Flamenco, the Soul of Andalusia

[Iberostar Hotels & Resorts]

The centuries-old traditional music and dance form of flamenco is deeply rooted throughout the culture of southern Spain, and still popular in both public and private celebrations. An inheritance passed down rally through the ages and only more recently via recordings and videos, today it has also become a cultural industry, an economic driver, a subject for study, and a tourist attraction. It is the present, the past, and the future, tradition and avant-garde, and one of world's richest cultural traditions.  For all these reasons UNESCO has included flamenco in the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Flamenco has gone through different stages until it reached its current recognition and fame both in Spain and abroad.  More than 20 million tourists come to Andalusia every year, for various reasons: beaches, golf, conventions, nature, sighseeing, nature, countryside, etc. Almost all of them know about flamenco.

And it's an art form which very much has its regional flavours and variations. Those in the know need only listen to la trillera to identify Jerez, Utrera, or Lebrija.  And la toná stems from the lament which was born in Triana, an ancient neighbourhood of Seville. Similarly, la soleá was born in the humble outskirts of Alcalá de Guadaira, Utrera, Cádiz.  And la seguiriya was originally a wail that arose from the throats of the great flamenco singers: el Fillo, Silverio, el Gordo, and El Nitri  Cádiz has the cantiñas; Málaga has the jaberas, jabegotes and verdiales; Córdoba the zánganos and fandangos de Lucena; Granada the zambras, roas, granaínas and medias.

Ever since one of those great artists, José Monge Cruz (aka Camarón de la Isla) recorded “La Leyenda del Tiempo" (The Legend of Time) in 1979, flamenco has taken a new turn. That production involved many new things: Kiko Veneno, Rafael and Raimundo Amador, Pepe Roca, lyrics by  Omar Khayyam, Lorca and Fernando Villalón, Tomatito, Paco de Lucía… And yet, it all sounded like flamenco.

Flamenco is like Andalusia itself: a land whose very essence is diversity, a place where multiple points of view coexist and all of whose inhabitants know how enriching this is. Viva flamenco, then, because not only does it represent a people: it also sets it apart from the rest.

“Southern Spain is seductive, and that seduction is fully experienced when you  vacation in Andalusia. IBEROSTAR Hotels & Resorts in Andalusia make their best services available to enjoy a wonderful time with your family or partner.”

from PassportToIberostar