On January 16 2009, Sólo Flamenco travelled to London to take part in the Peña Flamenca de Londres, a flamenco espectacular organised by and featuring Felipe de Algeciras. The concert took place in the Jackson’s Lane Theatre, which also houses the studio where Felipe spent the last 16 years teaching.
The concert was to be Felipe’s last show with his students before returning to his home in Algeciras. He organised the event to provide an opportunity for his students to showcase some of the pieces they learned from him over the years, and so we were particularly pleased when he also invited us to come and perform.
We were accompanied on the trip by guitarist Lucas González, who was an invaluable help to us in preparing for the show. During the performance, Lucas joined with the other musicians - Tito, Jasmine and Alex - to accompany not only Sólo Flamenco, but all of the dancers who performed on the night.
We arrived at the theatre mid-afternoon and ran through the choreographies a few times while waiting for Felipe to arrive. Eventually he came and immediately set about preparations for the show. One by one the other students began arriving, until eventually the stage was filled with dancers rehearsing their pieces and a cacophony of the competing rhythms of the different palos filled the auditorium. Things were really warming up now.
Finally, at 8pm the show began. Felipe and the musicians took to the stage and after a short introduction the first group of students opened the show with a Tanguillo. They were followed by Nathalie and Carina from Sólo Flamenco, performing a Soleá por Bulería. There were two more performances from the London students, and then Nathalie, Carina and Damian closed the first half of the show with an Alegría.
Throughout all of the performances, Felipe stayed on stage to provide palmas and jaleos. Those of you who have been fortunate enough to attend a workshop with Felipe will know the energy he carries and imparts to every member of the class. Being on stage with him is no different. Somehow he reached deep inside us, drawing out an energy that - after the early start on Friday morning and the many hours of travelling - none of us even suspected we had. The experience was further enriched by Jasmine’s singing, and the wonderful guitar of Tito Heredia, Alex and Lucas.
With our own performances behind us we were able to sit back and relax and enjoy the second part of the show. It was amazing and inspiring to see pieces that we are only now beginning to learn being performed in such an accomplished manner by some of Felipe’s more advanced students.
Towards the end of the show, Felipe led his students in the performance of two pieces. The first was a Martinete, an old palo originating amongst miners who would keep the rhythm by beating an anvil. In Felipe’s interpretation, the anvil was replaced by a bastón. The piece started simply enough with the accents of the palo marked by the tapping of the bastón on the stage and slowly developed in complexity as Felipe and his students added layer after layer of varying contratiempo patterns, until finally it reached a mesmerising crescendo of rhythms and counter rhythms. This was of particular interest to us as it is a piece we have just started studying with Felipe.
The second piece was a beautiful Alegría, featuring a wonderfully energetic solo by Felipe himself. The evening closed with an impromptu set of Sevillanas, for which Felipe invited both the dancers and members of the audience up on stage.
All in all it was a wonderful evening, and a truly inspiring and memorable experience that will stay with us for a long time.
For pictures from the evening, check out our galleries page.
¿Y qué más? Pues que te queremos Felipe y que no te vamos a echar de menos porque vas a volver a Dublín cada mes. Sacas lo mejor de nosotros con tu energía, tu afán de enseñar y tu arte. Sin ti no habría flamenco en Dublín y te lo agradecemos de todo corazón. ¡Gracias maestro!
