Frills and footwork

An expressive dance form that mixes percussive footwork with intricate hand and body movements, Flamenco is a highly polished art form whose appeal is spreading far and wide, writes Aruna Chandaraju.

The swirl of silk skirts, the staccato clapping, fast-paced footwork, sharp but graceful turns, and the rhythms of the guitar held us mesmerised. The flamenco dance performance had been planned perfectly, and was being executed brilliantly. Watching it from our chairs at a table in the end of the restaurant in Madrid (it is not unusual to have flamenco dance presented with dinner and drinks as a package in Spain), we could no longer remain seated.

We rose and moved to the wall and plastered ourselves against it to get a better view over the heads of the other diners. We watched the percussive footwork and intricate hand and arm movements of the dancers.

The fervour and passion of all the dancers was remarkable and we also noted their proud carriage. There was an explosion of emotions on the main-dancer’s face as her solo dance reached a crescendo as well as a stomping of feet in which her legs almost drilled into the floor with an amazing power. We could not understand the language of the songs but we instantly connected with their melody and rhythm.

The gifted male and female artistes (in richly coloured costumes and ornate jewellery) and accompanying musicians (instrumentalists and singers) took a bow as thunderous applause broke out at the end of their electrifying performance.

The term flamenco refers to a genre of Spanish dance, music and song. The flamenco dance aka baile is a well known aspect of this beautiful artistic tradition. It is often called an expression of Andalusian culture since it originated in Andalusia, a region in southern Spain.

The art was enriched by an intermingling of this region’s dance and music with various other cultural influences which have been traced to different parts of the world. The word flamenco was recorded as a music and dance term around the late 18th century. Its presentation, including the music and the kind of instrumentalists that accompany it have all evolved in various ways over the years.

Though its origins are traced to gypsies and some non-gypsy groups, today it is acknowledged as a highly polished art form. The theatrical presentation of flamenco can be a very sophisticated performance.

Today, its appeal has spread not only across Spain, but around the world to many countries, notably Japan. Flamenco artistes tour the world regularly and there are several academies for this art form outside Spain. Flamenco has been an influence on other kinds of art — paintings, graphic art, writing, music, dance (like ballet for example), etc. In 2010, UNESCO bestowed an honour on this art by declaring it as  one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Behind the scene

Guitar music and hand-clapping (or jaelo) with singing (sometimes shouting) as an accompaniment, intricate rhythmic cycles, out-turned leg positions, quick barrel turns, gracious and often sweeping arm movements and rapid-fire footwork including foot tapping which rises to a ferocious stomping at times, are well-known elements of flamenco dance. The stomping of feet in a burning passion is often seen in the climax of the dance. The dance often begins rather sedately as one sees the performer standing quietly to take in the strumming of the guitar and songs before she begins.

The flamenco dancer moves rhythmically to a set sequence of steps. Costumes use bright colours and the women wear frilly, voluminous skirts. Props like fans, shawls and castanets are often used. You can see solo, duets and group dances in flamenco presentations. Also, both choreographed performances and improvisations will be seen in flamenco dance.

Of course, over the years, many styles have evolved and a recent or contemporary version (nuevo flamenco) is more minimalistic in terms of costumes and props for example. Today, flamenco dance has emerged as a highly technical art form and requires years of hard practice to master, especially given the lightning-fast footwork that should be executed with absolute precision.

Flamenco dance does not always make a big demand by way of physical space — at least from what we observed. Most of the performances make do with a relatively small stage and even this space is shared with guitarists, singers and the other artistes who are awaiting their turn to perform solo.

It is widely believed that flamenco dance has a strong Indian connection. Flamenco dance is said to have origins in different and diverse countries and cultures, one of which is India and Indian folk dances.

For example, flamenco dance has many similarities with Kathak — with regard to the rhythmic cycles, sharp and quick turns, percussive footwork, and not deviating much from the vertical axis that are characteristics of this Indian classical dance form. Of course, this is not to say there are many striking differences, but the similarities have been the subject of much study. Flamenco dance has also been linked to north Indian folk dances, especially from Rajasthan and Punjab.

In the past few decades, and in more ways then ever before, Indian classical musicians and dancers have begun working with artistes from other cultures in fusion or collaborations.

And so in recent years, we have also seen Indian dancers and musicians moving towards interesting artistic exchanges with flamenco artistes. Flamenco dance has been presented in combination with Indian classical dances.

For instance, the Guggenheim Museum in New York has presented such a collaboration. The ICCR and Spanish Embassy have presented Flamenco Natyam — a confluence of Indian classical dance and music with flamenco dance and music. There have been fruitful collaborations between the Indian sitar and the flamenco guitar. Renowned Bharatanatyam and Odissi dancer Rajika Puri has earned appreciation for her efforts in this regard.

Kathak performers Pratap and Priya Pawar, as well as Kathak dancer Shovana Narayan, are among the other well-known artistes who have attempted a dialogue between Indian classical traditions and flamenco music and dance.

Sitarist Anoushka Shankar has also successfully explored how the two streams — Indian music and flamenco — can complement each other, given their similarities as well as interesting contrasts. A music project called Indialucia attempts to fuse Indian and flamenco music. Also, today, flamenco dance classes are being offered in many Indian cities.