Here is a picture of my niece, Chiara, who is just a week old....
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Tierra....it's over
Thanks to all of you who came out to see Tierra - after all the work & lead-up to the show we were thrilled that we had such a receptive audience to perform to! Thanks so much for bringing your friends & family, as I know many of you did. Thanks for filling up those seats - all the Ole's.... I love coming back to class & seeing your inspired faces. That's one of the reasons we bring flamencos into Calgary. Listening to cante on a CD is not quite the same thing! :-) Nothing like a live Martinete resounding throughout the theatre.
Several of you have asked what it was like having everyone here. Intense and wonderful. Over 2 weeks of dedicated immersion. Not only are you rehearsing and creating with the other artists but you are living with them in the same house, eating together, spending practically every moment together. It was one noisy place! Rehearsals downstairs and upstairs simultaneously. Guitar lessons on the outdoor deck. Ilse moved a dancefloor into the garage to practice there! Needless to say we invited our neighbours to the show after all of that :-)
Creating a full-length show in a few weeks was a lofty task, especially with the integration of the environmental themes. It was such a wonderful and artistically challenging process. This is why we do what we do - why we dedicate our lives to flamenco - give up so much - so that we can be here, gathering our talents and ideas, collaborating together, creating a show. Flamenco puro for the stage! To have your work enhanced by the musical and choreographic ideas of others, adding the lighting effects, the energy of the audience - it all creates a special magic that can't be replicated anywhere else.
Each show was completely different. Those of you who saw both nights know what I mean. For me it was a great learning experience, adapting to changes that happen onstage - pulling it all together. It wasn't quite as I expected it to be - but flamenco is full of surprises. Some moments on stage were so charged, and the way Vicente sang (so incredibly powerful) I almost didn't need to dance, he carried me with his voice. Some of our best moments were also backstage or in rehearsal, those spontaneous jamming moments. Ideas pop out and disappear so quickly that you can barely grasp them...your dance becomes a reaction to the creativity around you. I love that about flamenco. The cycle of energy and emotion, the support of jaleos and palmas - the feeling when everyone catches the remates....like we are all working on a purely 'flamenco' level of consciousness.
Those of you who saw the show, may have picked up on the vibe of the group. We felt like a flamenco family by the end of it...we spent a whole lot of time in fits of laughter...whether it was during rehearsal or afterwards watching flamenco clips or comedies. Ricardo and Vicente are born comedians themselves. I put them in the 2 rooms downstairs and almost nightly we would hear the sound of their laughter (deep belly laughs) coming up through the floorboards. That would get us laughing upstairs...soon there was this cycle of laughter on all floors! That's how many nights ended....
It is a beautiful opportunity to be able to get up, rehearse, eat and rehearse some more. I love the focus of the lifestyle and how the pieces get tighter and more cohesive every day. It is a rare occurrence to have so many international flamencos in Calgary for such a period of time! I am so happy that many of you were able to participate in the workshops, guitar classes, watching the rehearsals and attending the shows. We hope that your love for flamenco grew just a little bit more as did ours!
Please post your comments about the show on the blog. You can also post comments and a show rating on http://www.flamenco.ca/
Pictures are soon to follow....keep checking back!
Several of you have asked what it was like having everyone here. Intense and wonderful. Over 2 weeks of dedicated immersion. Not only are you rehearsing and creating with the other artists but you are living with them in the same house, eating together, spending practically every moment together. It was one noisy place! Rehearsals downstairs and upstairs simultaneously. Guitar lessons on the outdoor deck. Ilse moved a dancefloor into the garage to practice there! Needless to say we invited our neighbours to the show after all of that :-)
Creating a full-length show in a few weeks was a lofty task, especially with the integration of the environmental themes. It was such a wonderful and artistically challenging process. This is why we do what we do - why we dedicate our lives to flamenco - give up so much - so that we can be here, gathering our talents and ideas, collaborating together, creating a show. Flamenco puro for the stage! To have your work enhanced by the musical and choreographic ideas of others, adding the lighting effects, the energy of the audience - it all creates a special magic that can't be replicated anywhere else.
Each show was completely different. Those of you who saw both nights know what I mean. For me it was a great learning experience, adapting to changes that happen onstage - pulling it all together. It wasn't quite as I expected it to be - but flamenco is full of surprises. Some moments on stage were so charged, and the way Vicente sang (so incredibly powerful) I almost didn't need to dance, he carried me with his voice. Some of our best moments were also backstage or in rehearsal, those spontaneous jamming moments. Ideas pop out and disappear so quickly that you can barely grasp them...your dance becomes a reaction to the creativity around you. I love that about flamenco. The cycle of energy and emotion, the support of jaleos and palmas - the feeling when everyone catches the remates....like we are all working on a purely 'flamenco' level of consciousness.
Those of you who saw the show, may have picked up on the vibe of the group. We felt like a flamenco family by the end of it...we spent a whole lot of time in fits of laughter...whether it was during rehearsal or afterwards watching flamenco clips or comedies. Ricardo and Vicente are born comedians themselves. I put them in the 2 rooms downstairs and almost nightly we would hear the sound of their laughter (deep belly laughs) coming up through the floorboards. That would get us laughing upstairs...soon there was this cycle of laughter on all floors! That's how many nights ended....
It is a beautiful opportunity to be able to get up, rehearse, eat and rehearse some more. I love the focus of the lifestyle and how the pieces get tighter and more cohesive every day. It is a rare occurrence to have so many international flamencos in Calgary for such a period of time! I am so happy that many of you were able to participate in the workshops, guitar classes, watching the rehearsals and attending the shows. We hope that your love for flamenco grew just a little bit more as did ours!
Please post your comments about the show on the blog. You can also post comments and a show rating on http://www.flamenco.ca/
Pictures are soon to follow....keep checking back!
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Andres Marin
Just to follow up on class tonight where I talked about Andres Marin...
You can visit his website http://www.andresmarin.es/
And read an excellent interview on Flamenco World www.flamenco-world.com/artists/marin/entrevista.htm
He is an incredibly disctinctive dancer with a wealth of brilliant ideas. I greatly admire is approach to dance...which you will understand more about through reading the interview. Post your comments on the blog!!
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Nina de los Peines
Frederico Garcia Lorca wrote this paradigm of a singer possessed by duende, who was once one of the most famous singers (1890-1969). She is a legend! You often hear her letras still performed today.
"Once, the Andalusian singer Pastora Pavon, La Nina de los Peines, dark hispanic genius, the equivalent in capacity for fantasy as Goya and Rafael el Gallo sang in a little tavern in Cadiz. She played with her voice of shade, with her voice of melted pewter, with her moss covered voice and she tangled it in her hair, or wet it in manzanilla wine, or lost in some dark, far away cordials. But for nothing; it was in vain. The listeners remained silent. Pastora Pavon stopped singing in the middle of the silence."
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Sevilla on Sunday
I am sitting at an internet cafe unlike no other...right beside the largest Gothic cathedral in the world ! (Giralda). Every now and then the bells go crazy and I am nearly shock
ed out of my chair. It is Sunday after all :-) I wandered into the Cathedral - but I far prefer the magic of wandering around by the exterior by night.
I have now been away in Spain for over 4 weeks, there are still several more weeks to go. Just moved into a little studio flat in Arenal that I love. I can run down for yummy croissants in the morning down at the bar Buzon, I am also right by the Alcazar gardens so when I have time in the afternoons I sit there on the wall that overlooks everything. Around in Arenal are enormous palm trees and moorish arched windows, heavy wooden doors, hidden tilework underneath balconies and trees dripping with oranges. I´ve bought a blue bicycle a
nd cruise through town on that. It´s very interesting riding on those uneven cobblestones without proper shocks!! Yesterday I rode over the Puente de Triana and saw the sun setting over the Gualdaquivir, casting a golden glow on the shore opposite Triana. I swear Sevilla is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I am obviously completely enamoured!!
I have spent so much time eating, drinking, sharing experiences with friends. I see friends here more in a week than I do in half a year i
n Canada (keeping in mind that I am often away of course! :-) But relaxing with friends is an integral part of the culture of Andalucia. They love life, they take the time to enjoy it before everything else. What a healthy and beautiful way to live.
Yesterday I was at the bar Labarinto and a man was reciting stories from Greek Mythology to a captive audience. I also went to see a local soccer game in Triana - I´d never seen soccer live before (or hockey for that matter!) but it was a lot of fun, especially if you know people that are on the team!
As far as classes go, I am taking 2 classes with Manuel Betanzos as well as classes with Isabel Bayon, Andres Marin and Ursula Lopez. Ricardo, the guitarist I worked with in Calgary in October (whom some of you know) is also here, performing at the Pena Torres Macarena. He and I get lots of chances to chat & he will likely be coming to Calgary again to perform again in September!
Performances have been very exciting and fulfilling. The places in which I have had the opportunity to perform are magical, with so much history that they fill me with a unique energy and inspiration. One of them is the Tablao Patio Las Cruces in Santa Cruz, a tiled moorish patio, w
ith the centre open to the sky, lots of potted plants and birds...
Last Thursday I performed at the Alcazar (palace) of Jerez de la Frontera. Which was an one of the happiest days of my life. They closed off half of the Alcazar for us so in between rehearsals I had the whole run of the gardens, castle walls and towers. I ran, and danced and sang and looked at the view of the Cathedral which was directly in front of me, the city of Jerez, barrio of Santiago (where flamenco is said to have been ¨born¨) and the hills of the countryside stretching out on all sides. I felt so grateful to be there. I am still incredulous that life brought me that opportunity. The Levante was blowing (a wind from Africa) and at night when the stars came out, it felt like I was in the gardens from one of the stories in Arab
ian Nights.
They filmed the show live and emphasized that I was Canadian. I was really happy that they mentioned it!
Off I go to practice a bit and then find a few friends to share dinner with! The summer heat has not hit quite as yet. When it does, you´ll find me back in Calgary!!!
ed out of my chair. It is Sunday after all :-) I wandered into the Cathedral - but I far prefer the magic of wandering around by the exterior by night.I have now been away in Spain for over 4 weeks, there are still several more weeks to go. Just moved into a little studio flat in Arenal that I love. I can run down for yummy croissants in the morning down at the bar Buzon, I am also right by the Alcazar gardens so when I have time in the afternoons I sit there on the wall that overlooks everything. Around in Arenal are enormous palm trees and moorish arched windows, heavy wooden doors, hidden tilework underneath balconies and trees dripping with oranges. I´ve bought a blue bicycle a
nd cruise through town on that. It´s very interesting riding on those uneven cobblestones without proper shocks!! Yesterday I rode over the Puente de Triana and saw the sun setting over the Gualdaquivir, casting a golden glow on the shore opposite Triana. I swear Sevilla is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I am obviously completely enamoured!!I have spent so much time eating, drinking, sharing experiences with friends. I see friends here more in a week than I do in half a year i
n Canada (keeping in mind that I am often away of course! :-) But relaxing with friends is an integral part of the culture of Andalucia. They love life, they take the time to enjoy it before everything else. What a healthy and beautiful way to live.Yesterday I was at the bar Labarinto and a man was reciting stories from Greek Mythology to a captive audience. I also went to see a local soccer game in Triana - I´d never seen soccer live before (or hockey for that matter!) but it was a lot of fun, especially if you know people that are on the team!
As far as classes go, I am taking 2 classes with Manuel Betanzos as well as classes with Isabel Bayon, Andres Marin and Ursula Lopez. Ricardo, the guitarist I worked with in Calgary in October (whom some of you know) is also here, performing at the Pena Torres Macarena. He and I get lots of chances to chat & he will likely be coming to Calgary again to perform again in September!Performances have been very exciting and fulfilling. The places in which I have had the opportunity to perform are magical, with so much history that they fill me with a unique energy and inspiration. One of them is the Tablao Patio Las Cruces in Santa Cruz, a tiled moorish patio, w
ith the centre open to the sky, lots of potted plants and birds...Last Thursday I performed at the Alcazar (palace) of Jerez de la Frontera. Which was an one of the happiest days of my life. They closed off half of the Alcazar for us so in between rehearsals I had the whole run of the gardens, castle walls and towers. I ran, and danced and sang and looked at the view of the Cathedral which was directly in front of me, the city of Jerez, barrio of Santiago (where flamenco is said to have been ¨born¨) and the hills of the countryside stretching out on all sides. I felt so grateful to be there. I am still incredulous that life brought me that opportunity. The Levante was blowing (a wind from Africa) and at night when the stars came out, it felt like I was in the gardens from one of the stories in Arab
ian Nights.They filmed the show live and emphasized that I was Canadian. I was really happy that they mentioned it!
Off I go to practice a bit and then find a few friends to share dinner with! The summer heat has not hit quite as yet. When it does, you´ll find me back in Calgary!!!
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Comments about the recent Spain trip...
Here is one comment posted by a student who took part in the recent Sevilla Tour 2006:
"My trip to Sevilla, Spain was most memorable and I am glad that I went. The comradeship of all the other girls and the sights of Spain will not be forgotten - from the tapas bars, the Sevillanas bars, the flamenco shows, the long walks (which turned out to be long) since I found the way without reading the map. I found out that knowing some Spanish turned out to be very helpful but the next time I would make sure my Spanish is more fluent. The Plaza, the bull ring, the stores and the people (including the flambouyant ex bull fighter Antonio that we met through Fiona) all added to the flavour of Sevilla. The intensive flamenco dance lessons we got with Felipe Mato was also very beneficial. I realized how great a dancer I could become if I practised like that every day. I am glad I had the opportunity to go!!"
Sylvia
(Sevilla Flamenco Tour participant, 2007)
"My trip to Sevilla, Spain was most memorable and I am glad that I went. The comradeship of all the other girls and the sights of Spain will not be forgotten - from the tapas bars, the Sevillanas bars, the flamenco shows, the long walks (which turned out to be long) since I found the way without reading the map. I found out that knowing some Spanish turned out to be very helpful but the next time I would make sure my Spanish is more fluent. The Plaza, the bull ring, the stores and the people (including the flambouyant ex bull fighter Antonio that we met through Fiona) all added to the flavour of Sevilla. The intensive flamenco dance lessons we got with Felipe Mato was also very beneficial. I realized how great a dancer I could become if I practised like that every day. I am glad I had the opportunity to go!!"
Sylvia
(Sevilla Flamenco Tour participant, 2007)
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Going to Costa Rica
I will be in Costa Rica for the next couple of weeks! We will arriving in San Jose and then travelling onward to Parque Manuel Antonio, Monteverde Cloud Forest & Santa Elena, Volcano El Arenal and finally we will spend a few days in Tamarindo where a close friend is getting married. We are thrilled to have this opportunity to go! Adventure stories and pictures to be posted shortly....
Isn't he cute?!!? (pictures courtey of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve). www.monteverdeinfo.com
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