Friday, April 28, 2006

FLAMENCO INTEGRAL
A PROJECT BASED ON THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF FLAMENCO


Recently, the art of flamenco has been transpassing the Spanish borders as individuals abroad become more and more interested in this music and culture, not only on a musical level rather on a theoretical level as well, a manefestation that is apparent in the great amount of flamenco courses now offered in countries spanning from Asia to South America. With the objective of fulfulling this desire for more knowledge, a group of licensed university students from Granada, Spain have been providing intensive courses in cities across Europe, with a vision of performing this art and encouraging a thorough appreciation of its historical and cultural roots.

We have obtained a promising alumni turnout in the various courses given in Town Halls and other public and private institutions, which encourages us to present with great honor our project.

Over the years, many university students have wished to integrate themselves in the mysterious world of flamenco on a more intimate level, demonstrating a curiosity for the mulitiple theories on its origen and its development in general. We are not exaggerating when we say that this desire has continued to grow as flamenco makes its way across the Spanish borders. More and more students and flamenco aficionados attempt to further their knowledge of flamenco, and from there builds their interest in its history and in the distinct cultures that have allowed for its creation and progress. Unfortunately, the path to understanding this art is difficult to reach for the majority of these individuals, especially when it is not possible to access information in their countries due to the scarcity of professionals in the field.
Our objectives are clear: we hope to attack this problem from the root by allowing easy, available access to the enriching knowledge of flamenco. We have formed programs in which recognized connoseuirs in the field introduce the many aspects of flamenco in a simple manner to aficionados of the world: the theories of its origen; its historic evolution in the distinct fields of singing, dance, and guitar; well-known figures on multiple literary, artistic and musical levels.
We believe that only licensed professors with a solid educational background and extensive experience in its musical manefestation can achieve a thorough and significant learning level in their alumni. We base ourselves in didactical principals, veering from the stereotype that claims that flamenco is a music whose cannot be studied.
We concern ourselves with the basic facets of flamenco in a way that permits the distinction of its various musical styles and their principal caracteristics. The courses are of equal interest for those who are novices as for those who are familiar with flamenco yet lack accurate written references surrounding its history.
With the objective of proportioning the essential knowledge to those who are interested in understanding this unique art, we have composed our group of courses in the following manner:

1. Introduction to an Andalusian Musical Culture: a Theoretical Course on Flamenco
In this course, students will study themes related to the history, sociology and literature of the Andalusian cultural phenomenon known as flamenco, including musical concepts such as rhythm, harmony, melody and forms.
This course will be designed in function of the profile of the students. Depending on their various levels of knowledge of the field, courses will range from basic to more advanced levels.
Included are live conferences given by the. The minimum number of professors necessary for this course is one, but we recommend three in order to cover the most important areas of this music: dance, singing and the flamenco guitar.
The duration of the course with be between 20 and 60 hours, depending on the material chosen to cover and students' interests and needs.
2. Applied Courses in Dance, Guitar and Percussion
The objective of this course consists of complementing the theories learned in the introductory course with a parallel dance and/or guitar class. We will offer two levels: novice and intermediate. This course will be subject to the availability and schedule of the center in which it is given.
This practice session is directed towards those who wish to apply their knowledge of the material on a more practical level. In the beginners' session previous experience is not required, yet there exists another possibility for those alumni who are already familiar with flamenco to further their knowledge of the art.
The length of this course will vary according to the needs of the alumni. We recommend a duration between 20 and 60 hours.
The professor chosen will depend on whether it is a course involving dance, singing, guitar or percussion

3. Additional Information
These courses are intended for students enrolled in musical conservatories, high schools and universities as well as for sociologists, musicologists and historians, or simply for those who are passionate about flamenco. All courses include abundant materials that the professors will apportion, such as parituras??, photocopies, recordings, etc.
Both courses will be organized in a parallel form although it is not necessary to enroll in both. In other words, one can sign up independently and it is not obligatory to assist both courses to be eligible to enroll.
The company will be in charge of all expenses of the professor(s) of each course: class trips, housing, food, salary and other conveniences. Other options include forming additional courses and conferences related to general themes of flamenco.
Lastly, we offer the opportunity to arrange musical performances with the professors and students in order to demonstrate the goals and of our project. This would result to be very attractive for the alumni as well as for the general public since it would allow us to demonstrate what our project is about and motivate the enrollment of more individuals in years to come.
Please feel free to contact us for more information. We are open to additional proposals and would be pleased to clarify any doubts or provide necessary details.

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