Origins
and History of Flamenco
The Flamenco was born as
poetry and music. Later it became a dance. Its native land is Andalusia, the
most southern region of Spain.
The populations that
left significant traces in the culture and traditions of Andalusia were the
Arabs and the Hebrews, but with a slight Gypsy appearance. The Gypsies were a
population of dancers and musicians, but the Spanish monarchy was very strict
with them. During the 16th and 17th- centuries it was
forbidden for them to partake in every kind of activity, except that of their
role as farm laborers. But their vocation was dance, and they always practiced
it: when it was possible in broad daylight, when it wasn’t possible, in secret.
With time, they became the best interpreters of the local traditions. Even if
they lived on the fringe of society, they received the caring and the
complicity of the less wealthy classes
which they often dealt with. Continue...
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