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Flamenco Forms
Malagueña
by Susana
Navalón
Translated by Yasha
Maccanico
(Malagueña, from Málaga). A core branch of the cantes del Levante (songs from
the south-east of Spain, the Levant; originating in the mines and
expressing deep suffering, their urban variations tend to refer
to love, life and death), whose origins lie in the old Málaga fandangos.
It became a flamenco style in the first half of the nineteenth
century. It is not a cante (style of song) that is suitable for
dancing, and it is very rich from a melodic point of view. There
are different types of malagueñas, which are named depending on
their inventors, who came from the province of Málaga, as well
as from other provinces such as Cádiz. It is accompanied by a guitar
played at the top and it is a cante “ad libitum” (style of singing
that does not follow a specific meter, also known as “free style”).
It is very often finished off with an abandolao (guitar playing
executed to the rhythmic pattern of the fandango) fandango. |
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| Dance |
It is not currently a cante for dancing.
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| The guitar thrives when it is played in a malagueñas style. |
| Guitar |
| Its guitar accompaniment is always executed by playing it at the top and its
tempo is an andante and expressive 3/4. Nonetheless,
it does not have a strict external rhythm, because cantaores
(flamenco singers) can stretch the tercios (sections,
or each of the verses comprising a copla) at will, and
on some occasions they will slow down the meter, while
on others they will speed it up. According to Alfredo
Arrebola, a cantaor and theoretician, the guitar has
been the element that has transformed the malagueña:
“The guitar thrives from playing in a malagueñas style,
due to the range of arpeggios, trémolos, etc. that it
is given scope for, providing it with an extraordinary
and marvellous musical variety ... The malagueña acquires
its independence from the local fandango because its
guitar-playing – its dramatic musical character - becomes
progressively slower and sharper, thus achieving an extraordinary
richness”. It is modulated in E major and F major, with
LA minor as its tonic. |
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| It is a very measured, melodic and solemn cante, which acquired the category
of cante grande through the voices of Enrique el Mellizo
and Chacón. |
| Singing |
It is a very measured, melodic and solemn cante which acquired the category of
cante grande (a subjective expression used to indicate
the oldest and most solemn, authentic and primitive
styles) through the voices of Enrique el Mellizo and
Chacón. There are different kinds of malagueñas, due
to the personal creations of a number of performers
who came both from the province of Málaga, and from
other parts of Andalucía and the rest of Spain, and
others exist that are less widely known and have local
origins. Recently, the cantaor Diego Clavel collected
up to forty-seven different styles of malagueña in
a record. It is a cante with coplas (poetic compositions,
in verse, used as lyrics) made up of four or five eight-syllable
verses, which usually become six, as one of them is
repeated. Its origins lie in the ancient fandangos
of Málaga which became an authentic flamenco cante
around the middle of the nineteenth century. |
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Getting
started in flamenco
What is meant by cante jondo, duende, jondura, quejío, garbo…?
Everything you need to know to get started in flamenco.
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You
can start dancing straight away
Finding a jersey, skirt, fan, or dance school is easier than
you think: the technique can be learnt, but only you can put
the magic into it.
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Flamencoing
in Madrid
Madrid is undoubtedly the flamenco capital: schools, tablaos,
taverns, bars and festivals. Everything that you mustn´t miss
out on.
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Choose
the best skirt
The skirt shapes your figure and highlights your movements.
Here you can learn how to pick the one that suits you best.
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Paso
a Paso.
Flamenco forms
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