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Fandango is a lively couples dance, usually in triple metre, traditionally accompanied by guitars and castanets or hand-clapping ("palmas" in Spanish and Portuguese). Fandango can both be sung and danced. Sung fandango is usually bipartite: it has an instrumental introduction followed by "variaciones". Sung fandango usually follows the structure of "cante" that consist of four or five octosyllabic verses (coplas) or musical phrases (tercios). Occasionally, the first copla is repeated.

Eighteenth century Castillian fandango dancers (by Pierre Chasselat (1753-1814)

The meter of fandango is similar to that of the bolero and seguidilla. It was originally notated in 6/8 time, but later in 3/8 or 3/4.

Origins[link]

The earliest fandango melody is found in the anonymous "Libro de diferentes cifras de guitarra" from 1705, and the earliest description of the dance itself is found in a 1712 letter by Martín Martí, a Spanish priest. Fandango's first sighting in a theatrical work was in Francisco de Leefadeal's "Entremés El novio de la aldeana" staged in Seville, ca. 1720. By the late 18th century it had become fashionable among the aristocracy and was often included in tonadillas, zarzuelas, ballets and operas, not only in Spain, but also elsewhere in Europe.

Widely varying claims have been made about the origin of fandango: its relation to the soleá, jabera and petenera; to the Andalusian malagueña, granadina, murciana and rondeña; to the canario and gitano; to the jota aragonesa.^[2] There have been suggestions of a Moorish origin. Currently the prevailing theories point to either a West Indian or Latin American origin.

Fandango in classical music[link]

The form of Fandango have been used by many European composers, and often included in stage and instrumental works. Notable examples include J.P.Rameau's "Les trois mains" ( in "Nouvelles suites de pièces de clavecin", ca.1729–30); Domenico Scarlatti's "Fandango portugués" (k492, 1756) and "Fandango del SigR Escarlate". Fandango forms #19 in the part 2 of Gluck's ballet Don Juan (1761); it appears also in the third-act finale of Mozart's opera Le nozze di Figaro (1786); in the finale of Luigi Boccherini's String Quartet op.40 no.2 (1798); Antonio Soler's Fandango for harpsichord.

Spanish dance[link]

The current 3/4 pattern of the fandango, its distinctive descending chord progression (A minor/G major/F major/E major), lyrics with octosyllabic verses and the use of castanets are well-documented from the 18th century.

The fandangos grandes (big fandangos) are normally danced by couples, which start out slowly with gradually increasing tempo. Many varieties are derived from this one.

The fandanguillos (little fandangos) are livelier, more festive derivations of fandangos. Some regions of Spain have developed their own style of fandangos, such as Huelva (fandangos de Huelva) and Málaga (fandangos de Málaga, or Verdiales). Northern areas such as the Principality of Asturias, the Basque Country and Castile have preserved a more relaxed performance.

Philippines[link]

In the Philippines, which was a Spanish colony for 333 years, the fandango lives on in the folk dance called Pandanggo sa Ilaw (Fandango of Lights).

This adaptation from Lubang, Mindoro, has the dancers carry lights called tinggoy, which are oil lamps or glasses with lit candles, in each hand instead of castanets. Female dancers balance a third tinggoy on their head, and all the dancers swirl the lights over their heads and under their arms, or sometimes swing them around inside handkerchiefs.^[3]

Portuguese dance[link]

Fandango is one of the main folk dances in Portugal. The choreography is quite simple: on its more frequent setting two male dancers face each other, dancing and tap-dancing one at each time, showing which one has the most lightness and repertoire of feet changes in the tap-dancing. The dancers can be boy and girl, boy and boy (most frequent) or rarely two girls. While one of the dancers dances, the other just "goes along". Afterwards, they "both drag their feet for a while"^{[cite this quote]} until the other one takes his turn. They stay there, disputing, seeing which one of them makes the feet transitions more eye-catching.

The "fandango do Ribatejo" refers specifically the form of fandango practiced in Ribatejo, Portugal. The dance is usually performed by two Campinos.

Figurative meaning[link]

As a result of the extravagant features of the dance, the word fandango is used as a synonym for "a quarrel," "a big fuss," or "a brilliant exploit."

See also[link]

• Sevillanas
• Bolero
• Chamarrita
• Waltz
• Mazurka
• Polska (dance)
• Landler
• Polonaise
• Bourrée

References[link]

1. ^ Blatter, Alfred (2007). Revisiting music theory: a guide to the practice, p.28. ISBN 0-415-97440-2.
2. ^ ‘La jota y el fandango’, La correspondencia musical, iv/198 (1884), 2–3
3. ^ http://www.camperspoint.com/spip.php?article229

Bibliography[link]

• Diccionario de la lengva castellana (Madrid, 1726–37/R1963 as Diccionario de autoridades) [pubn of the Real Academia Español]
• P. Minguet e Irol: Breve tratado de los pasos de danzar a la española que hoy se estilan en seguidillas, fandangos y otros tañidos (Madrid, 1760, 2/1764)
• F.M. López: : Variaciones al Minuet afandangado (late 18th century) E-Mn M.1742), ff.1–6
• M.L.E. Moreau de Saint-Méry: Danse (Paris, 1798)
• B. Foz: Vida de Pedro Saputo (Zaragoza, 1844/R)
• E. Calderón: Escenas andaluzas (Madrid, 1847)
• E. Ocón y Rivas: Cantos españoles (Málaga, 1874, 2/1906)
• M. de Larramendi: Corografía o descripción general de la muy noble y muy real Provincia de Guipúzcoa (Barcelona, 1882)
• ‘La jota y el fandango’, La correspondencia musical, iv/198 (1884), 2–3
• J. Ribera y Tarragó: La música de la jota aragonesa: ensayo histórico (Madrid, 1928)
• M.N. Hamilton: Music in Eighteenth-Century Spain (Urbana, IL, 1937)
• P. Nettl: The Story of Dance Music (New York, 1947)
• B. Pottier: ‘A propos de fandango’, Les langues néo-latines, xlii (1947), 22–5
• A. Gobin: Le flamenco (Paris, 1975)
• J. Crivillé i Bargalló: El folklore musical (Madrid, 1983)
• M.R. Alvarez Martínez: ‘Dos obras inéditas de Domenico Scarlatti’, RdMc, viii (1985), 51–6
• E. Osorio Bolio de Saldívar: ‘El códice Saldívar: una nueva fuente de música para guitarra’, España en la música de occidente: Salamanca 1985, 87–91
• R. Puyana: ‘Influencias ibéricas y aspectos por investigar en la obra para clave de Domenico Scarlatti’, ibid., 39–49
• J. Blas Vega: ‘Fandango’, Diccionario enciclopédico ilustrado del flamenco (Madrid, 1988), 284–5
• J. Etzion: ‘The Spanish Fandango from Eighteenth-Century “Lasciviousness” to Nineteenth-Century Exoticism’, AnM, xlviii (1993), 229–50
• J.-M. Sellen: ‘Langage du fandango: de la poétique musicale au sens poétique du cante jondo’, AnM, 1 (1995), 245–70

External links[link]

• Flamenco Institute Flora Albaicín. Flamenco dance company and academy (the oldest and biggest of its kind in the world).
• Flamenco Forms

Monument to Paco Toronjo at Huelva.

Francisco Antonio Toronjo Arreciado (Alosno, June 13, 1928 – Huelva, 1998), known as Paco Toronjo, was a Spanish flamenco singer.^[1]

He learned to sing local traditional folk at his home town Alosno. He stayed at his province until he was 20 years old when he became a professional musician^[2]. At the beginning of his musical career he sang with his brother Pepe Torojo as a duet. They were known as "Hermanos Toronjo"(Toronjo Brothers), being the ones that did the first audio recording of "Sevillanas"^[3].

After his brother's death, he started to develop and record his own style of "fandango", which were very dramatic and based on his own life as the source for lyrics, claiming he sang about the sorrows he lived, he also started them with "Siguiriyas"^[4] as a way to increasing the sadness.

This style along with his raspy singing voice carried him to be considered by many a part of the top of fandango singers^[5], even he had a local bohemian life at the city of Huelva in the latest years of his life.

He appeared in two movies by the Spanish film director Carlos Saura:"Sevillanas"^[6] and "Flamenco"^[7].

He died in 1998, since then several monuments had been built in his province ^[8][9] and a complete biography had been released.^[10]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Video of Carlos Saura's film Flamenco
• Video of Carlos Saura's film Sevillanas
• Paco Toronjo at esflamenco.com
• Pajo toronjo at flamencosound
• Article on 20minutos Spanish Newspaper (Spanish)

Antonio Cruz García, known as Antonio Mairena (Mairena del Alcor, Seville Province, Spain, 1909 – Seville, 1983) was a famous flamenco singer. He led the movement towards the revival of traditional flamenco in the fifties and subsequent decades.

Biography[link]

García was born in a Gypsy family of smiths and learned to sing in the family environment. An important personality of flamenco, he was the main leader of a movement of flamenco artists and intellectuals who tried to rescue a type of flamenco, which they considered to be pure or authentic. He rescued or recreated a high number of songs that had been almost lost, and also published several books and articles to divulge his views on flamenco and flamenco history. He considered himself as heir to the art of Manuel Torre, the most classic flamenco singer from Jerez, and also acknowledged the influence of other masters like Tomás Pavón or Joaquín el de la Paula.

He won several awards, the most important of which was the Llave de Oro del Cante (Gold Key of Flamenco Singing), which he obtained in the third Concurso de Córdoba (Contest of Córdoba). It is common belief that the contest was organized especially to grant him the award, and that the appearance of a contest was contrived to have a good excuse to grant him this honour, although some flamenco historians justify this on the grounds that he deserved the award for the service he had rendered to the art of flamenco (Álvarez Caballero 1995).

His work[link]

He excelled in the most serious, solemn palos of Gypsy origin (often known as Cante Jondo), like Tonás, Martinetes, Soleá, and Seguidillas, of which he recorded all or most of the traditional songs and variations. The value of his artistic legacy is controversial. On the one hand, some flamenco fans and critics consider him to be a model to imitate, an impersonation of the most authentic flamenco, and a restorer of traditional forms. On the other hand, others disregard him as excessively orthodox, academic, and cold, and regard his views on flamenco as paralysing and a threat to the future evolution of the flamenco art. They also often accused of ethnical bias, as he tended to overemphasize the quality of flamenco styles which were of Gypsy origin, while looking down to anything non-Gypsy.

It is frequently stated that some of the songs he rescued from oblivion had in fact been created by him, although he always denied it, as he believed that in flamenco there was no scope for new creations, and modern singers had to limit their work to the traditional songs inherited from the tradition. However, many of the songs he rescued are now part of the usual repertoire of flamenco artists.

Discography[link]

^[1]

• Fiesta por bulerías y fandangos (1941)
• Bulerías y fandangos (1941)
• Disco de Tánger (1944)
• Bulerías y soleares (1950)
• Bulerías jerezanas y fandangos (1950)
• Alegrías y seguidillas (1950)
• Bulerías y soleares (1950)
• Con Antonio y Carmen Rojas al baile (1952)
• Disco de Londres (1954)
• Cantes de Antonio Mairena (1958)
• Sevilla cuna del cante flamenco (1959)
• Cinco grabaciones en disco de amianto para uso personal de Antonio Mairena (1960)
• Antología del cante flamenco y cante gitano dirigida por Antonio Mairena (1960)
• Duendes del cante de Triana (1963)
• Noches de la Alameda (1963)
• Tangos de Andalucía (1963)
• La llave de oro del cante flamenco (1964)
• Cien años de cante gitano (1965)
• La gran historia del cante gitano-andaluz (3LP) (1966)
• Sevilla por bulerías (1967)
• Festival de Cante Jondo Antonio Mairena (1967)
• Misa flamenca en Sevilla (1968)
• Mi cante por Saetas (1969)
• Honores a la Niña de los Peines (1969)
• Mis recuerdos de Manuel Torre (1970)
• La fragua de los Mairenas (1970)
• Cantes festeros de Antonio Mairena (1972)
• Grandes estilos flamencos (1972)
• Antonio Mairena y el cante de Jerez (1972)
• Cantes de Cádiz y los Puertos (1973)
• Triana, raíz del Cante (1973)
• Grabación de su participación en el Festival de la Unión (1974)
• Esquema histórico del cante por siguiriyas y soleares (1976)
• El calor de mis recuerdos (1983)

Sources[link]

ÁLVAREZ CABALLERO, Ángel: La discoteca ideal del flamenco, Editorial Planeta, Barcelona, 1995 ISBN 84-08-01602-4

References[link]

1. ^ Centro Informático Científico de Andalucía - Discografía de Antonio Mairena.