CITYFOLK MONTHLY - February 2008

Those of us of a certain age were introduced to flamenco guitar by Ed Sullivan, just as we were introduced to the Marquis Chimps, Itzhak Perlman and the Beatles. Sullivan frequently presented the world’s best flamenco artists and ensembles on his popular Sunday-night TV variety show, and those interludes were often the most exciting segments on the show.

The flamenco performances on Sullivan’s show were tailored for a U.S. audience, all high drama and exotic flourishes: clattering castanets, stomping heels, lots of action, motion and noise, all of it performed to a wild, unbridled, highly percussive guitar accompaniment unlike anything seen or heard in any other style. That was flamenco guitar.

Flamenco guitar playing, called toque, is only one of the three main components of Spanish flamenco music. The others are baile, the dancing, and cante, the singing, which many people consider the real heart of flamenco music. Vocalists were the stars in this music until well into the 20th century, and it has been only recently that the guitar has come to the fore as an equal partner. The brilliant young Spanish guitarist Paco de Lucía (pictured here) revolutionized flamenco guitar in the 1960s (the second flamenco revolution), elevating the guitar to the position of prominence it now enjoys in the style.

Flamenco guitar is a product of Spain’s history, as complex and multi-cultural as that of any European country. Flamenco is thought, by some authorities at least, to have been brought to Spain by gypsies in the early-1400s, during the period of Arabic control of the Iberian peninsula (711-1492). These gypsies, who had already added music-making to their stock of vocational endeavors by this time, had become highly skilled mimics and cultural synthesizers in their nomadic travels eastward from their ancestral home in northern India.

What likely happened in the case of flamenco is that the gypsies took the contemporary music of Islamic Spain—which already contained bits and pieces from around the world—filtered it through their own musical consciousness, and played it back to the local people, who heard it as something new. And it was new in a sense—a new hybrid of musical ideas from India, northern Africa, the Arab world, eastern Europe and other parts of the Middle East, with a large dollop of Jewish music.

As flamenco developed over the next few centuries in Spain, it became concentrated in Andalusia, a region in the south of the country that includes such flamenco hotbeds as Seville, Jerez, Granada, Malaga, Cadiz and Cordoba. Flamenco was preserved and transmitted orally within gypsy family groups and clans, becoming increasingly formalized as it passed from generation to generation until the contours of the music were essentially fixed by the mid-1800s.

The years between about 1850 and the early 1930s are now seen as the “golden age” of flamenco. Records from the 1920s captured the end of this era, and contain some of the style’s greatest artists. The earliest flamenco guitarists to record—Miguel Borrull Sr., Luis Maravilla, Salvador Román, Niño Pérez, Antonio Moreno, Javier Molina—did so as accompanists to singers. The best known and most important of the early guitarists was Ramón Montoya (1880-1949, pictured below), who worked with vocalist Antonio Chacón for almost 15 years.

Montoya revolutionized flamenco guitar (the first revolution) with his brilliant technique, which borrowed from classical and Latin American guitar styles. Along with Sabicas (1912-1990) and Niño Ricardo (1904-1972), Montoya established solo flamenco guitar as a viable concert form, touring throughout Europe, Asia and the U.S. as a solo act. Montoya recorded extensively and was the first flamenco guitarist to perform and tour with symphony orchestras, as well as the first to play solo recitals. It is no exaggeration to say that Montoya has influenced every flamenco guitarist who followed in his tracks.

Despite Montoya’s groundbreaking successes, flamenco music was disappearing at home in Spain in the 1950s and early 1960s, swamped by the worldwide popularity of rock and roll and kept alive primarily in an ersatz form geared to the tourist trade. The music was in dire need of a new Montoya to reignite the flame, which it received in the form of Paco de Lucia, a phenomenal guitarist from Cadiz, who saved the music by broadening its appeal.

Born in 1947, Paco de Lucia is the son of a famous flamenco guitarist, Antonio Sánchez, and the brother of flamenco singer Pepe de Lucía and flamenco guitarist Ramón de Algeciras. De Lucia was a child prodigy, touring with the dance ensemble of José Greco at age 14. Three years later, he teamed up with guitarist Ricardo Modrego to record a trio of influential albums, and from 1968-1977, de Lucia worked with the popular singer Camarón de la Isla (1950-1992), recording several albums together.

In 1979, de Lucia moved flamenco into the mainstream when he formed The Guitar Trio with fellow virtuosos John McLaughlin and Larry Coryell, who was replaced after one album by Al Di Meola. The trio has recorded four albums. Paco de Lucia has also toured and recorded extensively with his sextet (which includes his brothers Pepe and Ramón) and as a solo guitarist, producing a varied discography that includes both traditional and modern styles of flamenco.

Since de Lucia’s commercial breakthrough in the 1960s, flamenco has enjoyed a surge of popularity and worldwide interest, as many of the leading players have followed the example of Montoya and de Lucia and incorporated jazz and classical guitar influences into the traditional framework. Among contemporary “New Flamenco” players worth checking out are Tomatito, Diego de Morao, Vicente Amigo, Pedro Sierra, Gerardo Nuñez, Niño Josele, Ramon Jimenez, Arturo Martinez, Chuscales and Val Ramos.

A Boston native, Juanito Pascual—who performs with his quartet on April 17 at the University of Dayton as part of Cityfolk’s “World Rhythms” series—has been hailed as the foremost flamenco guitarist in the U.S. Pascual, who began studying flamenco guitar at fifteen with masters players such as Adam del Monte, Parila de Jerez and Manolo Sanlucar, is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music. Possessing masterful technique, Pascual has been lionized by the press, praised as “a flamenco phenom…a rising star of the Spanish guitar form” (Boston Globe), “one of the bright young lights of the flamenco scene” (Boston Phoenix) and “one of the hottest flamenco guitarists to emerge in recent years” (National Public Radio). Pascual has recorded one CD, Cosas in Comun.

A bit lighter and smaller than a classical guitar, the traditional flamenco guitar is made of Spanish cypress and spruce. The most distinctive stylistic element of flamenco guitar is golpe, percussive rhythmic tapping on the top of the guitar, which is why flamenco guitars usually have a pair of pickguard-style plastic tap plates called golpeadors. The light construction of the guitar is designed to prevent sustain for a crisper attack. In the hands of a highly skilled player like Ramón Montoya, Paco de Lucia or Juanito Pascual, it’s a mighty instrument.

MATERIAL CULTURE: Brief History of Papermaking

Noone knows who first came up with the idea of paper, or how many long hours (months? years?) of trial and error it took for the idea to become a useable substance. It's generally said that paper was invented around 105 AD in China, starting a five century Chinese monopoly on paper making. The process eventually spread throughout Asia and Persia, then on to Europe via the Silk Road trade routes. The first European paper mill was established in Spain in the 12th century, and paper making on that scale had spread to all of the major cities in Western Europe by the mid 15th century.

Paper is made by beating any plant containing cellulose (cotton, hemp, wood, straw, etc.) to separate the fibers, suspending those fibers in water, lifting the fibers out on some sort of web or screen to drain the water, and then drying the sheet. The first paper is reported to have been made from from bamboo fibers and the inner bark of a mulberry tree, and drained through coarsely woven cloth. The invention of the printing press in the mid-1400s allowed the mass production of books, but paper was still made by hand, a sheet at a time.

It wasn't until the late 18th century that Nicholas Luis Robert created a machine that produced a long, seamless length of paper. The Fourdrinier brothers perfected the machine, which quickly replaced the painstaking labor of making paper by hand. Soon the mass production of paper was a thriving industry, supplying the materials for books, magazines, newspapers, money and more.

As with many traditional arts, that of making paper by hand waned, but never completely died out. Handmade paper has more personality by its very nature: each sheet's texture and coloration is unique; the base fibers can be more diverse, returning to materials like bamboo and hemp; and special materials such as thread, flowers and leaves can be incorporated. (threads shown here)

Making paper by hand can be done at home, mostly with items you're likely to have on hand. It's a great way to reuse your waste paper rather than just filling your recycling bin. I've done it myself, and greatly enjoyed the process! It would be safe (and fun) for kids to try as well. Since each sheet is unique, it's easy to play with many different textures, colors and additions. It's very forgiving; if a sheet doesn't work, you can just dunk it back in and start over.

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CULTURE BUILDS COMMUNITY: Despite Winter Weather, Cityfolk & East End Deliver a Warm and Successful Community Celebration

Several hundred people gathered on February 14, 2008 to help East End Community Services celebrate 10 years of service in the Twin Towers Community. There were slideshows and photo exhibits on community history and colorful boards up all around the building that displayed current East End programs and exciting plans for the future of the community. Neighborhood kids were in abundance serving appetizers on platters to the guests and showing off their dancing skills in the newly constructed Iddings Youth Activity Room. Cityfolk supported the event through the Culture Builds Community program by helping East End highlight and celebrate the community’s vibrant diversity.

The community room featured ethnic food and displays on local cultures and traditions. Attendees sampled Mexican chicken and rice, soul food, and an assortment of food, sweets and refreshments that migrated to Twin Towers straight out of the Appalachian Mountains. The Dayton Arab American Forum (DAAF) put together a beautiful exhibit with traditional clothing, jewelry, and other material culture from the Middle East. Thanks to local community resident Naja Azzam, the spread of delicious Middle Eastern food that was cooked right out of her home could have served an army. The community room also featured local artist, Jean Howat Berry, who guided the residents through an art-making process to create a large mask representing the rich diversity of the Twin Towers/East Dayton community.

The celebration also featured a number of traditional music and dance performances in the Iddings Youth Activities room. The stage performances began with incredible jazz music played by the Serious Young Musicians (pictured above) that was heard and enjoyed all throughout the building. Afterwards, attendees crowded into the Iddings room to watch their very own Mexican folkloric dance company, Sol Azteca, followed by another community artist, Mbaraka, who demonstrated traditional Egyptian belly dancing. Finally, the Comet Bluegrass All-Stars of Cincinnati closed the show with an hour of toe-tappin’ bluegrass that had the local kids dancing their hearts out. (pictured here)

East End staff and neighbors are still reveling in the spirit, energy and diversity of East End’s 10 year anniversary celebration. The success was a surprise since the event was rescheduled due to severe winter weather earlier in the week. According to Cheryl Brooks, East End building manager and President of the local Community Council, “We had no idea so many people would come out to celebrate in the dead of winter. It was certainly an exciting and friendly celebration that will keep our spirits warm for the rest of the season.”

Although we seem so wedded to our digital screens, keyboards, iPods, and now Amazon’s Kindle, new media has not upstaged the tactile experiences of holding a book, turning the pages of an album, or making a scrapbook. From reading board books to the baby in your lap to finishing one more chapter before turning out the light on your bedside table, sometimes paper satisfies as nothing else can.

Another nice thing about books is that they can so easily be made by people of all ages with just paper and a few other common supplies. Your students can get a head start on this summer’s Cityfolk Festival material culture exhibit, which will feature traditional artists who work in paper, by making books of their own.

Book making connects art, writing, reading and even mathematics. The National Museum of Women in the Arts features one-day projects as well as a complete, year-long curriculum in book making, Art, Books, and Creativity or ABC. The written lesson plans are available in Spanish and English, and streaming videos provide an overview of both the instruction and the students engaged in each activity. Download one page instructions for accordion, rubber band, tunnel, self-portrait, and flag books as well as instructions for pop-ups and paper folding.

Tunnel Books work like a shadow box, while a Rubber Band Book (pictured here) is the most familiar-looking production. We’ve made this book successfully in an after school program, using half of a bamboo skewer (with the sharp end clipped off in advance) for the spine of the book. The skewers are available inexpensively in most grocery stores. Students can use the book to keep a journal, write and illustrate a story, or document their lives as a homemade scrapbook. Students can learn about recycling while making their books or they can make the paper for the book from material in their gardens. Students can use the same techniques to make cards.

My son’s elementary teacher skipped the book making part by using the inexpensive blank books available from Bare Books for an illustrated writing project. Students can transform these little books into productions similar to the "altered books" which use discarded and damaged books as the starting point for book art projects. Today, young artists can even design a book on a computer and go online to a service like Lulu.com to “make” a custom printed book.

Be sure to visit the online portion of the exhibit “The Book As Art: Twenty Years of Artists' Books from the National Museum of Women in the Arts”. This handsome interactive production lets the viewer turn pages and zoom in to see the detail on several handmade and beautifully illustrated art books. There is even a free podcast about the exhibit.

As a final step, display your students’ books—ask your local library to help you share their creativity with the community.

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Dorothy Lane Market logo Did you know that you can contribute to Cityfolk just by shopping for groceries and floral arrangements? You can if you shop at Dorothy Lane Market! Just take a moment to sign up for their Good Neighbor program and name Cityfolk as the non-profit organization you'd like to benefit. The Market keeps track of your purchases, and once you've spent $250, 1% of your purchases will be rebated to Cityfolk (with a maximum total donation of $75,000 to all charitable organizations). So go ahead, buy that killer brownie!

PROFILE BEHIND THE SCENES: Cityfolk Board Member Marjorie McLellan

Marjorie McLellan is an Associate Professor of history at Wright State University. She served as Director of Public History at Wright State University from 2000-2007. Margie is the author of Six Generations Here: A Farm Family Remembers (1997) and Hunting for Everyday History: a Field Guide for Teachers (2003). She has also published articles and edited publications on oral history, history education, and digital history, and writes the Tellhistory blog.

Margie has taught courses in American studies, folklife, material culture, public history, oral history, women’s history, the history of the family, local history, and popular culture. Her current research examines family and memory through multi-generational oral history interviews. She works with history programs in the schools and volunteers with Jump Start an after school program in Middletown's Freedom Court public housing development.

Margie joined the Cityfolk Board of Trustees in 2006. She chairs the Education Committee, often contributes to this Enewsletter, and tirelessly shares her wealth of knowledge with us for projects such as the Material Culture Program and Passport Stations at the Cityfolk Festival, and the Culture Builds Community project.

Professor McLellan is married to Gary Greenberg (pictured above in Guanajuato Mexico); they have two adult children.

RECORDINGS I'M LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW: We have a fairly communal iPod at home. I’ve been listening to the soundtrack from the film "Once" and to Jane Bunnett and Spirits of Havana because they gave such a great concert at Antioch College on Friday night; Gary has been playing jazz by Bill Frissell, Paul Motian, and Joe Lovano; and Cara has got me listening to Cat Power.

LAST FOUR BOOKS I'VE READ: I’ve just started reading Laurel Thatcher Ulrich’s Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History. Kim Lacy Rogers’ Life and Death in the Delta: African American Narratives of Violence, Resilience, and Social Change is a moving book based on oral history interviews. Lee Smith wrote a great novel about country music, Devil's Dream; I just finished listening to her new book On Agate Hill. The novel that was inspired by ballads and the recording includes traditional style mountain tunes. Its also a funny, sometimes wrenching novel about family history and historical research. I belong to a book club with Dayton teachers who meet once a month to talk about history books and movies. We recently read French historian Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie’s Montaillou, a portrait of life in a medieval village based on the Inquisitions records of the heretical Cathars.

FAVORITE LIVE MUSIC EXPERIENCE: There’s something about live music that envelops you in away that recordings don’t. I love Cityfolk’s jazz, American roots, and world music concerts but my favorite live performances have to be when my husband Gary plays piano just for me.

FAVORITE CITYFOLK EXPERIENCE: That’s a tough question. The Culture Builds Community events in collaboration with the East End Community Services Center bring together so many families, young adults, older folks – all relaxing, eating, dancing, and enjoying lively performances. I like being involved with others in the events—serving food, making paper flowers with the kids, talking. Did I say the food is great, too?

WHAT I LIKE BEST ABOUT MAKING MY LIVING AS A FOLKLORIST: I came to history through folklore. I worked at Old World Wisconsin, an outdoor, ethnic museum where I researched the history of everyday life by interviewing people, documenting landscapes, studying artifacts, and looking at old family photographs. While I enjoy digging into archives and making discoveries about local history, being a folklorist and oral historian means that I get to learn from living people.

FAVORITE COMFORT FOOD: Pad Thai

FAVORITE PASSTIMES: Well, I love to weave but haven’t had much time for it despite the beautiful eight harness, hand-built loom at my house. I enjoy working outside at my family’s cabin, gardening with my sister, listening to my dad’s stories, and cooking for family and friends.

DREAM VACATION: My sister lives half of the year in a Cambodian village along the Mekong River. When they built her house, the Buddhist monks blessed the site and the village came out to celebrate. The pace of life is slower, the diet is far healthier and Michele has a wide deck perched out over the river as well as a new thatched-roof guesthouse in her garden.

Tenor saxophonist Houston Person, who has been polishing his sound to a fine burnish for fifty years, has been a whirlwind in the jazz business. Partially a byproduct of his role as one of jazz music's busiest producers, his own discography is virtually bottomless. His new record for High Note is as good a place as any to start. Thinking of You includes the tenor gently stomping the blues on Peggy Lee's 50s noir hit "Black Coffee", unravelling his elegant sound (captured magnificently by engineer Rudy Van Gelder) on the Rodgers and Hart diamond "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" and weaving a starkly beautiful medley with guitarist James Chirillo on two tunes associated with Nat Cole, "That Sunday, That Summer" and "Funny."

Born into a musical family that included his father, the songwriter Moose Charlap, and his mother, the fine singer Sandy Stewart, Bill Charlap is a pianist with as wide a repertoire as any musician in jazz. A series of CDs for Blue Note have included tributes to George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein, usually with his working trio that includes bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington, and generously graced with guest soloists. But to hear him paired off in a duo setting where he has teamed on record with, among others, his mother (Love Is Here To Stay), bassist Michael Moore (Live at Maybeck), trumpeter and flugelhornist Warren Vache (2gether) and Person (You Taught My Heart to Sing), is a pure joy.

The latter record includes the two masters carefully carving out Moose Charlap's lovely "I Was Telling Her About You" and a tune Person's late partner, singer Etta Jones, memorably rendered, "I Wonder Where Our Love Has Gone." A graceful touch and unerring taste have been hallmarks of Charlap's sound. Cityfolk's March 22nd concert featuring Bill Charlap and Houston Person at the Dayton Art Institute offers a chance to hear two master craftsmen doing what they do as well as anyone--taking great songs and stitching them into a seamless tapestry of beauty and stately, thoughtful improvisation. (photo of Houston Person by Don Berryman)

From time to time, stories on NPR, in the New York Times and in other places catch the eye (or ear) of the Cityfolk staff. These are stories about traditional music, handicrafts, ways of life...stories that deepen our understanding and appreciation for the folkways of the world. We will keep bringing as much of this to Dayton as we can; in the meantime, take a listen to this:

If you find a story that you'd like to share with other Cityfolk ENews readers, please send us the link and we'll put it the hopper for possible inclusion.

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