Flamenco jazz
Flamenco Jazz (also Flamenco Fusion ) is a hybrid of modern jazz and flamenco developed in Spain since the 1980s , which can be viewed as an independent sub-genre of world jazz .
history
First efforts to combine jazz and flamenco go back to 1967, when saxophonist Pedro Iturralde and guitarist Paco de Lucía met in a concert initiated by Joachim Ernst Berendt at the Berlin Jazz Days ; but the pieces seemed "somewhat constructed and lacked a lively exchange of genres." In particular, the optimistic mood in Spain after the end of Franquism contributed to " exploring new possibilities of musical creation on the basis of the flamenco tradition" with Flamenco nuevo ; Musicians from the area around Paco de Lucia and Camarón de la Isla and groups such as Ketama should be mentioned here, who “have internalized traditional flamenco and have mastered it”, but are developing it further into Flamenco Nuevo. De Lucía provided his group with new timbres by integrating saxophone and flute ( Jorge Pardo ), electric bass ( Carles Benavent ), but also bongos and congas into his group sound and at the same time refraining from singing and dancing for many years. In the 1980s, musicians from this group, together with pianist Chano Domínguez and guitarists such as Gerardo Núñez and Tomatito, developed a more extensive form of fusion, which on the one hand uses tonal, thematic and rhythmic elements of flamenco and on the other hand requires a jazz-oriented approach. Several workshops on jazz and flamenco took place in Seville and promoted collaboration between musicians from both scenes.
meaning
The genre has been considered fully developed since the production of Jazzpaña II . According to the musicologist Gerhard Putschögl, "the development of flamenco jazz is crucial to have made Spain a more attractive location for contemporary development in the overall spectrum of jazz and so-called world music ." Numerous groups in Spain play flamenco jazz , and develop it further, on the mainland as well as on the Canary Islands (e.g. Kike Perdomo , Alexander Sputh ). New instruments (such as the harmonica by Antonio Serrano or the cello by Matthieu Saglio ) are introduced. At the same time, the development of flamenco jazz enhances Europe “as the terrain for independent development of jazz.” In France, Louis Winsberg is a pioneer of this genre.
Important albums of flamenco jazz
- Jorge Pardo Veloz (1993)
- Gerardo Núñez Calima (1999)
- Gerardo Nuñez / Perico Sambeat Pasajes (2000, with Jeanne Lee , Paolo Fresu , Esperanza Fernandez, Julian Argüelles , Carlos Martín, George Colligan , Manuel Soler, Fareed Haque , Javier Colina , Marc Miralta )
- Jazzpaña II (2000, with Chano Domínguez, Jorge Pardo, Gerardo Núñez, Esperanza Fernandez, Carles Benavent, Renaud Garcia-Fons , Michael Brecker and others)
- Michel Camilo & Tomatito Spain (2000)
literature
- Ekkehard Jost Flamenco Nuevo? Stylistic tendencies in contemporary flamenco. In: Anita Awosusi The Music of the Sinti and Roma Vol. 3. Heidelberg 1998
- Jose Maria Garcia Martínez Del Fox-Trot al Jazz Flamenco. El jazz en España, 1916-1995. Madrid 1996
- Gerhard Putschögl Flamenco Jazz Jazz Podium 7/2011: 3-8