If it weren’t for Madrid, we wouldn’t have flamenco as we know it today. This was stated in La Unión by the flamencologist Francisco Paredes at the conference ‘Flamenco in Madrid’ at the LXII International Festival of Cante de las Minas. The journalist, writer and producer specialized in flamenco José Manuel Gamboa; the director of the portal deflamenco.com, Rafael Manjavacas, and the president of the Círculo Flamenco de Madrid and specialist in sound heritage Carlos Martín participated in this meeting. The talk dates back to the 19th century, when “the word flamenco was the label used to sell a new product,” said Gamboa, alluding to what were known as “dances of the country,” without there being a specific name.
He recounted that a great party was held in Madrid in the middle of this century to present the product to authorities and people from the world of culture on Calle del Baño, which caused flamenco to be labeled ‘new art’, causing that it spread and reached all of humanity, beginning to “work in a big way.” Already in the 20th century, the first contests with artists of the genre appeared, which were the way to publicize flamenco, which caused “generations of child singers to be born who demonstrated their flamenco fans”, according to Carlos Martín. This can be verified in the posters of the time, which showed the “fervescence and flamenco atmosphere in Madrid”, with names that are not even remembered today. Flamenco opera recovered after the war and radio began to gain prominence with “a more evasive aesthetic that made flamenco corner itself in its natural environments, such as grocery stores and private parties,” added the discography expert.
«In Madrid there was not only a demand for flamenco, but there was also a very important Andalusian atmosphere, making the artists who came to work find a similar environment», added Martín. It was around the 50s when the tablaos began to gather flamenco art. “They were created for the national public, so that they could listen to real cantes, because in flamenco opera they didn’t sing siguiriya”, indicated Gamboa. This motivated “all the flamencos in Spain to go to Madrid to stay and work,” Manjavacas pointed out, adding that they brought together “the social fabric of Madrid”
Paredes recalled that “the artists who came with the music of their land triumphed in tablaos in Madrid and exalted them”. This prevented “many cantes from being lost”. In that scene, the Corral de la Morería played a crucial role. “It is the authentic house that we have left,” says Gamboa.
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