by Step


Almost every aspect of learning and performing a Buleria is on flamenco guitar Bulerias Step by Step. The premise is to dissect a Buleria called Yaiza by breaking up the song into eight Falseta sections that then are offered to you in two speeds slow and normal.


The concept of multi-angles is also incorporated in order get the different views of the finger placement on the guitar for each section. Flamenco Live includes a selection for angles of the bass player only so you might say this DVD could also be called Flamenco Bass Bulerias Step by Step.


Also included is the ability to select which instruments you want to hear when watching the scene. The available options for this are Mix, Guitar Only and Bass Only. Combining this with the multi-angles and eight different scenes you can create the ultimate Flamenco practice band that will never miss a beat.


For the Advanced we chose:


Encuentro Productions – Gerardo Nunez


Now for all of you Beginners who are even thinking about skipping to this level be warned: The watching of Encuentro Productions Gerardo Nunez will leave you in awe and will cause irreparable damage to your ego.


For the Advanced here is what is in store for you. Gerardo Nunez is a phenomenal guitarist and the lessons included are worth the sticker shock price of $100+ but the lessons alone are not what make this DVD. What is amazing is Gerardos explanation toward his practice routines and techniques as ultimately Gerardo Nunez explains that once fundamentals are understood and mastered practicing can be any sequence of notes that ultimately leads to the creation of new Falsetas.


Gerardo Nunez has a very distinct personality that is very easy going and therefore staying focused on what he is explaining seems easier than usual. Encuentro Productions Gerardo Nunez is about as straight forward a DVD as you can get. No multi-angles and no special audio selections just packed with Advanced level lessons (A huge book with tons of Falsetas is included and referenced on the DVD) and techniques (Pulgar, Arpegios, Tremolo, Picado and Rasqueados) for pushing your playing to the next level. Performances of each Falseta by Gerardo Nunez are in slow speed and normal speed.


Selecting training material is never easy and can be very expensive so invest wisely and best of luck.


Please send us your feedback about this article, the products mentioned here or other products you think we should review by using the feedback form below. We look forward to your emails!




Básico Dance letra 幾段歌詞英文翻譯

http://www.studioflamenco.com

llamada,escobilla,remate Simplest dances





http://www.esflamenco.com/scripts/news/ennews.asp?frmIdPagina=248


Simplest dances


The sevillanas are usually the first dance that is taught. The main reason for this is that it is the only palo (form) that has a set choreography, even though some steps may be different depending on what school you go to. It is one of the dance forms that is most complete; it includes zapateado, rotations, marcajes (emphatic, slow majestic movements that mark the lyrics, predominantly using the arms), cierres (signals that indicate the end of a part of the dance and the start of another)… and, furthermore, it is also the best dance for learning to coordinate the arms and feet. Sevillanas also represent a good way to get used to following the music because they have a simple and well marked meter that is easy to follow and to learn, because the coplas (poetic compositions, in verse, used as lyrics) and choruses are repeated several times. Another advantage is that it is a dance for couples, which makes it more enjoyable and quicker to learn. It is also one of the dances that can be used most often outside of the dance school. Once they have learned them properly, students can focus on their castanet accompaniment.


The fandango de Huelva is the next dance that is usually taught. It shares some steps with the sevillanas, and has the same three-beat meter. It is also a popular dance which includes several coplas (poetic compositions, in verse, used as lyrics) and a chorus, which are easy for our ears to get accustomed to. Like sevillanas, it too can be accompanied using castanets.


Another palo (form) that is easy to follow are tanguillos. Learning this dance, you make progress in the technique of the zapateado, and you also come into contact with the four-beat meter for the first time. The rumba also has the same meter, but it is not usually taught in dance schools because it is a dance form that lacks flamenco depth and is better suited to improvisation.


Medium difficulty dances


The tangos and tientos also follow a four-beat meter. With these dances, a greater degree of expressiveness and elegance is required when it comes to their execution. The meter is easy to follow, but the movements are more elaborate, and it is important to execute them in a natural and fluent manner.


The next step would be to go into the group of the cantes de Cádiz to study the twelve-beat meter. The alegrías, cantiñas, romeras, mirabrás, and caracoles belong to this group. With these dances, it is possible to go deeper into the structure and the order of execution of the different flamenco steps (llamada, cierre, remate, escobilla, marcaje, desplante). The zapateados start to get more complicated.


Difficult dances



Sevillanas
 



Following a twelve-beat meter, we come to the soleá and we reach the part that is most difficult in flamenco, that is, executing the dance with feeling and solemnity. In addition to the structure of the dance and the complexity of the zapateado, now there are also arm movements, ondulations of the hips and swerving waistlines that are laden with majesty and artistry. It can be danced with a shawl. Within the group that has a twelve-beat meter and a similar level of difficulty, we also find other dances like the martinete, guajira, caña…


Another dance that has a twelve-beat metre is the bulería, a festive dance that can only be approached once the ear has grown very accustomed to following the meter. Furthermore, in this case the ease with which we are able to improvise or execute movements gracefully comes into play. If we intend to zapatear, we must do so at speed, as the rhythm is faster than in other dances.


The seguiriya is another twelve-beat palo (form), but it follows a mixed or alternate meter. The measure is somewhat complex, and it takes time to get used to. Furthermore, it is a stylised dance form that does not allow easy adornment and that must be performed in a sober manner. It switches between several kinds of steps and, to cap it all, it can be complicated further by adding castanet accompaniment, or by using the tailed gown or the shawl. It is among the most difficult dances.
 
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2008年12月12日 星期五

學舞的動機


「Valisere 時尚秀 Part 3」
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=0y_rvXHPdQo

「Antonio Gades: Flamenco / Carmen」
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=oLbRtUAmx3g
http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/mifuego-jess/article?mid=96&prev=131&next=33&l=f&fid=11

http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=8_sWifNf_1s

我真是個沒什麼大志向的人啊。



又,原來不只我這樣子…
「很難想像在舞台上將佛拉明哥演繹得如此淋漓盡致的林志遠,居然不是舞蹈科班出身,接觸舞蹈只是因為在大學時期想牽女生的手;」
http://www.ecf.com.tw/Search_detail.php?om_id=178


2008年12月9日 星期二

巧遇男舞者 Mimbre 老師


這週末搭捷運時,在某站進來了一男一女,都拖了行李箱。
我用眼角餘光偷瞄到那女性,發現她畫著好看的濃妝。
眼睛上戴了長又濃密又整齊的假睫毛,給我一種「就算下雨也不會滴到眼睛裡面」的安全感覺。
我心中偷笑:「嘻嘻,這麼精心打扮,是要上台演 flamenco 喔?」

那男性一上車手機就響了,好不容易講完之後,男性跟女性說到了「……就是那一班學生……對,她們接到一場表演……人家還是希望舞者…」
我心中一驚,抬頭看那人是誰,果然是跳 flamenco 的。
他是 Mimbre,我看過他很厲害的現場表演,也看過他的 blog。

於是就開始了我內容不怎麼精彩的搭訕。
她們兩人對於學習 Farruca 的評論是「最好連續學了兩年之後,再學比較好」。
對於腳步跟不上速度,看法也是「那也只有跟著音樂不斷練習速度了」。
這短短的交談對於我的舞蹈素養當然不會有什麼幫助,但是倒讓我想到之前一直很想有機會玩的一個(愚蠢的)小遊戲。

話說剛開始學 flamenco 的時候(比現在還更剛開始一點),整天都在練習轉腕。
上課時候練,下課也練,等車的時候練,上車了之後還是練。
轉著轉著我就在想,那些看到我在轉腕的乘客,心裡面的想法會是什麼呢?
可能是:
1.整天打字得了腕道症候群的人,搭車的時候還要做復健,真可憐啊。
2.精神分裂的人真可憐啊。
3.是同好…?(真可憐啊。)

我多麼希望答案是 3. ,對方會走過來也做一個轉腕作為打招呼,就開始互相報上師承何處學藝資歷。然後就開始互相拍馬屁:
「您轉腕時,繞指柔如天邊雲彩 blah blah…」
「哪裡哪裡您的轉腕才如百煉鋼入木三分刮啦刮啦…」
然後就可以浴乎沂,風乎舞雩,一起去喝個一瓶 sangria 或 jerez…