When Fidel The goal was to reach ten million tons of sugarcane in the 1970 harvest, and a group emerged with a song whose montuno went "they're going, they're going, I know they're going, they're going." And that's how the career of one of Cuba's most influential charangas (with trombones) began, of course. The Van VanAmong the many issues I like from John Formell, bassist, author and director, is the chorus that says: «I'm normal, natural. (but a little faster)." And I am inspired by this song for this article, to address a topic that I believe is interesting: Naturalness as one of the qualities that every self-respecting artist should have.
He was my friend Ramon Soler When I asked him what the purity so often mentioned in relation to flamenco music was, he told me, succinctly and directly: to be natural, pure, is what comes from the heart. There I perfectly understood the meaning of the expression. Far from signifying matters of race and blood, lineage and ancestry,Pure is spontaneous, direct, true, the complete opposite of flatteringa defect that, incidentally, is so prevalent in our flamenco.
Naturalness is the essence of art. On that we agree. However, etymologically, an artist is someone who has the skill, technique, or artistry to perform a task. And in this sense, I must mention another idea that, although it seems to contradict what Ramón expressed regarding naturalness, I believe complements what my other friend, now deceased, told me many years ago. Gonzalo Torrente Malvido, son of the great Torrent BallesterI had a close relationship with this character in the scene flamencoA fellow countryman and a drinker, in the long conversations we had at my house in Lavapiés on the many nights he stayed over after ringing the doorbell, almost always in the early hours of the morning, and asking if he could let me in, drunk as he was. On one occasion he told me: "The best artist is the one who knows how to deceive best. The one who knows how to make others believe that what he is conveying is true even if it is the product of artistic, artificial, artisanal work."
And I think it's true, a good artist is anyone who conveys their feelings in such a way that, in the particular case of music and dance, the listener can perceive those feelings as if the artist themselves were experiencing them; hence the saying that the flamenco You have to feel it. When I hear that statement, I always wonder: And what artistic expression shouldn't be felt? All music should be felt. Or do you mean that to play Beethoven you don't have to feel his music? Of course the flamenco You have to feel it, but in addition to feeling it, you have to have the ability to transmit, to share those experiences. I remember how it bothered my teacher. Antonio gades that they called him an artist. "I am a worker of culture," he always said. And he would finish the little phrase with, "Between what I do dancing and what the public perceives, that can be art."
"Singing seguiriyas, singing soleá, singing alegrías, is not just about feeling the intensity of the lyrics, which is essential. You also have to have the ability to transmit that truth, the cante True. If purity is being natural, doing things from the heart, without artifice, then purity also means making the listener believe that what you're singing is truly felt. Like the bullfighter with the bull, deceiving him.
If someone has had intense experiences, it's said they have a greater artistic ability to convey them, since they've lived them, not just been told about them. But, in any case, a good artist, ultimately, is one who can make the person to whom they are transmitting their art believe that they are living it and that this is truly what they want to represent. It's no coincidence that when we go to see, for example, Othello, the one who plays the role of Moor of Venice He's probably neither Moorish nor Venetian, but he's playing a role, and the best actor is the one who knows how to convey the truth he imprinted. Shakespeare to that character.
And the same is true of music. Singing seguiriyas, singing soleá, singing alegrías, is not just about feeling the intensity of the lyrics, which is essential. The music, the gestures, the delivery must be in harmony with the content of the sung text. Furthermore, one must have the ability to convey that truth, the cante True. If purity is being natural, doing things from the heart, without artifice, Being natural is one thing, and in Torrente's sense, it's also about making the listener believe that you're truly feeling what you're singing. Like the bullfighter with the bull, deceiving him.
It is true that the flamenco It's a form of expression that externalizes feelings a lot; the singers grab their shirts, twist their hands, clench their fists, the veins in their necks bulge, the very cante It is a cry for help. Not surprisingly, the wail, the lament, is the essence of depth. Every form of song flamenco That theatricality is involved, but there's a big difference between that and the performer actually having experienced the feelings they want to convey. What the performer must have is the ability to transmit those passions, those imagined experiences, as the master titled it. Vicente Friend their second album from 1995.
The ideal of an artist flamenco So it's about being normal, natural. I've always valued naturalness a lot. In dance, for example, I don't miss a trick. It's incredibly noticeable when someone isn't natural, in their gestures, in their movements. It's very difficult to convey naturalness in dance within the artifice that dancing entails. flamencoLuckily, alongside Gades I was able to learn to decipher the secrets of an efficient transmission of the art of dance, and I believe I am able to discern who truly transmits it and who is just flattering me.
The line separating these two worlds, naturalness and artifice, is so thin that they end up being, as I say, complementary. Let's see if I can sum it up in a few words: "having the knack to be natural." There you go!
A very insightful article, Faustino. We must remember that words like "art," "craft," and "artifice" share the same root, which etymologically means "the result of making art." In other words, art is an artifice that strives to be natural. Therein lies, as you rightly point out, the crux of the matter. When a guitarist plays a very difficult scale that has taken many hours of practice, when they perform it for an audience it must sound "natural," that is, spontaneous, as if it came effortlessly. And the same principle can be applied to... cante and to dance – or any other artistic discipline, of course.
In my opinion, the idea of purity in art has a lot to do with this. And I would add—though with some nuances—that it also has to do with simplicity of form, with austerity, that is, with evoking maximum emotion using minimal elements. This is true of poetry, architecture, painting, and bullfighting. And the same is true of... canteAnd there's no need to tear our clothes when talking about "cante pure”, which has nothing to do with “cante "Faithful to a master." This is what many have wanted to see, that purity = imitation, when it is quite the opposite.
In short, it's a fascinating topic you've touched upon. Congratulations.
What an interesting topic, Faustino! How do you define naturalness? Nobody is born knowing how to play the guitar, tap dance, or sing melismas. All art is learned, and to reach a professional level, you need hours and hours of practice. Art is the core word of the adverb "artificial," which is the antithesis of "natural."
Why do we posit that the artist must be natural? In my humble opinion, because without essence that comes from the soul, without profound truth, we never achieve art that transmits emotion; instead, we remain stuck with a trick, something that inspires admiration but fails to move the audience. This happens; sometimes I see a flamenco dancer with tremendous footwork and think, "How many words does he need to say nothing?" While another, with just a few movements, tells me a whole story. What is this artistic naturalness? Perhaps it was said best, with total simplicity, Camarón: "He flamenco It has only one school of thought: to transmit or not to transmit.