"Soleares", or "soleá" is one of the most basic forms or "palos" of Flamenco music, probably originated around Cádiz or Seville in Andalusia, the most southern region of Spain. It is normally accompanied by one guitar only, in the key of E phrygian, although relatively often it is also heard in A phrygian. Bailaora(dancer) of Flamenco Belén Maya, photograph taken by Gilles Larrain at his studio, 2001 Flamenco is one of the great European nonacademic musical forms. ... Nickname: Tacita de plata (little silver cup) Location within Spain Province Cádiz Mayor Teófila Martínez (PP) Area    - City 12. ... NO8DO (I was not abandoned) Location Coordinates : ( ) Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Sevilla (Spanish) Spanish name Sevilla Founded 8th-9th century BC Postal code 41001-41080 Website http://www. ... Motto: Andalucía por sí, para España y la humanidad (Andalusia by herself, for Spain, and for humankind) Capital Seville Official language(s) Spanish Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 2nd  87,268 km²  17. ... Due to historical confusion, Phrygian mode can refer to two very different musical modes or diatonic scales. ...

Lyrics

When singers sing soleá, as with most palos, they normally choose different stanzas, with different melody, and combine them according to the inspiration of the moment or to a previous plan. Even if the singer has a previous plan, he often alters it on the spur of the moment. These stanzas are independent in subject matter from one another. Palos de la Frontera is a town located in the Spanish province of Huelva, 13 km away from the province capital. ... There are several meanings of the word inspiration: The stimulating influence upon the intellect or emotions leading to creativity. ...

The content of the lyrics is generally serious in nature, as appropriate to the solemn air of the music. They often have a sententious tone and convey a feeling of intimate pain. Sometimes dispair, more typical of seguiriya, can also appear. However, it is difficult to generalize: sometimes a less serious stanza can turn up in the middle of other serious ones, and irony is frequent. Siguiriyas (also seguiriyas, seguidilla gitana) is a form of flamenco music belonging to the cante jondo category. ... Irony is a literary or rhetorical device in which there is a gap or incongruity between what a speaker or a writer says, and what is generally understood (either at the time, or in the later context of history). ...

The stanza of the soleá has three or four lines. In four-line stanzas, the second and fourth line are in assonant rhyme, while the first and second are free. In three-line stanzas, the assonance is between the first and the third. Some examples: In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. ... link titleAssonance is the repetition of vowel sounds within a short passage of verse or prose. ... A rhyme is a repetition of identical or similar sounds in two or more different words and is most often used in poetry. ...

• With three verses:

No se me daba cuidao
me hago cargo que ha sío un ensueño
y a lo pasaíto pasao.

Translation:
I didn't mind
I know it was just a dream
and past things are past.

• With four verses:

Fui piedra y perdí mi centro
y me arrojaron al mar
y a fuerza de mucho tiempo
mi centro vine a encontrar

Translation:
I was a stone and lost my centre
and was thrown into the sea
and after a very long time
I came to find my centre again.

This type of stanza is the cuarteta romanceada, one of the oldest and most frequent in Spanish poetry, and is derived from the medieval "Romance" poetic form, a type of traditional epic poetry that has survived in both learned and popular literature to our days. Spanish literature may refer to: literature composed in the Spanish language literature of Spain in any of the languages of Spain It may include Spanish poetry, prose and novels. ...

The melody of a soleá can demand repeating some lines, altering their logical order, or cutting the lines, sometimes even in the middle of words. For example, as stanza like:

En mis cortas oraciones
le pido a dios llorando
que me quite la salud
y a ti te la vaya dando

Translation:
In my short prayers
crying, I ask God
to deprive me of my health
and to give it back to you

Can be rendered in song like:

A Dios llorando yo le pido
le pido a Dios llorando
yo le pido a Dios llorando
que me quite la salud
y a ti te la vaya dando
en mis cortas oraciones
que yo le pido a Dios llorando

Musical analysis

Soleá is one of the flamenco palos with the highest number of traditional songs, and it is particularly appreciated by knowledgeable artists and audiences. It is very demanding for singers, as they have to strive to be creative and, at the same time, respectful of the tradition, and they have to succeed in finding a good balance between melodic and rhythmic sides, both extremely difficult. It demands great vocal faculties, and the singer should achieve a balance between passion and restraint.

The melody of a soleá stanza usually stays within a limited range (usually not more than a 5th). Its difficulty lies in the use of melisma and microtones, which demand great agility in the voice. It is usual to start a series of soleares with a more restrained stanza in the low register, while continuing to more and more demanding styles. The series is quite often finished with a stanza in a much more vivid tempo in Major mode. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Microtonal music is music using microtones -- intervals of less than a semitone, or as Charles Ives put it, the notes between the cracks of the piano. ... In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for time) is the speed or pace of a given piece. ... In music theory, the major scale (or major mode) is one of the diatonic scales. ...

Metre (compás)

The metre or "compás" of the soleá of the is one of the most widely used in Flamenco. Other palos have derived their compás from the soleá, including Bulerías por soleá, the palos in the Cantiñas group, like Alegrías, Romeras, [Mirabrás]], Caracoles or, to a certain extent, Bulerías. It consists of 12 beats. However, the distribution of strong and weak beats totally differs from the 12 beat metres used in classical music. Instead, it could be described as a combination of triple and duple beat bars, so it's a polymetre form. However, strong beats are at the end of each bar, instead of at the beginning (as it would be normal in Western music). The basic "skeleton" of the soleá rythm, thus, follows this pattern: The metre, or meter (US), is a measure of length. ... The Cantiñas is a group of flamenco palos (musical forms, originated in the area of Cádiz in Andalusia (although some styles of cantiña have developed in the province of Seville). ... Alegrías is a flamenco style, which has a rhythm consisting of 12 beats. ... A bulerias is a fast flamenco rhythm in 12 beats with emphasis in two general forms as follows: 1 2 [3] 4 5 [6] 7 [8] 9 [10] 11 [12] or 1 2 [3] 4 5 6 [7] [8] 9 [10] 11 [12] When performed, the buleria usually starts on... See also the beat disambiguation page. ... The metre, or meter (US), is a measure of length. ...

Image File history File links Soleacompasbeat0basic. ...

(Each number represents a beat. Blue squares mean weak beats, while big brown dots are strong beats.)

Nevertheless, this is just an underlying structure, like a foundation, which is in fact not really heard in the "palmas" (clapping hands), in the guitar, or in a dancer's feet. It is like a kind of grid where flamenco artists creatively draw the rhythm, which can have infinite variations. In real life we could hear lots of patterns, from very simple to really intricate, depending on the mood the artist wants to convey, or the purpose of the song (to be sung on its own or to support a dancer). In a real performance or recording, we could here palmas playing like in the examples below. The first is a very common, simple pattern:

Image File history File links Soleacompasbeat1. ...

Notice that palmas are often (though by no means always) silent during beats 4 to 6, even if beat number 6 is a "strong one". This is specially true when no dancing takes place: the main interest there is the singing (or playing) and too much percussion can take attention away from the music. Those beats though are often marked when there is dance, or when performing other palos in the same metre like Alegrías or Bulería por soleá. However, these are not to be taken as hard-and-fast rules, but just as general guidelines. Alegrías is a flamenco style, which has a rhythm consisting of 12 beats. ...

A more complex example.

Image File history File links Soleacompasbeat3. ...

The small orange squares should be played extremely softly. Notice the wide use of syncopation. In music, syncopation is the stressing of a normally unstressed beat in a bar or the failure to sound a tone on an accented beat. ...

The above are just two examples among the infinite variety of variations The patterns can be alternated and combined in multiple ways. When there are two or more people playing palmas, one of them usually plays a base pattern, emphasizing the regular beats, while another plays more fancy patterns, more syncopated.

Unlike Bulerías por soleá or Cantiñas, which are always played with a regular beat, the soleá is also often played rubato, that is, slowing down and speeding up the tempo to enrich its expressive quality, in which case "palmas" and any other percussion are avoided. Of course regular tempo is also frequent, and it is mandatory when it is played and sung to accompany a dancer. Tempo rubato is an Italian musical term for slightly speeding up or slowing down the tempo as well as altering the relationships among the written note values. ... In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for time) is the speed or pace of a given piece. ... A percussion instrument can be any object which produces a sound by being struck with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration. ...

Harmonic structure

Soléa develops in Phrygian mode. To symplify, we could say it is traditionlly played in E Phrygian (often also in A Phrygian). To adapt to the pitch of the singer, guitarists can use a capo, so that they can play in other keys preserving the traditional chord positions. Modern guitarists, though, often play soleá using other chord positions or even changing the tuning of the guitar to experiment with new sounds, especially in solo instrumental pieces.

The typical flamenco progression A minor, G, F, E (called Andalusian progression) is heard several times during the development of the song. A usual progression with a four-line stanza (played in E Phrygian) is the following:

• first line: E7, Am,
• transition to 2nd line: Am, G, (or F, G)
• 2nd line: F, E
• 3rd line: G7, C (or C7)
• 4th line: Am, G, F, E, F, E

And a usual progression with a three-line stanza:

• first line: E7, Am
• 2nd line: G7, C
• 3rd line: Am, G, F, E, F, E

The guitar in the soleá

Soleá guitar style is easily identified by its metre and Phrygian mode, but also by a series of characteristic strummings and phrases which are heard several times, called "llamadas", with multiple variations, along a song or solo piece. A modern guitarist, when playing soleá, will combine longer musical fragments called "falsetas" with these characteristic strummings and phrases, which are used to mark the beginning and end of the falsetas and to show the singer (if there is one) that the falseta is over and he can start singing.

When a guitarist plays in E key, he is said to play "por arriba" ("up"), while, if he plays in A phrygian, he is said to play "por medio" ("in the middle"). The reason for this is that most flamenco singers and guitarists do not usually have any formal musical training: they cannot identify the key, but only the position of the fingers.

Soleá guitar playing is extremely rich in tecniques and rhythmic play. This has made it a favourite among solo concert guitarists. Among the guitarists that have excelled in this "palo" for solo concert are Ramón Montoya, Sabicas, Paco de Lucía, Gerardo Núñez and Rafael Riqueni. Ramón Montoya (born November 2, 1880, Madrid, Spain; Died 1949), Flamenco guitarist. ... Sabicas (Agustín Castellón Campos) was a Flamenco guitarist who was born in 1912 in Pamplona, Spain and died in 1990 in New York. ... Paco De Lucia on the cover of El Duende Flamenco de Paco de Lucia (1972). ...

History

The origins of this "palo", as it happens in fact with most "palos", is very much in the dark, and has been subject to much unproved speculation. In spite of being one of the most prestigious "palos", the soleá is considered to be relatively new compared to Tonás and Seguiriyas. The earliest known mention of them, referred to as "soledades", is that of Spanish poet Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, in 1862. The existence of them prior to 1850 is often stated, but has never been proved. Folklorist Demófilo assured, as early as 1879, that they derived from the "coplas de jaleo", a kind festive song style in a very lively rhythm, apparently very popular in the mid 19th century. These facts contradict other views according to which the soleá would be the origin of the rest of flamenco "palos" and was from the beginning a serious and solemn style. In their primitive stages, soléa, as well as jaleo, seem to have been linked to gypsy environments in several towns of the provinces of Cádiz and Seville. Tonás is the name given to a palo or type of flamenco songs. ... Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer (February 17, 1836 – December 22, 1870) was a Spanish writer of poetry and short stories, now considered one of the most important figures in Spanish literature. ... 1862 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Nickname: Tacita de plata (little silver cup) Location within Spain Province Cádiz Mayor Teófila Martínez (PP) Area    - City 12. ... NO8DO (I was not abandoned) Location Coordinates : ( ) Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Sevilla (Spanish) Spanish name Sevilla Founded 8th-9th century BC Postal code 41001-41080 Website http://www. ...

The golden age of the soleá is considered to be the last quarter of the 19th century, at the time when the "café cantante" (musical café) was the preferential venue for flamenco artists. Most of the soleá melodies we know have been attributed to singers who were active at that time. With the turn of the century, other "palos" like those belonging to the group "cantes libres" like malagueña, tarantas, or Cartageneras took the supremacy. At the times of the "Ópera Flamenca", it was further displace by Fandangos, popular songs fashioned to the Bulerías rhythm and "cantes de ida y vuelta" like the Guajiras. Cartageneras are a flamenco palo belonging to the category of the Cantes de las minas (in English, songs of the mines) or cantes minero-levantinos (eastern miner songs). ... ... A bulerias is a fast flamenco rhythm in 12 beats with emphasis in two general forms as follows: 1 2 [3] 4 5 [6] 7 [8] 9 [10] 11 [12] or 1 2 [3] 4 5 6 [7] [8] 9 [10] 11 [12] When performed, the buleria usually starts on... Guajira is a style of Cuban acoustic music. ...

During the 50s-70s, at the time of the neo-traditionalism of Antonio Mairena and his school, the style went back into favour, becoming, together with Seguiriyas and Tonás one of the most valued by flamenco artists, critics and public. The soleá went again into disfavour after the birth of New Flamenco. Followers of Camarón de la Isla and his school tend to pay less attention to traditional, "hard" styles, and favour other more festive "palos" like Bulerías or tangos, which are easier to mix with pop and commercial music influences. Antonio Cruz García, known as Antonio Mairena (Mairena del Alcor, Seville, Spain, 1909-Seville, 1983) was a famous flamenco singer. ... Tonás is the name given to a palo or type of flamenco songs. ... New Flamenco (Nuevo Flamenco) is the name for a Flamenco music style, which is influenced by many different modern musical genres. ... Camarón de la Isla (born December 5, 1950, Cádiz, Spain; Died July 2, 1992, Barcelona, Spain), stage name of flamenco singer José Monge Cruz. ... A bulerias is a fast flamenco rhythm in 12 beats with emphasis in two general forms as follows: 1 2 [3] 4 5 [6] 7 [8] 9 [10] 11 [12] or 1 2 [3] 4 5 6 [7] [8] 9 [10] 11 [12] When performed, the buleria usually starts on...

Main soleá styles

Soleá "styles" (or rather, we should say "melodies") are traditionally classified under their geographical origin and then by the singer they have been attributed to. These facts are not to be taken as absolute truths. Many times, these attributions rely solely on the oral tradition and the beliefs of singers and the flamenco environment, but rarely on evidence. Even when we know for sure that those singers had an important role in any of these melodies, it cannot be assured that he they "created" it. Maybe they just made it popular, or at most developed it.

Soleares from Alcalá

Although the most recent among the traditional styles, some of the Alcalá ones are the most widely sung. The most famous singer of this area, to whom several styles have been attributed, is Joaquín el de La Paula (1875-1933). His four-line style, sung in the low registers and very restrained, is very oten used as an introductory stanza to other more high-pitched ones. Alcalá de Guadaira (Alcalá from the Arabic al-kala, castle) is a town located approximately 10 km southeast of Seville, Spain; in recent years the expansion of Seville has meant that Alcalá has become a suburb of that city. ...

Soleares from Triana

Triana is a quarter in Seville. The styles of this area are usually more melodic and musical. They are very difficult to classify, owing to their large number of styles and variations. Most attributions to a particular singer are also doubtful. Triana is a neighborhood in the city of Seville, Spain. ... NO8DO (I was not abandoned) Location Coordinates : ( ) Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Sevilla (Spanish) Spanish name Sevilla Founded 8th-9th century BC Postal code 41001-41080 Website http://www. ...

• "La Andonda". Very little is known of this gypsy singer. Some styles of soleá have been attributed to her, but there is no proof that they actually have anything to do with her.
• Styles of Ramón El Ollero. Several styles are attributed to him.
• Styles of El Zurraque. El Zurraque is an area in Triana, where potters used to have their workshops. For this reason, these styles are often called "soleares alfareras" (potters' soleares).
• Soleares from Córdoba. They are supposed to derive from the styles of Ramón El Ollero. They were carried to Córdoba by a singer called Onofre, and are often known as "Soleares de Onofre".

Location Coordinates : 37° 53’N , 4°46′0″W Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Córdoba (Spanish) Spanish name Córdoba Founded 8th century BC Postal code 140xx Website http://www. ...

Soleares from Cádiz

• By Enrique el Mellizo (1848-1906). Several styles have been attributed to this singer, one of the most influential in the evolution of flamenco singing for his contributions to several "palos". Other frequent styles include those of Paquirri.

Nickname: Tacita de plata (little silver cup) Location within Spain Province Cádiz Mayor Teófila Martínez (PP) Area    - City 12. ... Enrique Jiménez Fernández (Cádiz, 1848-1906), known as Enrique el Mellizo was a famous flamenco singer, the most influential one in the development of the Cádiz flamenco styles. ...

Soleares from Jerez

They are considered to be mostly variations from other local styles. However, those by Frijones (probably born in 1846) have original quality. Location of Jerez de la Frontera Municipality Cádiz Mayor Pilar Sánchez Muñoz Area    - City 1,186 km²  - Land 1,186 km²  - Water 0. ...

Soleares from Lebrija

The most famous are those by singer Juaniquí, of whom there is little reliable information. Location of Lebrija within the Province of Seville Province Seville Mayor Jerónimo Pérez Méndez (PA) Area    - City 372 km²  - Land 372 km²  - Water 0. ...

Soleares from Utrera

All styles from Utrera are attributed to La Serneta (1837-1910), a singer born in Jerez, who went to live in Utrera when she was young. Utreras Castle Utrera is a town in Andalucia in south-west Spain. ...

Listen to Soleares clip(30 seconds,118Kb)

External links

• Practical guides to flamenco forms: the soleá

• Classification of styles of soleares. With many audio examples.

• Samples of falsetas in soleá style. With notation, tablature and audio.

Sources

ÁLVAREZ CABALLERO, Ángel: El cante flamenco, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 1998

BLAS VEGA, José & RIOS RUIZ, Manuel: Diccionario Enciclopédico Ilustrado del Flamenco, Cinterco, 1988

ÁLVAREZ CABALLERO, Ángel: La discografía ideal del flamenco, Planeta, Barcelona 1995

MARTÍN SALAZAR, Jorge: Los cantes flamencos, Diputación Provincial de Granada