i If the word flamenco conjures up images of a failed 1990s flirtation with the Gypsy Kings (you know who you are!), it’s time to get reacquainted with this vibrant art form, which currently is flourishing in the United States. “Flamenco has been on a pretty steady upswing over the past 16 years,” says Robert Browning of New York’s World Music Institute. As a producer of concerts with an international focus, Browning has seen his fair share of izzled trends, but flamenco’s appeal remains timeless. “No one wants to see Riverdance any- more,” he laughs. “But with flamenco, it’s exciting because it’s a tradition that’s very old, but it’s always bringing in new and innovative ideas.” Growing out of the fertile interplay of Arabic, Sephardic, Andalusian and Gypsy cultures in southern Spain, the first public performances of flamenco ccurred in cafés cantantes back in the mid- to late 1800s. With the unique intertwining of song (canté), guitar (toqué) and dance (bailé) at its base, flamenco has evolved into a greatly expanded art form with a variety of per- formance styles, including traditional, contemporary, choreographed and avant-garde. Traditional gender roles— male dancers focus on the feet and female dancers focus on the hands— frequently are switched, and the music has branched out to include unlikely accompaniments, such as John Len- non’s “Imagine.” “Nowadays, flamenco has such a wide scope, you can see as many styles as there are dancers,” says Miguel Marin, founder and director of Flamenco Festi- val, a worldwide promoter of flamenco performances. “It is the artist who gives individual style to the form.” “Flamenco is like life. It has to go on.”
Flamenco Festival
In February, Browning’s and Marin’s
companies bring some of the best flamenco artists to New York City for the
10th annual New York Flamenco Festival.
