-Alegrías Explained- 

We’re super excited to announce our first comprehensive course! Get ready to understand accompanying flamenco dance, Alegrías Explained is coming!

Subscribers ask us all the time about the structure of the various dances. In response, we did what we do best: We broke it all down. By the end of these lessons, you will understand every aspect of a danced Alegrías. Thanks to the magnificent help from two amazing artists: dancer Manuel Gutierrez and singer José Cortés Fernández, we are proud to announce the release of Alegrías Explained.

Why Alegrías?

Alegrías is the best place to start to understand how to accompany for dance. This danced palo has more distinct sections than any other dance. Also, many of the sections are found in other dances as well. Therefore, once you understand the concepts necessary to accompany Alegrías, you’ll have the foundation to jump into almost any other Palo. (And our Survival Guide videos can help you even more when it comes to learning to accompany a new Palo from scratch.)

Alegrías Explained will take you through every section and every transition you might run into. And if you haven’t experienced this yet first-hand, it’s the transitions more than anything that confuse guitarists as they start to accompany dance. Let the confusion end now!

Traditional and captivating

The heart of this Alegrías Explained course is the performance of a traditional danced Alegrías. Inside this course, the structure is analyzed by looking at each section individually. Then we analyze the way each section connects to what comes before and after. We include all of the possible sections of the dance: from the opening falseta through the letras, llamadas, subidas, silencio, castellana, escobilla, through to the Buleria de Cadiz and closing the dance. 

Learn and understand what is actually happening.

But you won’t need flash cards to remember all these words! There may be a lot to a danced Alegrías, but when it’s broken down, you will have the comprehension and understanding of what is happening.

First we’ll show you the sections and transitions. Then we’ll explain what to look and listen for, who’s doing what when and what it’s called. Finally, the “behind the scenes” feel of what happens before a real performance: you can experience Kai, Manuel and José discuss what’s tricky and what’s important about each section.

Additionally, Alegrías Explained will also reveal alternative ways of playing, dancing or singing the section in question, so you will definitely want to catch this part.

Scenes from the next episode….

We’re breaking down these sections and transitions into episodic videos. It’s a lot to learn as a whole. Therefore, these concepts will be a lot easier to comprehend when logically broken down. Each video episode will include the transition from the previous section, the section itself, and the transition into the next section. As a result, this will really allow you to grasp those transitions and how the dance’s sections are connected.

You will be able to start at the beginning and learn the whole dance structure. Alternatively, if you only need a refresher, you can just jump in at any point and learn about the section you need help with.

As a whole, these episodes from start to finish, will give you the awareness of what is happening inside a danced Alegrías. As a result, you will have the tools you need to learn to accompany for dance.

Tools and Tips

Keep your eye out in the description of these videos for additional links to helpful tools and tips. You will likely come across material inside a section that you need more help with (ie: falseta or silencio). Look for the provided links to related video tutorials elsewhere on Flamenco Explained. These links will direct you to that material you will need to play from those various sections. 

This will save you years of confusion.

Alegrías Explained is the next best thing to spending years accompanying dance classes in order to learn how it all works. If you’re willing to put in some time we’re sure you’ll come away with a real understanding of how the structure of a dance works, what to look for, and what you need to work on next to up your game!

The episodic lessons included in Alegrías Explained are:

• Introduction (Starting the dance)
• First Letra and Coletilla and 2nd Llamada
• 2nd Letra and Subida
• Silencio
• Castellana
• Escobilla
• BONUS Video – Some thoughts on Alegrías and flamenco in general
• Buleria de Cadiz
• Estribillo or TiritiTran
• Ending the piece
• BONUS Video – Accompanying letras por Cantiña

Release Schedule

Alegrías Explained is set for release May 4th with a new episode every Saturday. Keep an eye on your inbox for our Newsletter, and our social media pages: Instagram & Facebook, for more information.