You said,
"Does Flamenco have a Arab/Northern African influence? The music tonight was amazing but some vocals sounded of Arab influence. Very beautiful music. Definitely the highlight of my trip thus far."
Beginning of rant alert:
Flamenco music shares a varied cultural heritage including Shephardic Jewish, Romany or Gypsy, Arabic, African, Persian, and Indian. As the cultures that brought the languages that would become the Romance Languages to Europe from India, the Gypsies and the Shepardic Jews were usually the only people in the Arabic world that were allowed to be storytellers and musicians. As the Moors swept across North Africa into Spain, they brought Indian, Persian, and African influences with them into Spain. Think about the horse rhythms that are so evident in Flamenco music.
These varied influences swept into the new world with the Portuguese and Spanish and became what we know as the varied versions of Afro-Hispanic-Cuban-Carribbean music today. If you had been able to stay around in London for a while. You might have been lucky enough to stumble upon some Indian community celebrations featuring marching bands playing music that sounded amazingly like some of the music played by high school bands in America at the half time of football games. Music written by such people as Bennie Goodman, Sergio Mendez, Ya Lo Tengo, and the Gypsy Kings. All of these guys were either all Jewish or Gypsy and in the case of Ya Lo Tengo, mostly Jewish. In fact, while the Gypsy Kings are mainly Gypsy, they are in fact French! I am not saying that all musicians were of these peoples, I am trying to point out their heritage.
My point is, that our musical heritage is very much inter-related. Flamenco, the Gypsy Kings, Music from the Middle East, Bollywood, the Blues, Klezmer, and Rock and Roll – they are all contemporary cousins. Enjoy your trip and listen to the sounds - don't forget the Greeks and the Turks!
Since I pay to be here, i guess, I get to periodically rant a little bit.
End of rant Alert!
